Premium Essay

Mountaintop Removal in Appalachia

In:

Submitted By Jycee
Words 1016
Pages 5
Mountaintop Removal in Appalachia There is nothing more beautiful or peaceful as the Mountains of Appalachia. Whether you are in Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, or West Virginia, the mountains are breathtaking…until you see the bare, flattened remains of mountaintop removal. In 1990 the coal industry was given new life by the Clean Air Act, which restricted sulfur dioxide emissions believe to cause acid rain. This increased the demand for low sulfur coal which is abundant in central Appalachia. (McQuaid) Coal mining has always been one of the hardest, nastiest, unhealthiest and most dangerous jobs, but in some form vital. Mountaintop removal is controversial because it is destroying the mountains and polluting the streams in this area, but the other side would argue it is necessary for needed jobs and to keep electricity prices low. I am going to argue that the destruction caused by mountaintop removal by far outweighs the benefits. There are many reasons to be opposed to mountaintop removal. This type of coal removal has changed the shape, altitude, and ecology of large areas of the Appalachian coalfields. The mud and loose debris carried from the runoff through the hollow fills has been a factor in flooding and pollution. This type of mining (MTR) has been one cause for a decrease in mine related employment in Appalachia. One reason mountaintop removal is undesirable is the amount of change and damage it creates. There are six stages to mountaintop removal: clearing, blasting, digging, dumping waste, processing, and reclamation. First the trees and vegetation are clear cut or in some instances bulldozed and pushed into a pile and burned. Then a pad is leveled and a series of holes are drilled where dynamite or ammonia nitrate is placed and section by section the mountain top is blown off. As much as 500 to 800 feet of the top of the mountain is removed.

Similar Documents

Free Essay

Appalachias History and System Properities

...pertaining the two sources I read titled Crimes Against Nature and A walk in the woods. I will be discussing and diagnosing the transformation of landscapes and communities within Appalachia from an ecological, economic, and geographic view points. In correlation with the different systems and properties practiced by the communities within Appalachia, I will delve deeper into the more specific subcategories with the intention of making the information easier to understand. The primary ecological impacts that will be addressed are exploitists, mountaintop removal and its repercussions, annihilation of wildlife and endangered species, and the destruction of the surrounding natural environments driven by human goals. On the economic side of things the primary topics of discussion will be income, living conditions, isolationism, homogeneity, maximization of overall utility, timber and natural resources exploitation without resilience. Geographic view points, the final topic of discussion will pertain to environmental monitoring systems, human habitation, evolving spatial patterns, and the outcome of relative location isolation. A major issue behind the driving force of Appalachia's ecological impacts starts with the exploitation of natural resources. Timber is one of the primary resources Appalachia has to offer and it began being harvested in the very early ages. Around 1930 the federal government decided to begin buying acreage in Kentucky. Having the land already stripped,...

Words: 1582 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Mountaintop Removal Research Paper

...Tyler Bray Dr. Hooper ENG 110 12 November 2017 The Appalachian Mountains are being blasted and disfigured every day by the process known as mountaintop removal mining. The natural landscape is being forever changed and the effects are detrimental to the environment surrounding it and the people surrounding it. It benefits a small number of corporations at the expense of the environment and communities existing in neighboring areas. In fact, over 1.2 million acres of once lush forests and over five-hundred mountains in the Appalachia’s have been completely destroyed by mountaintop removal coal mining (Perks 1). Mountaintop removal mining has created an extensive amount of problems in the Appalachians including human health, community,...

Words: 1345 - Pages: 6

Free Essay

The Timber Industry in the Pacific Northwest

...the damage they were doing. They concentrated on how to maximize profit and production. The United States Forestry Service’s first attempts at regulating the industry was to strip all “old growth” to allow for “new growth”, but actually did more harm than good. The new trees did not grow fast enough to replace the older trees being removed so the regulation had the opposite effect. With the United States entry into World War II, any attempts at government regulation went by the wayside as the timber industry increased the production to meet the wartime timer demand. The invention of the gas powered chain saw and the availability of heavy equipment sped up the process even more. One harmful effect caused by the removal of the old growth trees was the destruction of the habitat of the Northern Spotted Owl. However, it wasn’t until June, 1990 that this owl was placed on the threatened species list by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The plywood mill located in Lebanon, OR changed ownership 4 times between 1941 and 1985. In 1967 it was purchased by Champion International Corporation. In 1985, Champion decided that certain timber areas no longer profitable and shut down several operations, including the Lebanon mill, putting almost the entire town out of work. Regulations by the United States Forestry Service did not become effective until the National Forest Management Act of 1976. The significance of this act is that it mandated...

Words: 1444 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

An Employer and Its Lack of Concern for the Safety of Its Employees

...follow. They failed on their duty owed to the miners, by deliberately treating them in a way in which they didn’t freely and rationally consent to, and were in turn treated as a means to an end, in order to maximize profits at all costs. Also, Massey Company’s unfair treatment towards its miners created a dangerous environment, beyond the regular risks that are expected at a mine. This was to keep profits the main priority even over employee safety, thus using the employees as a means to an end, and therefore Massey Company acted immorally. In 2010, Massey Energy Corporation was one of the leading coal producers in the United States. In fact, the corporation described itself as “the most enduring and successful coal company in central Appalachia” in which they owned one-third of the most known coal reserves. Massey provided well-paying jobs in regions that have high poverty...

Words: 1383 - Pages: 6

Free Essay

Apalachountains

...Must one argue that America was built on the values of freedom? If this is true, which history has already proven it is, then why are we stripping the rights of our youth by requiring them to participate in mandatory volunteering? Before one can even begin to answer this they must also ask what is volunteering? In short it is offering to do something “freely”. Schools should not force our students to participate in volunteering, because they are inevitably causing the youth to be rebellious and devaluing the appreciation for true volunteering. While volunteering may be a seemingly good thing, mandatory volunteering causes young adolescents to rebel against community service and volunteer work. According to the Cognitive Evaluation Theory study, people tend to resist and lose interest in what is being asked of them when they feel they are being controlled by an outside source because of the human nature of individualism(Pearce 1).This is already seen in other school situations, such as with homework. Many children will often refuse to do rudimentary or simple homework assignments. Throughout history, volunteering has evolved into a cultural connection; a common characteristic of humans on a local, national, and global level is the desire to help one another. Although this statement is not necessarily true for every individual, most people feel an urgency to assist friends, family members, coworkers, and/or strangers in need or in crisis. Why should we volunteer? Many people...

Words: 7296 - Pages: 30

Free Essay

Nuclear Power

...POSITION PAPER: COMMERCIAL NUCLEAR POWER Authors Thomas B. Cochran Christopher E. Paine Geoffrey Fettus Robert S. Norris Matthew G. McKinzie Natural Resources Defense Council issue paper: october 2005 Natural Resources Defense Council issue paper Commercial Nuclear Power ABOUT NRDC NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) is a national, nonprofit organization of scientists, lawyers and environmental specialists dedicated to protecting public health and the environment. Founded in 1970, NRDC has more than 1 million members and e-activists nationwide, served from offices in New York, Washington, Los Angeles and San Francisco. For more information, visit www.nrdc.org. Copyright 2005 by the Natural Resources Defense Council. Natural Resources Defense Council issue paper Commercial Nuclear Power EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Because of the sheer magnitude and urgency of the global climate challenge, the United States must consider all forms of energy—as long as they do not otherwise undermine international and environmental security. Unfortunately, the nuclear power industry in its present state suffers from too many security, safety, and environmental exposure problems and excessive costs to qualify as a leading means to combat global warming pollution. Large-scale nuclear plants remain uneconomic to build. And while the nuclear fuel cycle emits little global warming pollution, nuclear power still poses globally significant risks that need to be further reduced, including:...

Words: 9865 - Pages: 40

Premium Essay

Ccscs

...7 Corporations in the Modern Era The Commercial Transformation of Material Life and Culture I hope we shall . . . crush in [its] birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country. —Thomas Jefferson (letter to Tom Logan, 1816) J 1 ustice John Paul Stevens of the U.S. Supreme Court cited the third president of the United States in his strong dissent to the majority’s 2010 decision allowing corporations unlimited spending on behalf of political candidates.1 Quoting the court’s earlier McConnell decision, Stevens wrote, “We have repeatedly sustained legislation aimed at ‘the corrosive and distorting effects of immense aggregations of wealth that are accumulated with Jefferson’s animus may seem curious in light of the history of British corporations that financed the settling of the first North American colonies and, as discussed in this chapter, are often credited with providing the model for representative government adopted by the framers of the U.S. Constitution (Tuitt 2006). 280 Corporations in the Modern Era——281 the help of the corporate form.’” The court’s decision, Justice Stevens continued, “will undoubtedly cripple the ability of ordinary citizens, Congress and the States to adopt even limited measures to protect against corporate domination of the electoral process.” The essence of Justice Steven’s dissent in the Citizens United v. Federal...

Words: 22537 - Pages: 91

Free Essay

Test2

...62118 0/nm 1/n1 2/nm 3/nm 4/nm 5/nm 6/nm 7/nm 8/nm 9/nm 1990s 0th/pt 1st/p 1th/tc 2nd/p 2th/tc 3rd/p 3th/tc 4th/pt 5th/pt 6th/pt 7th/pt 8th/pt 9th/pt 0s/pt a A AA AAA Aachen/M aardvark/SM Aaren/M Aarhus/M Aarika/M Aaron/M AB aback abacus/SM abaft Abagael/M Abagail/M abalone/SM abandoner/M abandon/LGDRS abandonment/SM abase/LGDSR abasement/S abaser/M abashed/UY abashment/MS abash/SDLG abate/DSRLG abated/U abatement/MS abater/M abattoir/SM Abba/M Abbe/M abbé/S abbess/SM Abbey/M abbey/MS Abbie/M Abbi/M Abbot/M abbot/MS Abbott/M abbr abbrev abbreviated/UA abbreviates/A abbreviate/XDSNG abbreviating/A abbreviation/M Abbye/M Abby/M ABC/M Abdel/M abdicate/NGDSX abdication/M abdomen/SM abdominal/YS abduct/DGS abduction/SM abductor/SM Abdul/M ab/DY abeam Abelard/M Abel/M Abelson/M Abe/M Aberdeen/M Abernathy/M aberrant/YS aberrational aberration/SM abet/S abetted abetting abettor/SM Abeu/M abeyance/MS abeyant Abey/M abhorred abhorrence/MS abhorrent/Y abhorrer/M abhorring abhor/S abidance/MS abide/JGSR abider/M abiding/Y Abidjan/M Abie/M Abigael/M Abigail/M Abigale/M Abilene/M ability/IMES abjection/MS abjectness/SM abject/SGPDY abjuration/SM abjuratory abjurer/M abjure/ZGSRD ablate/VGNSDX ablation/M ablative/SY ablaze abler/E ables/E ablest able/U abloom ablution/MS Ab/M ABM/S abnegate/NGSDX abnegation/M Abner/M abnormality/SM abnormal/SY aboard ...

Words: 113589 - Pages: 455