Surface mining for coal in Appalachia has generated opposition because rock and dirt from mountaintops is removed and placed in valleys and streams. The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM) and states regulate these mines. Mine operators must provide financial assurances to allow mines to be reclaimed. This report examined: (1) the approaches OSM and the states have taken to obtain financial assurances for surface coal mines with valley fills; (2) fed. and state agencies' monitoring of these mines after reclamation and mitigation are complete; and (3) the fed. laws agencies may use, and have used, to address latent environ. problems. The report gathered info. from agencies in KY, TN, VA, and WV. Illus. This is a print on demand report.

An exploration of the energy-water nexus and how fossil fuels energy production affects the quality and quantity of water resources.

"In Southern Rivers: Restoring America's Freshwater Biodiversity, R. Scot Duncan explores the environmental history and future of the rivers of the southeastern United States. These river systems are the epicenter of North American freshwater biodiversity and the top global hotspot for several aquatic taxa including mussels, turtles, snails, crayfish, and temperate zone fish; these rivers also play a prominent role in the region's history, culture, and economy. Unfortunately, centuries of industrialization have impaired the region's river systems, sacrificing biodiversity and compromising their ability to provide essential ecosystem services like drinking water, waste disposal, irrigation, navigation, and power production to human communities. And now overall waterflow is diminishing in the Southeast due to increasing heat and drought brought by climate change. As these and other threats to the region's water supply increase, it may seem necessary to prioritize between using water for natural resource conservation or reserving it for human concerns-but Duncan argues this is a false choice. Combining nature, science, and stories in a series of short, illustrated chapters, Southern Rivers takes readers on an illuminating journey of the Southeast's river systems and the many communities that depend on them. Duncan cogently articulates the challenges threatening rivers, streams, and wetlands in the face of the planet's accelerating climate and extinction crises, then turns to explore the new solutions conservationists and water managers have developed to preserve them. Ultimately, the book is both a call to action and a clear, comprehensive, practical plan to help the Southeast save its water resources and adapt to climate change by restoring the very biodiversity that is now under threat"--