WRITING HISTORIES OF CLIMATE CHANGE

A mine in the U.S. that has a tragic history is the Consul No. 9 Coal Mine in Farmington, West Virginia. West Virginia, known as a mining state, has relied on mining as a source of income for most of the 20th century. For many towns in this state, the town peoples' lives revolve around mining. For these miners, "coal meant a roof over their heads and a tie to bind the small community" and they "found purpose in coal, proud to know their work was helping power the nation." The effect of mining lingers to this day, in tangible and intangible ways — lasting pollution, lasting health issues, and economic stagnation has caused many people to suffer. Founded in 1909, the coal mine Consul No. 9 was originally owned by Jamison Coal and Coke Company. This company is known for a drastic mining disaster in 1926 with their No. 8 mine, which is close to the No. 9 mine. Forty workers total worked at the No. 8 mine explosion in 1926. In the disaster, 19 workers died, and 21 were rescued. Jamison Coal was charged with negligence as it was proven that the mine explosion was preventable. However it was clear that not much changed in the coal mining industry after the Jamison disaster, because only 42 years later, Farmington lost 78 members of their mining community in another explosion in 1968— this time at coal mine No. 9.  The ownership of the mines had been transferred from Jamison to Consolidated Coal Company by the time the explosion occurred, and at the time mine No. 9 had 99 miners working in total. Only 21 miners were able to escape with their lives. This incident had a large impact on the Farmington community, as memorials are held every year to commemorate those who had lost their lives in this accident to this day. Unfortunately, the cause for this explosion was never uncovered. But this tragic event was the catalyst for a change to occur in the mining community in multiple ways. In this piece, I will be discussing the change that occurred from this terrible mining disaster and how the mining industry has evolved since, with a regional focus in West Virginia.

Due to the nature of accidents that occurred in the mining industry— the tragedy of coal mine No. 9 on the forefront of everyone's minds— and the health issues that came with working as a miner, the federal government was pushed to publish a law in 1969 to protect miners and their health. It was the "most comprehensive and stringent Federal legislation governing the mining industry to date." Mines were to follow federal regulations and go through regularly scheduled inspections to make sure they were managed safely. They would be fined with fees for violations and even criminal charges if there was negligence and clear mismanagement. Health issues like black lung and other lung diseases were also reasons behind the federal law. In 1969, 40,000 coal miners in West Virginia held a strike to "demand better health benefits and raise awareness about black lung disease." The Coal Act adopted new health regulations and safety standards due to this outcry and provided benefits to miners disabled by black lung disease. The new Coal Act prevented many deaths that would've otherwise occurred if the mining industry had continued to be unregulated. In this way, the Farmington disaster was a wakeup call to prevent more tragedies from happening and could be counted as a large success in the mining industry, making it safer for humans.

But while there were many strides made in the health effects that coal mining caused, there was still much more work to be done. As I referenced earlier, West Virginians have a special and nuanced relation to coal mining. Despite the Coal Act, many miners are still affected by health issues like bronchitis, lung cancer, and black lung as a result of mining for a long period of time and breathing in coal dust, not to mention the countless accidents that can occur on the job. Even after all the safety measures, coal mining will always have risk attached to its job that is apparent even now. West Virginians are also affected by pervasive pollution due to coal mining, on top of health problems. Water pollution from coal mining has degraded more than 22 percent of streams and rivers in the state, and they may now qualify as impaired according to state criteria. This means that technically onein five streams or rivers in the state are polluted to the point of environment concern. There are also concerns of leaking gases from abandoned and working mines alike that are contributing to the greenhouse gas problem. Despite all these clear concerns, there is much pushback in the state to shifting away from nonrenewable energy sources like coal, and instead many townspeople hold onto the mining industry for dear life, because it is their livelihood and all they know. The coal mining industry has been in decline in the 21st century, however, and it has led to much dissatisfaction in the mining communities. Despite the clear decline of the coal industry in other places, for many West Virginians, it is hard to pivot away from the industry they have known all their lives and there are efforts to keep the industry alive. The state government is also unwilling to make changes despite these health and environmental issues— Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) earns thousands of dollars each year because he himself is an investor in the coal industry. West Virginia is still embroiled in the conflicting problem of wanting to maintain the industry, while avoiding the health and environmental effects.

Clearly there is much work that still needs to be done to protect miners' health and their livelihoods. In order to shift away from the coal mining industry and onto sustainable energy that is less harmful to peoples' health and the environment, understand and support needs to be provided to miners and mining communities. As seen by the success that was the Coal Act of 1969, there can be change for the industry. With one success at a time, there can be a shift, especially as more and more people are starting to recognize the consequences of coal mining. Already there are strategies to contain the harmful emissions that are produced by abandoned coal mines. Consul No. 9 is actually one of the many mines under the Environmental Protection Agency's methane recovery program to contain these leaked emissions, and 78,742 metric tons of GHG emissions have been avoided since the program started. There have already been impactful changes in the industry, and with time, more progress will occur.