Mountaintop removal mining is the practice wherein coal and other extractive industries clear-cut the top of a mountain, blow its top off, dump the sludge into the valley next to the mountain, and scoop out the ore within. 

This type of mining has leveled hundreds of mountains throughout Appalachia and has dumped enough toxic chemicals into Appalachian waterways to wreck hundreds of miles of rivers and streams, leaving them unsuitable for drinking. 

The waste they leave behind in the valleys are often made up of millions of gallons of toxic sludge, often within a stone's throw of drinking water supplies, towns, and in one dreadful case, an elementary school. 

Despite the ravages of mountaintop removal mining, our federal government has failed to act in curbing the practice – let alone banning it, the only sane move. As a result, the residents in Appalachia have suffered increased health problems and limited access to safe and clean drinking water. 

Beyond that, the Bush administration has, over the last eight years, weakened what few laws exist to limit this terrible practice. In one case a law preventing the dumping of mining waste within one hundred feet of a drinking water supply has been repealed. 

Environmental Action is committed to making sure this process is entirely eliminated, not just limited as many politicians have suggested.