New Research and Lawsuits Keep Mountaintop Removal in the Spotlight

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New Research and Lawsuits Keep Mountaintop Removal in the Spotlight

By | October 9, 2013

By Brian Sewell While battles over mountaintop removal permits reach their boiling point and lawsuits are filed and settled, new research revealing the environmental costs continues to pile up. In September, a study by Duke University, Kent State University and…

Selenium Spillover: Pollutant Poses Growing Risks to Ecosystems and the Coal Industry

By | April 16, 2013

By Brian Sewell Last year, when the bankrupt Patriot Coal Corp. agreed to phase out mountaintop removal coal mining as part of a settlement with environmental groups, it was partially because the company was on the hook for more than…

TAGS: Alpha Natural Resources Patriot Coal Corporation Selenium selenium pollution West Virginia Mud River

The Export Enigma: Appalachian Coal’s Complicated Outlets Overseas

By | December 5, 2012

By Brian Sewell Recently, coal exports have provided operators in Appalachia with a crucial buffer against the market-driven forces that are shaping the energy landscape across the United States. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, between 2009 and 2011,…

TAGS: Alpha Natural Resources Appalachian coal Appalachian coal exports China Coal coal exports coal-fired power plants metallurgical coal Pacific Northwest coal exports Powder River Basin thermal coal

A Finite Frontier: Facing the Future of Central Appalachian Coal

By | October 19, 2012

By Brian Sewell On Sept.18, Appalachian coal mining giant Alpha Natural Resources announced it would idle eight mines and lay off 400 employees in the first phase of a “strategic repositioning” plan designed to meet the evolving demands of a…

TAGS: Alpha Natural Resources Coal coal decline coal employment coal production Duke Energy Economic Transition Energy Information Administration Progress Energy War on Coal West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy