Coal Camp

New River Coalfield

 

The New River Coalfield is located in Raleigh County, WV and Fayette County, WV. The camp produced large amounts of bituminous coal. The coal company recruited white people who had recently immigrated to the States and African Americans from the South to work in the coal mine. The owners were Anderson and Thomas Orwell. They were brothers who went into business together and lost everything when the coal mine business fell through. It had a population of 5,000.  After 1945, the mine started to close.The Mine is now apart of the National Park Service . The NPS preserves the coal heritage in the area. 

 

Surface Mining

Strip Mining- Used when coal is near the surface or overburden is unstable. Mining progresses and overburden is placed in the previous mine cavity.
Advantages: faster, less worker death, cheaper
Disadvantages: destroys the landscape, pollution


Contour Mining- strip or surface mining follows the contour of the hill or mountain leaving terraces in the mountain side.
Advantages: Easier to get to the coal, less worker fatalities
Disadvantages: The contour of the land is never restored


Mountain Top Mining- Tops of hills are removed to access horizontal cal seams. Over burdeb is pushed to high elevations. following reclamation, the original contour is not restored. Most controversial mining method.
Advantages: safer for miners
Disadvantages: foundations of homes are damaged from the blasts, deforestation and water pollution



http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/spring07/Bartlett/effects.html

Underground Mining

Drift Mining- Where coal seams intersect the surface; mine enters seam in a horizontal direction
Advantages: cheap and easy
Disadvantages- tunnels collapse


Shaft Mining- common method of accessing coal with elevators, deeper than 1000 feat below the surface
advantages: ventilation is okay, cheap
disadvantages: drilling the holes and charging them poses a huge risk









Room and Pillar Mining- half of coal left behind to support roof, Disadvantage: pillars put pressure on adjacent pillars leading to roof collapse. Roof falls are a constant danger.
advantages: high degree of flexibility, process is repititous.
disadvantages: cost of maintenance is very high


Continuous Mining- Machines usedwith drift mining or pillar mining, one miner operates the machine, varieties of machines used since 1940's. Paired with conveyor systems to transport coal out of the mine.
advantages: constant flow of caol out of mine, uses less workers.
disadvantages: sometimes the machines arent alway productive, then one loses money to pay for the machines to run without results

Long Wall Mining- highly effecient, huge machines support roof with hydraulics and once the coal os removed, the machine retreats and roof caves in.
advantages: can gather a lot more coal
disadvantages: more dust is generated at a dangerous rate



http://library.thinkquest.org/05aug/00461/shaft.htm

How Coal is Formed

     Coal formed in during the Pennsylvannian Period. Dead plant remains in swamp areas form peat. When the sun's light hits the plants it excites the electrons in chlorophyll. The high energy creates ATP and electron carriers. The ATP and electron carroers form bonds with CO2 to make carbohydrates.  After this the peat is pressurized and compacted over many years.

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