As part of the Governor's Task Force on Mountaintop Removal, I had a chance to study the practice. After considering all the testimony at public hearings, my own study, and various documents, it is my belief that mountaintop removal mining should be banned. My conclusion comes from many sources. First, it is not economically useful.
Coal mining is at best a temporary benefit to our state's economy.
The historical record is overwhelming that the presence of coal mining does not contribute to the long-term economic health of West Virginia. In counties where it is found, it is the dominant economic activity. Yet the economy does not thrive. It does nothing for the economy as a whole. If this were not true, the coal counties would not be the poorest in a poor state.