Rawl, WV
Coal mining and Water Quality in the Big Sandy River Basin
Lauren Benningfield, AV Staff
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The Big Sandy River lies across parts of three states: Kentucky, Virginia, and West Virginia. The area is mostly sparsely populated, forested land. Economically, the area compares poorly to state and national averages. In 1996, unemployment rates within the Basin ranged from 7.1% in Boyd County, Kentucky to 20.4% in Dickenson County, Virginia. The national average at the same time was 5.4%; the state averages in Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia were 5.6%, 7.5%, and 5.4%. Coal mining is tied with the retail trade as the largest employers in the Basin, employing 17% of the workforce each.
Before the study began, the locals attributed the water pollution to coal mining and poor septic lines. Subsidence, “the sinking of a large area of the earth’s crust resulting from past mining activity,” occurs when the level of water flow is drastically reduced, leaving wells dry. Water loss in the area began in the late 1980’s. The quality of life for the people in the area changed dramatically; a great deal of time and inconvenience goes into obtaining and hauling in water. Property values dropped, and obtaining water can be prohibitively expensive.
The mining that has occurred in the area has thrown off the chemical balances in the water, increasing acidity and raising the concentration of metals. The water in the basin ranges from hard (Tug Fork) to very hard (Upper Levisa). Water hardness is found in areas with limestone rock, like the Big Sandy River Basin. Hard water itself is not a comment on the water quality, but it does increase the ease that metals dissolve in it, making it easier for levels to reach harmful or toxic levels to human and aquatic life.
Water hardness is a measure of the calcium and magnesium present in the water. Copper, a metal whose concentration in water depends on the hardness of the water, was found to be above the safe levels for aquatic life, but considerably below the safe level for humans.
Manganese, another metal, was found to be well above the federally recommended level. Drainage from coal mines can contribute to manganese contamination. Manganese is naturally found in the sandstone rocks that make up the Big Sandy River Basin, and erosion will raise the level of manganese in water. High levels of manganese will affect the taste of water, and may form a black coating that stains clothing and eating utensils.
Tug Fork and Upper Levisa were found to have very high concentrations of iron. Though the Environmental Protection Agency does not place a high priority on iron pollution, high levels of iron will affect the taste of water and contribute to the corrosion of metals and cause reddish stains on clothes and eating utensils.
Sulfates, released from several different metals and minerals occurring in the area (including manganese and iron) from coal mining operations, react in water to form sulfates and sulfuric acid. Sulfuric acid increases the acidification of waterways and can kill all aquatic life. The presence of sulfates in water will give off an odor similar to rotten eggs.
While the area, with deposits of iron, coal, and limestone, is predisposed to water with high acidity and concentrations of metals, the nearby mining operations have drastically increased these contaminants, making it harder for aquatic life to thrive and humans to readily obtain clean water.
