Special Collections Research Center

Strip Mining is a form of coal extraction that falls under the umbrella of surface mining. As opposed to conventional mining practices where coal miners travel deep underground leaving the surface intact while removing coal, strip mining is performed by removing earthen materials, known as overburden, and then xextracting coal seams. One other major difference between these two forms of mining is that strip mining uses significantly less human labor than deep mining and relies heavily on large machinery. Disturbance of the Earth’s surface, which can adversely impact environmental quality and public health, and economic implications of a smaller workforce combined with externalized operating costs have made strip mining controversial since around World War II. Due to a loophole in the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMACRA), a new form of strip mining known as mountaintop removal became prolific, especially beginning in the late 1990s. Mountaintop removal, often referred to as strip mining on steroids, is currently the most commonly employed and devastating form of surface mining in Appalachia. Mountaintop removal, or mountaintop mining in industry terminology, is carried out by using large amounts of ANFO (ammonium nitrate fuel oil) to blow up to 500 feet off the top of a mountain and uses large earth-moving equipment to separate overburden from coal and then to create a valley fill. Surface mining, strip mining, and mountaintop removal are terms that are often incorrectly used interchangeably.

This pathfinder focuses on the history of strip mining in Appalachia including grass roots resistance, cultural and environmental impact, and to a lesser extent, coal industry depictions of strip mining and its impact on Appalachia.