Water Quality

Turbidity
Turbidity refers to the clarity of the water.This is how many suspended particles are in the water. The more particles the less clear the water. When there is more particles, less sunlight can penetrate into the water. This means there is less energy for photosynthesis to occur in the plants. When photosynthesis occurs oxygen is given off into the water; therefore, less energy for photosynthesis means less oxygen in the water for the aquatic animals to breath.


Temperature
Temperature is very important to water quality, because it contributes to other hydrology measurements like dissolved oxygen, pH, and conductivity. As a measurement itself, it plays its own role. Warmer temperatures allow less distribution of fish, because less types of fish can live in warm water. Cooler temperatures allow for many different types of aquatic species.


pH
In bodies of water, pH measures the acidity of the water. pH greater than 7 is basic, pH less than 7 is acidic, and pH of 7 is neutral. Most bodies of water have a pH level between 6.5 and 8.5. Most aquatic creatures are found absent in bodies of water with pH levels below 4 or above 10.

Dissolved Oxygen
Dissolved oxygen is sometimes confused with H20, water, but it is actually O2. Dissolved oxygen is molecular oxygen animals in water need to breathe. In water there is a lot less available oxygen available at average than in the air. The amount of oxygen available in the water determines what type of animals can live there. Variables that contribute to the oxygen are water temperature, atmospheric pressure, and salinity. Colder water allows more dissolved oxygen. The warmer the water, the more oxygen released. Higher elevations, which mean less pressure, allow less oxygen. When salinity of water increases, amounts of dissolved oxygen decrease. Another thing that contributes to the amounts of dissolved oxygen is the amount of plants in the water, because of photosynthesis.


Nitrate
There are different types of nitrogen found in water. The three main forms are ammonium, nitrite, and nitrate. The most important of these three is nitrate. It is an essential nutrient for the growth and reproduction of algae and other plants. Nitrate is usually brought into waters by rain, snow and fog. Although nitrogen is good fro water, excess amounts of nitrogen can cause tremendous growth of algae and other plants through the process of eutrophication. This excess plant growth can cause distaste and odor when water is used as drinking water or for other uses. The excess plant growth also causes reduced light levels, so plants die and give off bacteria which takes away the dissolved oxygen in the water.


Macroinvertebrates
Macroinvertebrates are small animals without a backbone that can be seen with the naked eye. They are larvae of many insects who start their lives in water and then become land dwelling insects, crustaceans, snails, worms, and leeches. Many species are sensitive to changes in pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, salinity, and turbidity. One could sample a body of water to find the biodiversity of macroinvertebrates in the water and it would be a strong indicator of the water quality.

NO MORE Mountaintop Removal

1. Destroys Land- all the blasting essential for mountaintop removal obviously destroys tons of land.
2. Pollutes water-coal dust, burning, and runoff from coal mining pollutes waters. water is used super frequently for many reasons.
3. Destroys surrounding homes- coal dust, air pollution , and rocks of a plethora of sizes can destroy surrounding homes of mountaintop removal sites. this greatly reduces the value of the homes even if the owner decides to leave.
4. Pollutes Air- coal dust pollutes air magnificently. people have to breath air to live, so this is a big problem. polluted air causes many respiratory problems.
5. Reduces biodiversity of plants- blasting, air pollution, and water pollution all contribute to the doing away of plants in the surrounding areas of mountaintop removal sites. plants are needed for food and are great for oxygen.
6. Takes away homes for animals- when land is destroyed, shelter for animals are taken away. it isnt super easy for animals to just get up and go, even if they are able to and arent already dead. also some animals can only live in certain areas
7. Health problems from coal dust- many different health problems can be linked to coal dust and other coal related pollutions





http://ilovemountains.org/

Pro-Mountaintop Removal

1.Coal makes up most of WV's economy- coal money makes up almost all of West Virginia's money. if we got rid of coal mining, it would take a while to get all the money we need from other businesses.
2. Much safer than underground mining- mountaintop removal mining is much safer than underground mining. there is no threat of cave ins because you are above ground and black lung isnt as dangerous because one wouldnt be in such a confined space.
3. Less money to mine- you have to use less machines to mine above ground so there is a less need of money to mine.
4. Creates flat land for a place for other businesses- the flat land left behind by mountain removal can be used as a place to make buildings for any type of business or other type of building.



http://www.friendsofcoal.org/

Coal Camp

The Gary Coal camp was a coal camp in Gary, West Virginia owned by the Flattop Land Association. This coal camp is in the coal field of Flat Top-Pocahontas. This coal camp was named after judge Elbert Gary, and there is even a small coal camp inside of this larger one which is named Elbert. Construction in Gary began in 1901 and by 1915 there were 1,479 miners living in Gary. These miners were particularly diverse including white Americans, African-Americans, Hungarians, Romanians, Italians, Poles, and others of Slavic descent. By World War II, Gary hosted nearly 15,000 residences, boasting 20 churches, 10 company stores, restaurants and independent retail stores, clubhouses and athletic fields. The community also had a bowling alley, tennis courts, theaters and other amenities. The production at Gary began to descend in the early 80's and finally closed in 1986. 


http://www.abandonedonline.net/neighborhoods/gary-west-virginia/
http://www.coalcampusa.com/sowv/flattop/gary/gary.htm
http://www.coalcampusa.com/sowv/flattop/flattop.htm

Post Aerosols Conclusion

Aerosols do effect climate change through the urban heat island effect and greenhouse gases. Aerosols determine how much light gets through to the surface and when more get through and it is in an urban area the heat will get trapped in the area by greenhouse gases and make the area way hotter than it should be.

Surface Mining

There are three types of surface mining: strip mining, contour mining, and mountaintop mining.



Strip mining is when machines and explosives remove a few layers of land that is covering the source of coal. The debris is dumped in an area close to the mining area. This is a quick easy way of mining, but is very destructive. This damages the area and hurts animals and water sources.



Contour mining is done when the seam to the coal is one a slope of a hill and you need to remove overburden to get to it. This is good if you need to get to the seam, but it can lead to landslides since the overburden removed is usually piled up in front of the mining site.



Mountaintop removal mining is what it sounds like. It is removing the tops of mountains and hills with explosives to get to seams for coal mining. It is a very quick method of retrieving coal, but is absolutely awful for the land. The overburden removed from the explosion is placed in valleys by the mountain which hurts animal environments, causes floods, and pollutes water streams.

Underground Mining

There are five types of underground mining: drift mining, shaft mining, room & pillar mining, continuous mining, & long wall mining.

Drift mining is when the mine enters a seam that intersects the surface and goes at a horizontal direction following coal. This is an easy cheap way to mine; but, It can only be done when the situation is right to do so and there is a good chance of roof collapses.



Shaft mining is when an elevator provides access to the mine and an elevator provides a away for the coal to come out. This is good to get all the coal you need, but they can get very deep. This is bad for water and the hot temperatures you can get from being so deep



Room & pillar mining is when pillars of coal keep the roof up for miners to mine the rest of the coal leaving half of the coal behind.



 Continuous mining is when a miner operates a continuous mining machine to mine the coal. This is a highly efficient way to mine.



 Long wall mining is the most efficient mining technique. It is when huge mining machines support the roof with hydraulics and once the coal is removed, the machine retreats leaving behind the coal.