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.
“I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something.”
Edward Hale, 19th century American author
From coal ash pollution to runoff from coal mining, the health of our Appalachia's waterways are threatened.
Latest News
Endangered Species Rulings Could Impact Energy Projects
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed the protection of 445 stream miles in Central Appalachia in January that serves as habitat for two at-risk aquatic species.
Sen. Manchin takes new view of mountaintop removal coal mining
CONTACTS: Thom Kay, Senior Legislative Representative, thom.kay@appvoices.org, 828-262-1500…
Protected or not? Coal company pushes for mine in protected Tennessee area
Federal regulators are considering a proposal for a new surface coal mine in Tennessee’s Cumberland Mountains, despite the fact that in 2016, the federal government declared most of the area in question off-limits to surface mining.
Over 100 Miners Heading to Washington to Advocate for Black Lung Benefits
Over 100 miners from across the Appalachian region are traveling to Washington D.C. this week to lobby lawmakers on a number of issues related to black lung disease, a fatal respiratory condition caused by continuous exposure to harmful dust and rock particles in and around coal mines.
Neighbors of Mountaintop Removal Testify Before Congress
In April, people living near coal strip mines testified before a U.S. House subcommittee about how mountaintop removal coal mining has affected their lives and communities.
RECLAIM Act back in Congress
The bill to expedite spending of $1 billion in coal-impacted communities to repurpose old mine sites for new economic projects has been reintroduced into Congress with bipartisan support.
