STATE GETS $56 MILLION TO HELP CLEAN-UP HUNDREDS OF ABANDONED STRIP MINES

(02/23/2013)

The federal government is allocating $56 million to West Virginia to reclaim environmental hazards caused by abandoned coal mining operations, mostly starting in the 1950s. The state received $20 million to $25 million a year before a 2006 change in the way reclamation taxes are distributed to the states. Many of the companies went bankrupt, placed the property into holding company status or just abdicated responsibility. Acknowledged sites needing reclamation are in the hundreds, but various environmental groups say there could be about one thousand sites, with a price tag estimated at $1 billion to reclaim. The reclamation started with the 1977 Surface Mine Control and Reclamation Act. Part of the project calls for neutralizing acid mine drainage which continues to pollute WV streams.

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