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Coal mining operations are required to reclaim the land. In addition to that there is excise tax on every ton of coal mine that goes into a massive fund that is used to reclaim abandoned mining property. This would include all types of properties, that botched EPA operation at tht gold mine in Colorado? Paid for by the coal mining industry.
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Reclamation is a sick joke. They don't restore the mountain blasted away. They don't restore the soil. They plant a few plants or trees that are often exotics that barely live.
Money (especially the tiny bit we're talking about with electric bills) can't really buy your health back when it has been destroyed by mercury and so forth.
Reclamation is a sick joke. They don't restore the mountain blasted away. They don't restore the soil. They plant a few plants or trees that are often exotics that barely live.
Not only have the power companies reclaimed the land into something desirable here in WV they have built a long line of wind turbines.
Now while the Turbines are as ugly sitting on top of a mountain as is a mine, the are pretty cool.
They come nowhere close to providing our energy requirements though and the "eco gang" have tried to get them shut down because some birds do get killed.
Reclamation is a sick joke. They don't restore the mountain blasted away. They don't restore the soil. They plant a few plants or trees that are often exotics that barely live.
Having seen the results of reclaimed land in particular the long term results I can flatly state you have no idea what you are talking about.
This is reclaimed land which in this case was abandoned property and paid for with current mining activity. It was done about 25 years ago. See the line and how the trees are smaller on the top side of the view? Those are all native trees, most of them were not planted.
Here is one they just completed and whjat the one above would have looked like 25 years ago, it will probably be a development in the future as it has a fantastic view and it's fairly flat terrain..
Not only have the power companies reclaimed the land into something desirable here in WV they have built a long line of wind turbines.
Now while the Turbines are as ugly sitting on top of a mountain as is a mine, the are pretty cool.
They come nowhere close to providing our energy requirements though and the "eco gang" have tried to get them shut down because some birds do get killed.
You do have to make up your mind.
Throughout WV or just in your area, I've seen plenty of pictures to contradict your opinion. The damage to the immediate environment is just part of the story.
These are photographs from the Business Insider, not the Sierra Club and they tell a different story, how do they restore those mountain tops?
One other thing since the topic is CO2 regulation. While the CO2 emissions of a natural gas power plant are lower than coal what is not included is both CO2 and methane emissions created during the extraction process. Some studies have suggested it may be worse.
indeed.
Quote:
Natural gas has been touted as an environmentally friendly substitute to coal and oil production, but a new report estimates enough gas is leaking to negate most of the climate benefits of process.
The EDF found that 65bn cubic feet of natural gas was released into the air on federal and tribal lands in 2013 – amounting to about $360m of lost gas. That, the EDF says, is not only an economic loss, but an environmental problem. Methane, the main ingredient in natural gas, is 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide over short periods of time and 30 times more potent over the long term.
The leaks are the equivalent to the greenhouse gases produced by 5.6m cars.
Wait. Bernie Sanders just said in his speech that "climate change" is real and is man-made. End of discussion?
Well for most that believe in science it's real, funny that they aren't allowed to even raise the issue in all the GOP debates - gag order. Even if they don't believe in climate change it would be nice to hear their opinion since it seems to have received come attention world wide, very odd that in 8 debates it never came up. Maybe it's their backers.
"Let's talk about climate change," he said. "Do you think there's a reason why not one Republican has the guts to recognize that climate change is real, and that we need to transform our energy system? Do you think it has anything to do with the Koch brothers and ExxonMobil pouring huge amounts of money into the political system? That is what goes on in America."
Throughout WV or just in your area, I've seen plenty of pictures to contradict your opinion. The damage to the immediate environment is just part of the story.
These are photographs from the Business Insider, not the Sierra Club and they tell a different story, how do they restore those mountain tops?
The courts are the only thing keeping things together today. They have shot Obama down time and again when he ignores laws and goes out on his own.
In the big picture, when a president decides he is above our laws the people will soon follow.
5/4 decisions, tell me, there is a political agenda to change the meaning of the Constitution.
There should never be a doubt if something is constitutional or not.
5/4 decisions along Constitutional Conservative / Progressive Communist lines only tells me, there is a movement politically to change the constitution, with legislation and not amendments.
The Federal Government should never be allowed to take freedoms and choices(liberty)from the people. Taking it for themselves, what is not theirs to take, without everyone's OK.(amendment)
I didn't look at them all. Those appear to have been taken during operations. Yes it's ugly then. That's not what I commented on.
Some were taken during operations but looking at those pictures do you realize the cost in restoring that type of damage.
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