by Graham Averill

The Facts

• Coal companies use dynamite to blast away entire mountaintops to access coal reserves beneath the surface. The companies then dump the debris into nearby valley streams. Mountain top removal mining has become the dominant form of coal mining in the Appalachian Mountains.

• An estimated 400,000 acres of mountains have been leveled so far and 1,000 miles of streams have been buried.

• More than 1.4 million acres will be lost to mountain top removal mining by the end of the decade.

Perspectives

• “Imagine the Black Mountain Range. Then draw a line halfway down the range and remove everything above it. Then dump that mountain rock and debris in the valley around the range. That’s what mountain top removal mining looks like from the sky.”

-Taylor Barnhill, Southwings

• “We’re trying to show the people that there’s a connection between mountain top removal mining and water quality, and a connection between water quality and the health of our forests, and a connection between the health of our forest and our public health. Mountain top removal mining affects everything. It’s an environmental and public health disaster.”

-Janis Nease, Coal River Mountain Watch

• The existing coal seams in West Virginia don’t lend themselves to underground mining. The coal sits toward the surface of the mountains, and because of the terrain, we have to build a surface mine, we have to build a valley fill. Mountain top removal is simply a function of the geology. There is no better alternative.”

-Jason Bostic, West Virginia Coal Association

In Your Backyard

• Mountain top removal mining sites exist across the Southeast, but West Virginia, eastern Kentucky, and southwest Virginia suffer the most from this invasive form of mining. To date, 500 square miles have been removed from West Virginia’s ranges alone.

Get Involved

• Speak Out: Ask your representative to co-sponsor the Clean Water Protection Act, which would classify mountain top debris as waste, making it illegal for coal companies to deposit the debris in nearby streams. www.congress.org.

• Take a Tour: Southwings is a nonprofit organization comprised of volunteer pilots that take politicians, conservation groups, and concerned citizens on aircraft tours of mountain top removal sites. Encourage your local representatives to book a flight with Southwings to gain perspective on this devastating issue. www.southwings.org.