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In response to negative land effects of coal mining and the abundance of abandoned mines in the US the federal government enacted the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, which requires reclamation plans for future coal mining sites. These plans must be approved by federal or state authorities before mining begins.
Although the effects of coal mining take a long time to impact the environment the burning of coals and fires which can burn up to decades can release flying ash and increase the greenhouse gasses. Specifically strip mining that can destroy landscapes, forests, and wildlife habitats that are near the sites. [85]
Mountaintop removal coal mining in Martin County, Kentucky Strip mining in Barnesville, Ohio. Environmental justice and coal mining in Appalachia is the study of environmental justice – the interdisciplinary body of social science literature studying theories of the environment and justice; environmental laws, policies, and their implementations and enforcement; development and ...
A January 2010 report in the journal Science reviews current peer-reviewed studies and water quality data and explores the consequences of mountaintop mining. It concludes that mountaintop mining has serious environmental impacts that mitigation practices cannot successfully address. [61]
Coal pollution mitigation is a series of systems and technologies that seek to mitigate health and environmental impact of burning coal for energy. Burning coal releases harmful substances that contribute to air pollution, acid rain , and greenhouse gas emissions.
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an integral component of planning, development, and management of various industrial activities. It is widely implemented in many national jurisdictions and industrial developments. [1] However, the application of EIA and related environmental management frameworks remains underdeveloped for deep-sea mining.
The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) is the primary federal law that regulates the environmental effects of coal mining in the United States. SMCRA created two programs: one for regulating active coal mines and a second for reclaiming abandoned mine lands.
After delay and litigation, the EPA now has a court-imposed deadline of 16 March 2011, to issue its report. Surface coal mining has the greatest impact on the environment due to its unique extraction process requiring drilling and blasting, which releases macro amounts of airborne particles into the air.