North Carolina legislator files bill to ban use of coal mined by mountaintop-removal strip mining

A legislator in North Carolina, the state that supposedly ranks second in the use of coal mined by removing mountaintops, filed a bill this week to ban use of coal mined in that way.

"Mountaintop removal coal mining is an extremely destructive form of strip mining found throughout Appalachia, with some mines as big as the island of Manhattan," The Herald Dispatch of Huntington, W.Va., reported in a story on the bill. "Coalfield residents say that it tears apart communities, poisons water supplies, pollutes the air and destroys our nation's natural heritage – while only making the climate crisis worse."

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Pricey Harrison, said, "Mountaintop removal coal mining presents a clear and present danger to the Appalachian Mountains, which are home to a vibrant and indelible culture, stunning biodiversity and enormous economic potential."

North Carolina, which has no coal mines, would be the first state with such a law. Appalachian Voices, a group opposed to mountaintop-removal mining, says North Carolina is second only to Georgia in its use of mountaintop-removal coal, getting 61 percent of its electricity from coal-fired plants.