Rick's Coal Project Blog
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Coal Mining and Tourism
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Coal Companies and the External Costs of Coal
Friday, July 22, 2011
West Virginia Coal Project - Day 5
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
WV Coal Project - Day 3
Monday, July 18, 2011
Coal Project - Day 2
We checked water quality at Yellow Creek in Canaan Valley. Dissolved oxygen, dissolved solids(conductivity), pH, temperature, and turbidity were the categories checked. The water quality was better than we expected largely because the pH was higher at 6.1 than anticipated. The overall water quality was moderately good. The next place we visited was where coke ovens were once used to prepare coal for use in the production of coal. These ovens have been abandoned and is now an historical site pprotected by archeology laws. The next site we sampled was located at Douglas Falls on the Blackwater River. This site is an example of iron pyrite entering a stream and a bacteria called thiobacillus, a chemoautotroph, thrives in the environment. Sulfuric acid is produced with iron collecting on the rocks and streambed. This causes the streambed and banks to appear orange or rust-colored. This rust is called yellowboy. The water quality was moderate to low due to acid mine runoff and blowouts from flooded abandoned. The pictures are of Yellow Creek and Douglas Falls.
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Opening Day
This is the first day of our fact-finding mission to learn about coal in West Virginia. Our first stop was at a wind turbine farm offering an alternative to fossil fuels like coal. Bonnie Conner and I calculated the angular velocity of turbine blades and found the speed to be around 130 mph. We saw first hand the longterm damage to streams and watersheds in the town of Thomas, WV. The high sulfur content of the coal in this area leads to acid mine drainage and death to streams affected. I hope to discover more positive effects of coal mining than I have seen in my previous travels around WV.