Dr. Michael Hendryx, a professor of applied health science at Indiana University, who co-authored the study, has been researching health issues in the coal mining areas of Appalachia since 2006. He says the research left him with little doubt about the impact of the mining industry.
"I can definitively say that there are higher levels of health problems in mining communities, especially mountaintop removal communities, than others," he says. "To try to pretend that we don't have enough information to try to act, that we don't know what is happening, is unethical. It's immoral."
Not everyone agrees that the evidence is definitive. Nancy Gravatt, senior vice president of communications at the National Mining Association, points to several responses that she says refute the results of studies like Hendryx's. One study by Dr. Jonathan Borak, et al., concludes that coal mining isn't an independent risk factor for increased mortality in the Appalachian region and points to other factors such as obesity and poverty. Borak's paper was reportedly funded by the National Mining Association, though Borak has maintained his opinions are not for hire.
Representatives of coal company Alpha Natural Resources did not respond to interview requests for this article.
Another way that scientists have tried to assess the effect of coal on public health is to measure the air and water quality near both surface and underground mines.
Several recent studies indicate that when it comes to environmental pollutants, mining areas are often much worse off than areas where no mining is taking place. One study collected particulate matter from the air within one mile of an active mountaintop removal site in southern West Virginia, and found it to be 38 percent sulfur and 24 percent silica. According to Hendryx, the silica (in this case, crystalline silica) is a particular cause for concern.
"Crystalline silica is toxic. It's highly carcinogenic, and I think it's the silica in particular that's driving the health problems we've seen," he says.
Another paper, authored by Dr. Laura Kurth of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and slated for release soon, has documented for the first time that there is more ultrafine particulate matter in areas with surface mining. Ultrafine particles are smaller than a tenth of a micron in size, and can penetrate through the lungs into the blood system, Hendryx explains.
Water quality has also been affected by mining. A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in 2011 notes that waste rock from mountaintop removal mines is often disposed of in nearby valleys, where it comes into contact with streams. The study found that the amount of sulfate, magnesium, and selenium in the water increased in proportion to the amount of mining upstream, and in some areas, there was a "very high incidence" of selenium-linked developmental deformities in the larvae of two types of fish.
Large amounts of selenium can be toxic, though it's unclear whether there's enough selenium in West Virginia waterways to harm humans. Still, selenium levels in West Virginia waters have been a topic of debate between community groups and politicians for years. In 2013, a bill to weaken current maximum selenium standards and conduct more research about whether selenium is actually impacting West Virginia streams passed almost unanimously.
One possible source of water pollution is the slurry that remains after the coal frothing process in coal prep plants, in which coal dust is separated from other materials so that the dust can be used. This slurry, and the chemicals in it, is pumped into huge reservoirs, called slurry impoundments, or into underground mines.
Gravatt confirmed in an email that, "On occasion, [slurry] can be disposed of in abandoned underground mines. To do so, operators need to get a permit from the state water authority (at least in the case of WV). It should be noted that disposing of such materials in abandoned, underground mines avoids placing the same materials on the surface in impoundments."
Walk grew up with well water, and remembers that it would sometimes run red from the faucet.
"Anybody with half a brain wouldn't drink it. But you still have to shower in it, you've got to wash your clothes, wash your dishes. Sometimes my parents would even cook with it because they boiled it and when you boiled it, it looked fine, smelled fine," Walk said. He learned later that boiling the water doesn't make the chemicals go away.
Science and communityLocal groups have generally advocated for greater awareness about coal mining's health impacts in three ways: community education, policy work, and direct action.
In 2013, OVEC partnered with the Southern Appalachian Labor School to host a series of public meetings in Fayette County, W.V., to educate people about the impacts of coal mining.
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