They used to say that coal is Appalachia’s curse and blessing. These days most people don’t count the blessing part.
In fact, one of the greatest environmental and human rights catastrophes in history is underway In the coalfields of Appalachia.
A quick overview of the human and environmental costs of coal would include:
MINING: Modern mining methods leave a sterile and poisoned land behind. A video describing the problem of Mountaintop Removal Mining (MTR) is available on YouTube. A slide show also provides aerial views.
Worker safety is also an issue in mining. Coal companies claim that injury rates are lower for surface / MTR mining than underground, but investigators question that claim.
PRETREATMENT Preparing coal for power plants leads to enormous water pollution and public safety problems. Preparation usually involves large amounts of water which is then stored in coal sludge dams that pose imminent threats to people downstream. Waste water is also injected into ground, poisoning well and making people sick. For more information: The Sludge Safety Project
AIR POLLUTION: The area downwind of a coal-fired electric power plant is called the “cone of death.” Dramatic increases in mortality and lung disease show that the direct cost of coal fired power must be measured not only in terms of cheap electricity but also lives sacrificed. For more information: The Sierra Club clean air pages.
ASH DISPOSAL: Water pollution from coal ash is far worse than has been depicted. The collapse of a coal ash dam into the Tennessee River last December involved the release of over a billion gallons worth of coal ash containing at least 519 tons of arsenic, 2,682 tons of barium, 2 tons of cadmium, 207 tons of chromium, 73 tons of cobalt, half ton of mercury, 30 tons of selenium, 3.5 tons of thallium, and 475 tons of vanadium (according to toxicologist Shea Tuberty at Appalachian State University). More information: I Love Mountains
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