Coal Flashcards
Why is coal relevant to energy? (3)
(1) Important source of power generation for industrial demand
(2) easy to transport, abundant, does not rot
(3) wood has 15-20 mmBtu but supplies housing
What are different types of underground mining? (3)
(1) Room and pillar - pillars of coal support the weight of the remaining rock
(2) Longwall – 1000-ft face of the coal seam is continuously sheared and conveyed
(3) Continuous mining - mobile machine w/ spinning teeth gouges coal from the rock face
What are the different types of surface mining? (3)
(1) Contour mining - along sloping terrain
(2) Area mining - box of overburden is removed then replaced back as remediation
(3) Mountain mining - overburden removed from mountain top
Where is coal mined? (5)
(1) Anthracite - PA (heavy metals)
(2) Bitumious - Appalachia & Midwest
(3) Sub-bitumious - Rocky Mountain + AK
(4) Lignite - Midwest (TX, ND, LA, MS) + MT
(5) Powder River Basin (NE Wyoming, SW Montana)
What are the downsides to coal? (4)
(1) Surface property damage - sinkholes/troughs
(2) Acid Mine Drainage (ACD) - needs lime
(3) Air pollution - particulates
(4) Ground water contamination
What are the property rights issues in coal? Private Land (5)
(1) Split estate allows surface owners to convey property interest in the mineral estate by contract
(2) Contract contains general waiver of liability (Chernicky)
(3) Presumption against strip-mining when interpreting old contracts (WV)
(4) But depends on state (KY)
(5) SC upheld PA law limiting mining in areas susceptible to subsidence (DeBenedictis)
What are the property rights issues in coal? Public land (3)
(1) Split estate issue still exists on public land (41%)
(2) Mineral Leasing Act
(3) NEPA EIS litigation
What is the coal leasing process? (3)
Under the Mineral Leasing Act,
(1) BLM gets 12.5% royalty (8% for underground)
(2) Fair Market Value of the lease is determined by an auction bid, but hard to determine
(3) Lease renewal and expansion lacks actual competition
Give an example of NEPA litigation for coal mining on public land (3)
WildEarth Guardians
(1) P will look for erroneous comment in the DEIS
(2) Environmental impact of CO2 is always changing
(3) BLM need not depend on EIS for its choice between no action and proferred option
- but must not be arbitrary & capricious under APA
How is coal regulated? (2)
(1) SMCRA - the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act
(2) CWA
Explain how SMCRA works to regulate coal (5)
(1) balances env protection + assuring coal supply essential to energy needs
(2) mandates revegetating and restoring the mining area, including mountains and valleys - can trigger CWA
(3) requires bonds to finance reclamation
(4) Min. Nat’l Standard is an unusual example of cooperative federalism as a statutory construction.
(5) State’s authority, once granted, is exclusive and final, unless a state program is revoked for lack of enforcement.
Is SMCRA an effective instrument for reclamation? (3)
No. SMCRA lacks enforcement mechanism to ensure reclamation.
(1) Subsidiary companies that hold the depleted mines go bankrupt
(2) DOI could have insisted on ways to keep corps accountable, but did not
(3) Some states are even more lenient only require “self-bonding” which is an initial showing of good financial health
Explain how CWA regulates coal mining (2)
(1) CWA regulates the fill that goes into streams in valleys during mining
(2) Requires surface connection to WOTUS (Sackett)
