Personal tools
You are here: Home KFTC's Blog Archive 2009 October 19 Less than 3% of former surface mine sites are developed
Subscribe to our blog!
RSS 2.0

Enter your email address to receive emails when this blog is updated:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Powered by Quills
Appalachian Transition
Topics
Topics in Detail…
 
Archives
Find us on Facebook

Join KFTC!

 

Less than 3% of former surface mine sites are developed

by Erik Hungerbuhler last modified October-19-2009 11:37 AM
Filed Under:
Reclaimed Mine
Students from NKU visiting a reclaimed mine site near Montgomery Creek in Perry County

The Lexington Herald-Leader published an interesting article this weekend citing evidence that very few surface mining sites actually get developed once all the coal has left the ground.  Data from this article flies in the face of the coal industry's propaganda that Eastern KY has an insatiable need for the flat land that comes from large surface mining and mountaintop removal sites.

 

Bill Estep reports:

HAZARD — As attacks on mountaintop-removal mining in Appalachia have grown increasingly sharp, the coal industry and its supporters have defended the practice by saying that reclaimed mine areas provide flat land for development in a place where level sites are scarce.

However, development was planned for less than 3 percent of the roughly half-million acres of land covered by surface-mining permits in Kentucky over the last decade, according to state data.

That amounts to less than 14,000 acres scheduled to be reclaimed for commercial, residential, industrial or recreational development, data from the Kentucky Division of Mine Permits shows.

 You can read the full article here.

Propaganda!

Posted by Todd at October-19-2009 12:33 PM
You claim propaganda by the coal industry but it would seem that KFTC would be guilty of the same accusation. This organization continues to force feed the media and coal industry officials with how feasible and close we are to achieving alternative energies. Where is it?

Here's a suggestion, lets look at how well wind energy is working for other parts of the country. Ive posted some pictures and links that pertain to wind energy.

http://www.wind-watch.org/pix/displayimage.php?album=1&pos=9

http://www.wind-watch.org/pix/displayimage.php?album=1&pos=10

http://www.wind-watch.org/pix/displayimage.php?album=1&pos=87

http://www.wind-watch.org/pix/displayimage.php?album=1&pos=88

http://www.stopillwind.org/lowerlevel.php?content=topten_intro

http://www.keepersoftheblueridge.com/faqs.html

Todd

Government Subsidies for Windmills

Posted by Todd at October-21-2009 12:09 PM
http://www.wvmcre.org/links/articles/windenergy_economics_in_wv.pdf

A report detailing the workings of windmills in West Virginia.

Does anyone else get the feeling that Windmills are not the solution? Ive spent way to much time reading about the industry over the last 10 days and the negatives outweigh the positives by a ton! The technology doesnt exist to adequately use Wind for power. Plus some of the issues that KFTC and other environmental groups are fighting the coal companies on (Indiana Bats, Health Problems and Destruction of Hills/Mountains) still exist. Not to mention the whole job issue!

Lets move onto solar energy next, sound good?

Todd

solar panels

Posted by F at October-21-2009 12:21 PM
solar panels may work good around here come to think of it.all this mine land they claim is good for nothing else is flat and on top of hills(goining to say mountains but someone would come in and say just hills now since mining is flating them out) is exposed to plenty of sunshine since no trees are there.plenty of water to cool them with that is to bad to drink they claim.but there may the problem of bats,birds,deer,turkey,elk and other widlife have no place so they can still cry out about the envoirment.what does everyone ele think.