Should Mountaintop Removal Be Banned

I would have to say that from the reading that it can be very harmful for the coal mining chemicals to seep into the ground into our drinking water.

A documentary called "From the Ashes" speaks about the employees, and communities that are supported by coal mines. In the documentary the director of Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign, Mary Anne Hitt, goes on to describe a "life and death struggle" when mine layoffs occur. This means that the employees will lose their pensions, healthcare, and basically their livelihood. It was believed that the increase of miner layoffs was due to environmental regulations, but that was proven incorrect by the US Energy and Information Administration. One of the leading causes is the increased use of natural gases, and a statistical analysis over a 6 year time period proves that when natural gas usage increases, then coal usage

Are you for coal or against coal? Maybe better yet, are you for the preservation of the mountains and nature or are you against it? These questions held such a deep meaning and understanding that on the surface seemed immaterial to large corporations such as the Coal Mining Industry or political leaders within the State of West Virginia. Combating Mountaintop Removal by Bryan McNeil gives us the views of what it looks like from a grassroots environmental activist within the West Virginia coal country. In the book you see how the social and moral arguments are framed from different agents such as the Ant-MTRM (Mountain top removal) organization, the Coal Miners and Union works, to the Coal Mining Companies, and finally the State through political

Surface mining began to replace traditional underground mining around WWII (Bozzi 116). Rather than digging into the mountain to extract the coal, strip mining involves removing the overlying soil and rock that covers the coal deposits (Lutz 1). It seemed appealing at first because the previous known dangers of black-lung disease and cave-ins were now limited with the surface mining method (Bozzi 116). However, surface mining came with it’s own problems, a lot of them being more serious and irreversible than underground mining (Allen 182). This method of surface mining was the spark that created the trend of mountaintop removal (Bozzi 117). Mountaintop removal is the complete destruction of the mountain peak in order to reach coal

This paper will review past practices and policies relating to mountaintop coal mining, evaluate and analyze current research on the impact of coal mining on human health, and provide recommendations for further research guided by logic and in agreement with biblical truth.

Sadly, many men have lost their jobs and become miners. Mining is a job with a steady income; however, it brings home lung diseases and medical bills. Mining used to be this great thing everybody wanted as a job down in Appalachia. Mining effects are much greater than any other job. “Estimates suggest such accidents kill about 12,000 people a year” (“The Dangers of Mining”). In Inez, Kentucky, with a population of only 750, 6% is jobless. More jobs in the mines are becoming more of a hassle, due to the government worrying about working conditions. Siliceous, Coal Workers’ Pneumoconiosis (CWP), Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) are all side effects of coal mining and big concerns to higher officials. ("Mining Impacts"). The median household in Appalachia central is 51% lower than national average, and it is lowering by the months. The environment surrounding these counties is either polluted with smoke from the mines or has litter everywhere. Polluted areas causes species to not come back, or to even die off. In a food chain, if one thing disappears, it messes with the whole system. Working in factories and not needing a college education works out great for half the

Over time, due process should give more insight to the controversy. Even though both sides present great arguments, time should be well managed to define what measures should be taken to deal with all aspects of mountain top removal mining. Most of the debate seems like common sense on both sides. The economic impact is huge for the

It gives statistics on what states have had this happen and how many acres to how many mountains. The article leads to telling people why this is a matter for faith and what we can do to help stop it. It states that the removal is a choice and is not a need.

Coal mining, in particular, strip mining has become the latest casualty of the growing green movement in the United States. What is strip mining? Encyclopædia Britannica Online defines strip mining as the removal of vegetation, soil, and rock above a layer of coal, followed by the removal of the coal itself (“strip”). Most Americans don’t realize the impact this material of biological origin that can be used as a source of energy (“fossil”), or fossil fuel, has on their everyday lives or the nation’s economy. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the mining industry directly employs some fifty thousand Americans with nearly half that number working in the more specific field of strip mining, or mountain top removal

Throughout West Virginia, everyone agreed there was a large amount of air pollution from coal mines. These air pollutants were so bad in the 1990s that the Clean Air Act was enacted. However, this act had unforeseen consequences of its own. Coal companies began to need much more readily available coal. So, they mined coal that was closer to the surface by using mountaintop removal. This resulted in a decrease in jobs for miners because this was a much easier and efficient way of removing coal. The many jobs that were originally created by coal mining were now being cut. Now numerous people in West Virginia were left unemployed.

Mountain top removal is surface coal mining that batters mountain tops and ridge lines. Mountaintop removal started in the 1970's. It is a new type of coal mining that started in Appalachia. Mountaintop removal is currently happening in West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee. It is an extension of conventional strip mining techniques. Mountaintop removal includes six steps. The six steps are clearing, blasting, digging, dumping waste, processing, and

This is a great question that is easily answered. Many economist have been prone to saying that mining, whether near lakes and rivers or not, is the single greatest industry for the economy and should not be stopped for any reason whatsoever (International Council of Mining and Metals). While this statement is true in the fact that the economy revolves around mining, or at least the result of mining, it is false that mining should take precedence over natural resources. Statistically speaking, is was found that the mining industry, both directly and indirectly, employed 1,903,440 people in 2012 (National Mining Association). That same study found that mining industry paid around $45.8 billion in taxes that same year. These facts alone are what the opposition presents as the reason mining should not be regulated, and definitely not stopped all together in a particular region. While the economic positives that mining bring to the table are undeniable, what it comes down to is protecting that land we take from. Scientists have been saying for centuries that we will eventually ruin our natural resources to the extent of no return, and we are definitely not protecting our natural resources. While mining does stimulate and support the United States economy, if we do not protect our natural resources, we will not longer have the means to survive as a

The process of mountaintop removal is a drawn out process that eventually leaves the earth it is leveling unusable. First, the mountain is cleared of trees, plants, and topsoil. The trees below are often cleared as well to make room for the rubble that will take their place. The next step involves blasting the top of the mountain. “Ammonium nitrate explosives” are used to “blast through up to 1,000 feet of the mountain in order to access coal seams” (The Destructive Process of Mountaintop Removal). During this time dust and toxic chemicals like silica, fall over surrounding areas sometimes even neighborhoods and communities. As noted before, silica is known to cause the lung disease silicosis, so it is disturbing that one of these removal sites is within several hundred yards of an elementary school (Hoffman). After blasting, the coal companies dig through the debris with enormous machines. The

Have you ever heard of mountaintop removal? Mountaintop removal is a recently developed way to mine for coal. It started in in the Appalachian Mountain area around the 1970s. More coal companies are using mountaintop removal to mine for coal. Mountaintop removal is a topic that includes many facts. You can learn about the process of mountaintop removal, where mountaintop removal takes place, and the effects of mountaintop

What did you notice on the sides of the roads on your way to Northland College? Did you notice those huge machines in the air, with numerous sand mounds piled around it? Did they catch your eyes at all? Did you wonder about what they were doing and how it was affecting our land? On one hand what the sand mines are doing is effective, but at the same time there are so many different issues that are causing problems with the environment. Even though Sand Mining keeps gas prices at a super low, it should be stopped because it’s causing the environments air pollution by putting Crystalline Silica dust in the air and chemical emissions, water contamination, and is killing animal’s natural habitats.