There are nearly 1 million acres of abandoned coal mines across the U.S. that opened after 1977 which have not yet been reclaimed or cleaned up. Those mines are located in 30 states where coal mining has occurred, or is still occurring, according to analyses by the Western Organization of Resource Councils. The land surrounding these coal mines are prone to landslides and the water on-site is often contaminated due to acid mine drainage.
A coalition has come together to propose new legislation to deal with these so-called zombie mines. Advocates from across coal-mining communities are supporting a federal policy platform that addresses and prevents un-reclaimed “zombie mines” that have not been cleaned up by the responsible coal companies.
Between The Lines’ Melinda Tuhus spoke with Chelsea Barnes, director of government affairs and strategy for the group Appalachian Voices, a nonprofit organization with offices throughout the southern Appalachians. Here she describes what defines a zombie mine, and the environmental hazards local communities are exposed to, as addressed in the proposed legislation.
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