Can Appalachian communities influence mine cleanup, create jobs, diversify economy?

[theHandpuppet]

http://augustafreepress.com/can-appalachian-communities-influence-mine-cleanup-create-jobs-diversify-economy/
Augusta Free Press
Can Appalachian communities influence mine cleanup, create jobs, diversify economy?
Published Tuesday, Oct. 28, 2014

A diverse group of stakeholders, including impacted community members, non-profit organizations, scholars, policy experts, lobbyists and scientists gathered at Breaks Interstate Park at the border of Virginia and Kentucky Monday to discuss the looming issue of abandoned mine lands.

Meeting participants will share information about working with the Abandoned Mine Land (AML) Fund, policy recommendations for reforming the troubled program, and discuss other reclamation needs in the region. The group will explore possibilities for regional collaboration on these issues.

“As coal production declines in the region and we transition towards a new economy, the Abandoned Mine Land fund can play an integral part in providing employment and creating healthier, safer communities in the region,” said Rob Goodwin, technical analyst with the WV CARE Campaign. “The fund was intended to be spent to clean up the highest priority risks to communities and the environment. Without people coming together to change the status quo, payments into the fund will expire in 2022, current funds will not be spent efficiently and large risks to Appalachian communities’ streams will not be addressed.”

The AML fund was created in 1977 as part of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA). The purpose of the fund is to reclaim pre-1977 abandoned mine lands, and it was born from the idea that the coal industry should bear the cost of the environmental and social damage wrought by mining coal. Millions of AML dollars are appropriated to coal states annually, though the allotment process has long been fraught with controversy. This group has hopes for making the process more useful to communities dealing with the toxic and dangerous legacy of abandoned mine lands and has noted that these monies could be used to fuel economic transition efforts in Appalachia.... MORE at link provided above.