Longwall mining is a technology used to remove coal that is 300 to 800 feet underground. Huge rectangular "panels," hundreds of feet wide and sometimes several miles long, are “blocked out” by digging passageways along the edges. An enormous coal-cutting machine literally chews up and spits out the coal seam in its path, while steel roof supports hold up the rock and earth above. As the machine passes through the panel, the supports are removed, allowing the roof to collapse. As the longwall machines move through the giant panels underground, the surface of the land drops -- usually two or more feet.
Longwall mining was not allowed in Pennsylvania until 1994 when the Pennsylvania General Assembly passed Act 54, permitting coal companies to take all of the coal without leaving supports to hold up the surface. At the time, industry told lawmakers that the collapse caused by the mining would be nothing more than a “gentle lowering of the earth.” They argued that this “planned subsidence” would actually be a benefit for those living above the mines, since they would know when and approximately how much their land would drop.
For hundreds upon hundreds of families and small businesses in Southwest Pennsylvania, particularly in Greene and Washington counties, longwall mining has been anything but gentle. Homes, wells, streams, and fields suffer sometimes irreparable damage caused by the mining. The stress and uncertainties people living in the coalfields experience is impossible to quantify or compensate. Streams and wetlands are destroyed. Wells dry up. Communities are torn apart as people leave homes abandoned and as coal companies buy out homeowners and leave the often permanently damaged structures behind.
Over the past four years, several pieces of legislation have been introduced including the Coalfield Water & Property Protection Act by Representative David Levdansky (D-39) and an identical Senate bill introduced by Senator Jim Ferlo (D-38). Other bills were introduced by by Rep. Camille George (D-74) and Rep. Pete Daley (D-49). The various bills sought to provide additional protections for private property, businesses and water resources impacted by longwall mining. In this current legislative session, no bills have been introduced as of yet.
More than a decade has gone by since Act 54 was passed, and people's experiences in the coalfields have proven the law is in serious need of change. These changes include:
PennFuture is working with a coalition of organizations and community members to urge the legislature to hold hearings as soon as possible on the many issues surrounding longwall mining, and to make changes to the law accordingly.
PennFuture also has been actively engaged in ongoing efforts to minimize or eliminate the devastating effects of longwall. We work directly with residents in the affected areas, assist in organizing community groups, provide technical, legal, and media assistance, and push the legislature to change the law and the DEP to enforce the laws we have for the protection and sustainability of coalfield communities. This work includes ongoing litigation as well as providing comments on DEP technical guidance for the protection of streams in deep mined areas.
To join PennFuture in the fight against the destruction caused by longwall mining, contact Heather Sage.
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