Coal and Water Resources | Kentuckians For The Commonwealth

Coal and Water Resources

E.g., 01/2025
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E.g., 01/2025

Association between Mountaintop Mining and Birth Defects in Central Appalachia

Melissa Ahern, et al in Environmental Research Journal

This study found that the rate of children born with birth defects was 42% higher in Appalachian communities with mountaintop coal mining than in similar non-mining communities.

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Links to numerous scientific studies about health impacts of mining

Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition

This page contains direct links to numerous, recent peer reviewed studies about the health impacts of large scale surface coal mining in Central Appalachia.

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Net Loss: Comparing the Cost of Pollution vs. the Value of Electricity from 51 Coal-Fired Plants

Environmental Integrity Project

Between 2,700 and 5,700 deaths a year at a cost of $23 to $47 billion can be attributed to pollution from 51 of the dirtiest coal-burning power plants in the United States.

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Pollution on the Rise

U.S. PIRG Education Fund

This report examines U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) data on power plant emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and nitrogen oxides (NOx) from 1995 to 2003 and finds that emissions are on the rise at many plants.

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Slow Motion Spills: Coal Combustion Waste & Water in Kentucky

Sierra Club, Kentucky Waterways Alliance, and Global Environmental LLC

Every day in Kentucky, coal combustion waste ponds and landfills leak into our groundwater and rivers, seeping out a slow-motion flood of contamination. As this report shows, every site in Kentucky for which groundwater data was available appears to be leaking. Kentucky is failing to control coal combustion waste contamination.

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Stream Saver Flyer

Information on the impact of our Stream Saver Bill.

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Health-Related Quality of Life Among Central Appalachian Residents in Mountaintop Mining Counties

American Journal of Public Health

This study examined the health-related quality of life of residents in mountaintop mining counties of Appalachia using the 2006 national Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. The researchers compared dependent variables across 3 categories: mountaintop mining (yes or no), other coal mining (yes or no), and a referent nonmining group.

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