Kayford Mountain in Raleigh, WV is one of the region's
largest mountaintop removal sites (Vivian Stockman Photo)
A dozen leading experts in various fields, biology, hydrology, forestry, ecology, have conducted the most comprehensive research ever undertaken on Mountaintop Removal.
Their findings have been published in the most prestigious scientific journal: Science.
The peer-reviewed paper is a strong indictment of the world's most extreme strip mining, pervasive in West Virginia.
The paper has received nationwide attention during the past few days, and concludes with:
"Scientific evidence of the severe environmental and human impacts from mountaintop removal is strong and irrefutable. Its impacts are pervasive and long lasting and there is no evidence that any mitigation practices successfully reverse the damage it causes."
Researchers from Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina and West Virginia argue the effects are clear, and federal regulators must stop ignoring what they call "rigorous science."
Margaret Palmer of the University of Maryland acknowledged it is unusual for scientists to offer a political position on their research but said her colleagues "all agree the evidence is overwhelming."
Palmer says there is no evidence to suggest current reclamation methods are effective.
The National Mining Association says some of the scientists have "a long-standing feud" with the industry.
The scientists say mountaintop mining destroys forests and streams that can never be replaced, threatening aquatic life and human health.
They argue some of the oldest, most diverse forests in North America have been destroyed, along with 1,500 miles of Appalachian headwater streams.
The article says the loss of trees and topsoil and the compaction of the earth by heavy equipment worsen historic problems with flooding, they argue, while runoff tainted with selenium is causing deformities in fish and could ultimately threaten human health.
The article is based on nearly three dozen studies.
It says the EPA should quit regulating individual contaminants and problems, and look at the big picture of Mountaintop Removals destructive nature.
The National Mining Association says the scientists are trying to hold the industry to an unrealistic standard when it comes to reclamation.
See THERE IS NO FALSEHOOD ON THE MOUNTAIN - Few Will Fess Up
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