Scientists recently, in the face of "differing opinions," made a profound discovery: Blowing up mountains, harms mountains.
This is Earth shattering stuff, people. I mean, wow. Almost as earth shattering as dragging giant industrial equipment into North America's oldest mountains, clear-cutting forests boasting rich biodiversity, blasting millions of tons off the tops of the mountains, dumping the waste into formerly pure streams, and then driving the coal out on enormous trucks.
Well, thankfully, some scientists have finally finished their research, "Mountaintop Mining Consequences," published in the journal, Science, and now they're ready to tell us this is bad. Really bad. Needs-to-stop-now-bad, they're saying. 'Cuz it's not just terrible for the environment and the communities of Appalachia, but also for human health. It's great that scientists are trying to persuade the government to put a halt to mountaintop removal... I don't take it for granite (pun intended, sorry). But it is a little silly that we rely on scientists in order to acknowledge the obvious...
Who would've thought that forcing people and animals from their homes, cutting down forests that help off-set carbon emissions, destroying entire ecosystems, and dumping toxins and chemicals into water supplies would be bad? Well, apparently the EPA doesn't see much wrong with this. Since, you know, they've got rules and regulations in place to... uh... hm.
Enough with the sarcasm. Let me tell you, seriously, about mountaintop removal. Whenever I bring this up, I get quite the shout out of people. They just don't believe me. Why would anyone believe the US government would support blasting the living daylights out of some lovely ecosystems? Well...
Mountaintop removal is a surface method of mining, wherein explosives are used to blast up to 400 vertical feet off the tops of mountains in order to reach the coal within. The extra rubble is then dumped into what they call "valley fills," or just land that was unfortunate enough to be chosen as a dumping ground. Any streams in the valley fills are filled with rubble.
This practice began in the 1960's, and petroleum crises since then have created further incentives for American-based fuel. Today, in West Virginia and Kentucky, over 2,000 metric tons of explosives are used per day for surface mining. By 2012, the EPA estimates that 2,200 sq. miles of Applachian forests will be cleared.
Apparently, it's fine to do this, because after coal companies have finished blasting everything to bits, excavating all the coal and chugging it out on vehicles (that ironically are probably not powered by coal), they cover the newly flattened landscape in some soil, a bit of grass seed here and there, some "mulch" (newspaper), and then let the former inhabitants have a go with it. Sometimes, they even plant a few trees. How thoughtful. Other times? The land is used for "economic development."
Federal courts have ruled, a total of four times, that the US Army Corps of Engineers has violated the Clean Water Act through MTR. Energy companies are allowed to continue mining, however, because in 2007 a judge ruled that "most of the substantial harm has already occurred." So they can have their cake, and eat it, too. The Bush administration helped a lot, by saying it was OK to place "mining waste" directly in headwater (source) waterways. So it's OK to place stuff like sulfur compounds, which are corrosive and a known health hazard, in people's drinking water. Thanks, Bush! I love health hazards in my drinking water, it makes me feel rugged.
Mountaintop removal may have eliminated some worker danger, but it has increased hazards for civilians, destroyed entire ecosystems, ruined families' homes and landscapes... Coal may help power North America, but at what cost? Clean coal is the biggest oxymoron. We know better. Coal is dirty. Coal is costing America too much.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment