End Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining
Photo of mountaintop removal mining by Kent Mason
Since the 1970s, the coal industry has blown up more than 500 of the oldest, most biologically rich mountains in America and destroyed more than 2,000 miles of headwater streams. Despite an ongoing citizen movement to end the destruction, and despite the decline in coal, it’s still happening.
Mountaintop removal coal mining is a destructive form of extracting coal in which companies use heavy explosives to blast off hundreds of feet from an ancient mountain ridge to access thin seams of coal below. The massive amounts of dirt and rubble, what the coal industry calls “overburden,” is dumped into adjacent valleys, burying headwater streams.
To meet federal reclamation requirements, the mining sites and “valley fills” are often sprayed with non-native grasses, and gravel ditches are built as so-called restored streams. Many sites don’t meet the requirements, and even if they do, these measures do little to prevent toxic contaminants from poisoning the creeks and streams below.
Mountaintop removal has a devastating impact on the region’s economy, ecology and communities. Appalachian Voices is committed to righting these wrongs and protecting the mountains and communities. For more than a decade, we have worked closely with partner groups and citizens in the region, helping establish and guide The Alliance for Appalachia and building a national movement 100,000+ people strong through ILoveMountains.org.
We remain vigilant in our mission to defend the people and natural resources of the Appalachian region, and will raise a hue-and-cry against any regulatory rollbacks.
Latest News
America’s biggest bank moves away from mountaintop removal
Pressuring large investment banks to stop financing mountaintop removal has been a strategy of the nationwide movement to end the practice for years. Judging by the progress made by Rainforest Action Network, and other grassroots groups targeting the infamous “too big to fails,” that strategy is working.
Virginia Power Shifters intend to organize and win on climate
Building community and standing up to polluters with grassroots strength: these were among the themes of Virginia Power Shift, which took place in Richmond last weekend. Students worked tirelessly to involve campuses from all over the state, and delegations traveled from across Virginia to join in the hard work that constitutes this amazing young leaders’ summit.
Heroes and Hyperbole: U.S. House Passes Pro-Mountaintop Removal Bill
Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to roll back stream protections in an effort to make it easier to dump waste from mountaintop removal mines into Appalachian streams. Given the makeup of the House right now, this comes as no surprise. But there is a silver lining.
Supreme Court Rejects Spruce Mine Mountaintop Removal Case
The U.S. Supreme Court says it won’t consider the case of Mingo Logan Coal Co. v. EPA, a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to veto mountaintop removal permits. In this case, the permits in question are for Arch Coal’s Spruce Mine No. 1 — the largest mountaintop removal project ever proposed in West Virginia.
Pro-Mountaintop Removal Bill Headed to House Floor
It’s hard to get a good bill all the way through the legislative process to receive a vote on the House floor. Apparently it’s much easier to get a bad bill that far. H.R. 2824 — pro-mountaintop removal legislation that would weaken protections for Appalachian streams — is expected to head to the House floor for a full vote sometime next week.
Appalachian Coal Companies Face Major Fines for Clean Water Act Violations
Two recent federal enforcement actions against major Appalachian coal companies, Alpha Natural Resources and Nally & Hamilton, are a positive sign. But can fining coal companies come close to solving the fundamental problem of water pollution that stems from mountaintop removal?
