Mountaintop Removal: Farewell to Forests
Posted July 30, 2010 in Saving Wildlife and Wild Places, Solving Global Warming
Mountaintop removal is a coal extraction procedure that involves stripping soils, blasting mountains and filling valleys and streams with mining debris. Before any of that happens, the trees on top of the mountains are clear cut.
Appalachia is blessed with the most biologically diverse temperate deciduous forests in the world. Home to some of the most diverse wildlife habitats on the continent, these forests are being destroyed at an alarming rate. As cited in NRDC's issue paper Appalachian Heartbreak:
- At current rates of deforestation from mountaintop removal, the total forest loss by 2012 would be 1,408,372 acres (or 2,200 square miles), according to EPA.
- The loss of forest cover this size means the loss of 3.14 million tons of carbon dioxide sequestration annually.
- Forests not completely destroyed by mountaintop removal become fragmented, converting ecologically diverse interior forest to edge forest at a rate of up to five times greater than regular forest loss.
As the forests are converted from interior to edge, they lose much of their ecological function supporting the floral and faunal diversity of Appalachia. Among the wildlife at risk from the fragmentation and loss of Appalachia’s mature forests are millions of migratory songbirds, like the Cerulean Warbler.
Cerulean Warbler is America's fastest declining migratory songbird. (Photo by: Barth Schorre)
Using maps produced by Appalachian Voices and hosted on SeeSouthernForests.org, it is now possible to get a sense of the scale of Appalachia's forest loss from mountaintop removal. With the click of a mouse users can now see the significant impact this extreme strip mining practice has had on the natural landscape.
Image from SeeSouthernForests.org showing forest loss (in pink) due to mountaintop removal in Eastern Kentucky. View map here (Select “Show Additional Map Data”)
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Comments
Gail Zawacki — Jul 31 2010 10:13 AM
open letter to members of the NRDC Board of Trustees:
Dear Dr. Woodwell, Dr. Schlesinger, and Dr. Speth,
I see from this article (http://www.biofueldaily.com/reports/Campaign_Advocating_More_Scientific_Testing_For_Ethanol_Launched_999.html) that NRDC is part of an advertising effort to have Congress require more testing of ethanol before allowing greater proportions to be added to gasoline.
Unfortunately the emphasis of the testing appears to be limited mainly to the damage that might occur to engines.
I have written before that something in the atmosphere is causing vegetation to die back at a rapidly accelerating rate. I have now been from Massachusetts, to Seattle, to California, and Costa Rica, and personally seen that trees are dying in all of those locations, and the leaves of annual crops are also exhibiting the symptoms of ozone damage.
It is quite possible that the relatively recent addition of ethanol to gasoline is the primary cause of such dramatic impacts - but nobody is testing ethanol for its comparative toxicity to plant life.
As the NRDC is planning to demand testing of ethanol emissions, I hope that you as Board members will encourage them to include the role the resultant hydrocarbons in the mix of ozone - before all the trees are dead, and we can say goodbye to their nuts, fruits, and shade; and crops fail on a massive scale, leading to famine.
Thank you for your attention.
Sincerely,
Gail Zawacki
Oldwick, NJ
http://witsendnj.blogspot.com/2010/07/evidence-that-toxic-emissions-in.html
Appalachia Rising — Aug 2 2010 03:01 PM
Join us on September 25-7 in Washington, D.C. at Appalachia Rising, a mass mobilization calling for the abolition of mountaintop removal and surface mining. Appalachia Rising is is a national response to the poisoning of America’s water supply, the destruction of Appalachia’s mountains, head water source streams, and communities through mountaintop removal coal mining. It follows a long history of social action for a just and sustainable Appalachia.
Appalachia Rising strives to unite coalfield residents, grass roots groups, individuals, and national organizations to call for the abolition of mountaintop removal coal mining and demand that America’s water be protected from all forms of surface mining.
Appalachia Rising will consist of two events. First, the weekend conference, Sept. 25-26, Appalachia Rising, Voices from the Mountains will provide an opportunity to build or join the movement for justice in Appalachia through strategy discussions and share knowledge across regional and generational lines. The second event on Monday, Sept.27, is the Appalachia Rising Day of Action which will unify thousands in calling for an end to mountaintop removal and all forms of steep slope surface mining though a vibrant march and rally. An act of dignified non-violent civil disobedience will be possible for those who wish to express themselves by risking arrest.
For more info, visit appalachiarising.org