Tagged: mountaintop removal

Three new studies have added more scientific evidence to support ill health effects from mountaintop removal coal mining.

Over the past few years, several studies have presented evidence supporting links between health problems—like cancer and birth defects—that are more prevalent in communities with mountaintop removal mines. But these new studies attempt to pinpoint specific pollutants that could be causing those health problems.

Jason Howard of the Kentucky Environmental Foundation had an Op-Ed in the New York Times yesterday on the ways in which coal--specifically, mountaintop removal coal mining--is dividing people and communities in Appalachia.

Howard chronicles coal industry advertising and the harassment of several coalfields environmental activists.

Third District Congressman John Yarmuth has signed on to a bill that would require an analysis of the health effects of mountaintop removal coal mining. The bill would also put a moratorium on new mountaintop removal mines until the practice is proven to be safe.

The federal government has filed a lawsuit against seven Eastern Kentucky coal companies, alleging the companies discharged waste into nearby valleys and streams without a permit.

UPDATE 1:11pm: Seven protesters have been arrested from Hal Rogers' office. Activists in West Virginia Congressman Nick Rahall's office and Virginia Congressman Morgan Griffith's office were also arrested. According to the group's Twitter feed, those in the office of Tennessee Congressman Jimmy Duncan were given a warning.

Environmental activists are in Washington, D.C. this week for the 7th straight year, lobbying members of Congress to put an end to mountaintop removal.