Mountaintop removal mining devastates the landscape, turning areas that should be lush with forests and wildlife into barren moonscapes. Most of the time, mountaintop removal will create wet spots that can be used to support aquatic life. To gain a deeper understanding about this topic, you need to learn more about the pros and cons of MTR. The streams also had less aquatic biodiversity compared to waterways that were not exposed to mining byproducts.Another negative impact of mountaintop removal is its alteration of the site’s natural geologic structure.
Mountaintop removal is praised by proponents because it’s more effective and less expensive compared to other methods. MTR cannot be yet considered a major contributor to energy generation in the U.S. (as of 2001, it accounted for only less than five percent of coal production in the country). If you live in the United States and/or are familiar with modern mining methods, you’ve probably heard about mountaintop removal mining. One of the solutions they explore is mountaintop removal. Roughly 45% of central Appalachian coal is from strip mining, and almost 100% of that is mountaintop removal. In the past few decades, over 2,000 miles of streams and headwaters that provide drinking water for millions of Americans have been permanently buried and destroyed.
Mountaintop removal is a controversy in Kentucky. MTR, as it’s commonly called, is the process of removing the land on the summit of a mountain to get to the coal seams underneath. This time-series of images of a surface mine in Boone County, West Virginia, illustrates why this controversial mining method is also called “mountaintop removal.” Based on data from Landsat 5, 7, and 8, these natural-color images document the growth of the Hobet mine as it moves from ridge to ridge between 1984 to 2015. The EPA studied streams near valleys filled with mountaintop removal mining waste, and they found that these streams had higher levels of minerals in water.
To gain a deeper understanding about this topic, you need to learn more about the pros and cons of MTR.Despite these costs, MTR is still greatly favored by coal companies because it reduces the need for hiring additional workers. Also, slurry ponds would be required, which means that forests have to be divided. 1. Mining companies, government officials, and ordinary citizens should find a balance between these factors to enjoy the benefits of MTR while limiting its disadvantages.
The destruction is almost completely irreversible. The key here is to continue the discussion in hopes that, one day, the government, coal companies and residents in mining areas can enjoy the pros without experiencing a lot of the cons. The reason for this is because some citizens of Kentucky believe that it is bad for the environment and others believe that it is good for the economy. Birmingham, Alabama carries the distinction of being the metropolitan area with the greatest disproportionate impact on people of color - people of color bore 65% of the health risk while comprising only 34% of the population, a 31% discrepancy. With more and more people using electronic gadgets and appliances, the … After blasting soil on the mountain, coal companies have to remove the debris to gain access to the coal seams underneath.
And let us hope that we are one step closer to a world free of mountaintop removal coal mining.The views and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of MomsRising.org strongly encourages our readers to post comments in response to blog posts. Huge machines called draglines—some the size of an entire city block, able to scoop up to 100 tons in a single load—push rock and dirt into nearby streams and valleys, forever burying waterways.Coal companies use explosives to blast as much as 800 to 1,000 feet off the tops of mountains in order to reach thin coal seams buried deep below.We have been advocating in Congress for stronger protections for Appalachian people, communities and waterways since 1999. Main page.