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Entries by Christian Thomas

New Data Available on the Footprint of Surface Mining in Central Appalachia

November 6, 2019 in , , , , /by

The area of Central Appalachia impacted by surface mining has increased — by an amount equal to the size of Liechtenstein — despite a decline in coal production.

SkyTruth is releasing an update for our Central Appalachian Surface Mining data showing the extent of surface mining in Central Appalachia. New areas continue to be mined, adding to the cumulative impact of mining on Appalachian ecosystems, despite a decline in coal production.

Rockwool — Industry comes to SkyTruth’s backyard

August 10, 2018 in , , /by

Rockwool, a multinational corporation based in Denmark, is planning to build a new insulation manufacturing plant in Jefferson County, West Virginia, 5 miles from SkyTruth’s front door. If built, the plant will feature a 21-story (~210 feet) tall smokestack that will spew chemicals including formaldehyde, sulfuric acid mist, and hydrochloric acid.  For the full list […]

Satellite analysis shows steep increase in amount of land destroyed to mine a ton of coal in Appalachia

July 25, 2018 in , , , , , /by

Today at 2:00 pm EST, the Open Access journal PLOS ONE published “Mapping the yearly extent of surface coal mining in Central Appalachia using Landsat and Google Earth Engine”. This paper, the product of a partnership between researchers at SkyTruth, Duke, and Appalachian Voices, provides the first comprehensive map of annual surface coal mining extent […]

Lease Sale Cancellation near Chaco Culture National Historical Park

April 24, 2018 in , , , , /by

Conservation victories are often measured in terms of what did not happen. We measure them in terms of species that did not go extinct, of land clearing that did not take place, of anti-environmental legislation that did not become law. This is another of those oblique victory stories about something that did not happen. If […]