Banning Mountain Top Removal in the Appalachians

The Appalachian Mountains are being destroyed because of our dependence and hunger for coal. According to the The Last Mountain, 1/3 of the Appalachians have been destroyed to obtain coal. In the United States, we receive over half of our electricity from coal, producing nearly half of the harmful greenhouse gasses. The coal company, Massey, commonly uses mining practices in which it employs great harm on the environment. Over 2,000 streams have been filled with toxic heavy metals and over a million acres of forests have been destroyed. Consequently, this also greatly affects the ecosystem in which it surrounds. Some of the fish are known to have spinal problems and multiple eyes. Although the mining companies are required to rebuild the stream, it is nearly impossible to restore the stream to its pre-mining condition. Due to deforestation and disrupting the ecosystem, a turbulent rainfall could result in a flooded valley, affecting the nearby communities. The communities around these areas are extremely concerned about the ongoing environmental degradation and the health effects. When the coal mining process of blasting occurs at the top of a mountain, a thick residue accumulates on resident’s homes. This residue has yet to be linked with health problems, but a higher than normal amount of people developing asthma has been recorded in the Appalachians. In my opinion, you are convinced that there has not been sufficient research and enough time to determine the cause of resident’s diseases, but would not be surprised if it were linked to the mountain top removal processes. Furthermore, there is a small town within the Appalachians in which six residents developed brain tumors within 20 years of each other. The likelihood of developing a brain tumor is 1 in 100,000, yet the rate of people experiencing a brain tumor in this town is much higher. In addition, within the Appalachians there have been numerous accounts of cancer and Autism. Massey denies any relationship between mining and the health of the surrounding cities. In my opinion, I think that these practices being used by Massey are directly related to the health problems in the area of Appalachia. Massey argues they promote jobs in the area, yet the communities in the Appalachians are the some of the poorest in the country, some people even refer this area as a third world country. Due to an increase in technology, there are not as many people needed to work in order to mine properly. The Coal River Valley only profits a few hundred thousand dollars from the mining, which does not outweigh the environmental costs. So the Coal River Valley has come up with a different environmentally friendly and economic plan to bring in revenue. The Coal River Valley proposes installing wind turbines; the areas on the mountains have Wind Power Class of 5. This makes the location very suitable, as the highest Wind Power Class is 7. In addition, the Coal River Valley would also receive an annual income totaling millions of dollars. This environmentally friendly proposal would also preserve the Appalachians for future generations.



Reference:

Bingham, C., Grunebaum, E., Haney, B., (Producers) and Haney, B. (Director). (2011) The Last Mountain. (Motion Picture). United States: Solid Ground Films.