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Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining Contaminates Snowpack across a Broad Region
Colin A Cooke1,2, Kira M Holland2, Craig A Emmerton1,3
1Environment and Protected Areas, Government of Alberta, 9888 Jasper Ave, Edmonton, Alberta T5J 5C6, Canada.
Environmental Science & Technology
|June 18, 2024
Summary
Mountaintop removal coal mining releases toxic polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) into the air, polluting snowpack downwind. This atmospheric pollution extends across large regions, impacting ecosystems and communities.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Science
- Atmospheric Chemistry
- Ecotoxicology
Background:
- Mountaintop removal coal mining is a known source of water pollution.
- The atmospheric transport and deposition of mining-related contaminants are less understood.
- Polycyclic aromatic compounds (PACs) are toxic organic contaminants often associated with combustion processes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the downwind atmospheric pollution from mountaintop removal coal mining.
- To quantify the extent and composition of polycyclic aromatic compound (PAC) deposition in snowpack.
- To assess the potential ecological and community impacts of this airborne pollution.
Main Methods:
- Sampling of regional snowpack along a transect downwind of coal mines in British Columbia, Canada.
- Analysis of snowpack for summed polycyclic aromatic compounds (ΣPAC) concentrations and loads.
- Comparison of PAC compositional fingerprints in snowpack with local coal sources.
- Atmospheric modeling to estimate the regional depositional footprint.
Main Results:
- Significant PAC contamination was detected in snowpack, with concentrations varying spatially.
- Snowpack ΣPAC loads decreased with distance from the mining operations.
- The PAC composition in snowpack closely matched the fingerprint of local coal.
- Modeling indicated a depositional footprint extending across western Canada and the northwestern United States.
Conclusions:
- Mountaintop removal coal mining contributes to significant downwind atmospheric pollution via PAC emissions.
- Snowpack serves as a valuable archive for tracking atmospheric deposition of these contaminants.
- The findings highlight risks to ecosystems and communities exposed to elevated airborne PACs from mining activities.
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