Mountaintop Removal Mining Consequences

*Statistics are either direct quotes or paraphrased information

THE LAND

Mountaintop Removal Mining SiteMountaintop removal mines in Appalachia have demolished an estimated 1.4 million acres of forested hills.

Source: Sierra Magazine’s “The Cost of Coal”

Manmade Mine CrackMine cracks form in the land within miles of mtr sites due to the strength of the mining blast.

Source: Danny Chiotos, Keeper of the Mountains Foundation

THE WATER

Effects on StreamsMountaintop removal mining waste has buried 1,200 miles of streams.

Source: Time magazine’s “In West Virginia, a Battle over Mountaintop Mining”

Not a WaterfallMtr has exacerbated mine drainage because there is too much pressure put on the land to filter out the chemicals: arsenic, cadmium, boron, mercury, selenium, chromium, and nickel.

Source: Elise Keaton, Keeper of the Mountains Foundation

Remediation PoolLined remediation pools are used to help filter the heavy metals to drop out of the water; however, they are not always used. Old underground mines are used as well, and they are not lined.

Source: Elise Keaton, Keeper of the Mountains Foundation

THE PEOPLE

Mechanized Mining & UnemploymentMtr mining reduces the amount of jobs in the coal mining industry. MTR mining replaces manpower with machinery, which lowers the coal companies’ overhead cost.

Source: Mountaintop Removal Mining and You website

Poverty RatesHigh levels of unemployment, low incomes, and educational deficits keep many mtr mining counties among the poorest 10 percent of counties nationally.

Source: Earthjustice’s “The Poverty of Mountaintop Removal Mining”

Larry Gibson’s GraveLarry Gibson, who died of a heart attack in September 2012, was the founder of the Keeper of the Mountains Foundation. Over 123 acts of violence were committed against Gibson during his lifetime.

Source: Interview with Larry Gibson