Mountain Top Removal-Part I

In this series of articles, I will explain what MTR is, talk about the laws that govern it and the controversy surrounding the practice.

Mountaintop Removal Mining
What is mountaintop removal mining (MTR)? What justifications are given to support this practice? How does MTR affect watersheds and the landscape? For anyone not familiar with the practice of mountaintop removal mining, these questions may come to mind. For anyone who lives near an MTR mine site, the answers are well-known.

Mountaintop removal is a common form of surface mining that has been in use since the 1970’s. Basically, mountaintops are quite literally blown off using generous amounts of explosives. The purpose being to extract entire coal seams as much as 1000ft below the peak. This type of mining is popular with coal companies because they get more bang for the buck. Mining jobs are all but eliminated and replaced by a huge piece of equipment called a dragline, which can cost upwards of $100million. MTR is simply an efficient and profitable way to recover energy from the earth.

This particular form of mining, while providing necessary energy, can be particularly intrusive to the surrounding area, often causing drinking water contamination, increased erosion, flooding and sedimentation[1], damage to home foundations[2] and some serious noise pollution[3]. Communities in the vicinity of mountaintop removal sites tend to suffer from decreased home values and depressed quality of life. Those who choose to leave may have trouble finding a buyer willing put up with the same conditions they themselves are trying to escape.

Personally, I don’t agree with the practice. A big problem I and others have with mountaintop removal, besides the complete destruction of a mountain, is the way the mining byproducts are handled. MTR operations are usually granted an AOC variance[4] creating excess spoil[5] which is disposed of in valley fills.[6] Coal slurry[7] impoundments are held in place by sludge dams constructed from excess spoil which can be unstable and prone to leakage.

For more information, here is an article from Earth Observatory: http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/MountaintopRemoval/

[1] To facilitate MTR mining, the area is first clear-cut, exposing bare soil to the elements.
[2] Blasting is so strong it is often felt in nearby communities, causing structural damage to homes. [3] MTR operations can work 24 hours a day as close as 300ft to residential areas.
[4]
SMCRA requires mine sites to be reclaimed to Approximate Original Contour. Basically this means they must leave the site looking about the same as it did before it was mined. A variance or waiver can be granted if the proposed reclamation meets certain conditions. When a variance is granted, excess spoil is created because not all of the overburden is returned to the site.
[5] In surface mining, soil and rock overburden must be fractured and removed. These broken pieces of rock are referred to as spoil. Since the fractured rock has more volume than when it was undisturbed, the volume becomes greater. [6] A valley fill is the disposal of excess spoil by pushing it into the adjacent valley, burying headwaters streams and aquatic habitat. [7] Coal slurry is the left over wash water used to process coal in preparation for distribution. The water is usually contaminated with pollutants such as mercury and arsenic which are toxic to aquatic life and harmful to humans as well.