Congressman Sander Levin

Mountaintop Removal Mining

Mountaintop removal is one of the most controversial coal mining practices. It used to be that mining companies would tunnel into mountains to remove the seams of coal, but in recent years, mining companies have begun extracting coal by literally removing the mountains on top of it. At these sites, the top 100 feet or more of a ridgeline is shaved of its trees, blasted with explosives and then scraped away.

The practice results in a lot of soil erosion, and there is also the problem of what becomes of the tons of rubble leftover from the former mountain. Mountaintop removal creates an immense quantity of excess dirt and rock that previously composed the mountaintop, which is typically placed in valley fills on the sides of the former mountains, burying streams that flow through the valleys.

Mountaintop removal coal mining has negatively affected forest areas and streams, especially since there are toxic chemicals in the debris. The Bush Administration successfully pushed for regulations that make it easier for fill material to be dumped into stream beds. I believe it’s wrong for the federal government to give mining companies a free pass to dump their waste into streambeds. That’s why I’ve cosponsored legislation by Representative Pallone of New Jersey called the Clean Water Protection Act [H.R. 1310] that would help end this destructive environmental practice.

(Updated June 19, 2009)