In November 2009, Eco-Justice Collaborative (www.ecojusticecollaborative.org) traveled with representatives of Topless America and the Sierra Club to central Illinois to take a first-hand look at longwall mining. This highly-mechanized form of mining includes planned subsidence, causing land to drop from 4 to 6 feet. It is occurring under some of the best farmland in the world, trading prime farmland for cheap coal. As land subsides, foundations crack and septic systems and wells are affected. Residents often leave their homes and farms, depopulating and destroying what used to be cohesive communities, rather than negotiate repairs with mining companies. Longwall mining is Illinois form of mountaintop removal mining. As with mountaintop removal mining, toxic chemicals are used to process coal. Evidence suggests that these chemicals are leaching into ground water and water supplies at selected locations. This video highlights impacts in central Illinois Macoupin County, and takes an initial look at the proposed Deer Run Mine in Montgomery County which, if constructed as planned, will be the largest coal mine in the U.S. To learn more, contact Pam or Lan Richart at ejc@ecojusticecollaborative.org or Citizens Against Longwall Mining: edmiston@abingdon.net.

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