This casebook explores the law of hard minerals, as opposed to oil and gas law. It presents the law dealing with mineral estates, mining easements, mineral leases, and mining operations on private land, with particular reference to state and federal regulatory schemes inherent in the federal Surface Mining Control and Regulation Act of 1977 (SMCRA), as amended. From the mine, the book follows the stream of commerce for coal to the electric utility plant, exploring its transportation and the energy and environmental law regulatory schemes applicable at many points along the way, with particular reference to utility rate regulation and the Clean Air Act amendments from the 1970s forward.

This book, the result of a congressionally mandated study, examines the adequacy of the regulatory framework for mining of hardrock mineralsâ€"such as gold, silver, copper, and uraniumâ€"on over 350 million acres of federal lands in the western United States. These lands are managed by two agenciesâ€"the Bureau of Land Management in the Department of the Interior, and the Forest Service in the Department of Agriculture. The committee concludes that the complex network of state and federal laws that regulate hardrock mining on federal lands is generally effective in providing environmental protection, but improvements are needed in the way the laws are implemented and some regulatory gaps need to be addressed. The book makes specific recommendations for improvement, including: The development of an enhanced information management system and a more efficient process to review new mining proposals and issue permits. Changes to regulations that would require all mining operations, other than "casual use" activities that negligibly disturb the environment, to provide financial assurances for eventual site cleanup. Changes to regulations that would require all mining and milling operations (other than casual use) to submit operating plans in advance.

Advances in Productive, Safe, and Responsible Coal Mining covers the latest advancements in coal mining technology and practices. It gives a comprehensive introduction to the latest research and technology developments, addressing problems and issues currently being faced, and is a valuable resource of complied technical information on the latest coal mining safety and health research. As coal's staying power has been at the forefront of the world's energy mix for more than a century, this book explores critical issues affecting coal mining, including how to maintain low-cost productivity, address health and safety hazards, and how to be responsible environmental stewards. This book takes a holistic approach in addressing each issue from the perspective of its impact on the coal mining operation and industry as a whole. - Explains how to effectively produce coal within existing environmental constraints - Encapsulates the latest health and safety research and technological advances in the coal mining industry - Written by authors who have developed the latest technology for coal mines

Mining and Energy Law is a thorough examination of the contemporary mining and energy sectors in Australia. It explores the law governing the current mix of sources utilised in the Australian energy sector, from petroleum and natural gas to renewable energy sources including wind and solar power.

In a devastating and urgent work of investigative journalism, Pulitzer Prize winner Chris Hamby uncovers the tragic resurgence of black lung disease in Appalachia, its Big Coal cover-up, and the resilient mining communities who refuse to back down. Decades ago, a grassroots uprising forced Congress to enact long-overdue legislation designed to virtually eradicate black lung disease and provide fair compensation to coal miners stricken with the illness. Today, however, both promises remain unfulfilled. Levels of disease have surged, the old scourge has taken an aggressive new form, and ailing miners and widows have been left behind by a dizzying legal system, denied even modest payments and medical care. In this devastating and urgent work of investigative journalism, Pulitzer Prize winner Chris Hamby traces the unforgettable story of how these trends converge in the lives of two men: Gary Fox, a black lung-stricken West Virginia coal miner determined to raise his family from poverty, and John Cline, an idealistic carpenter and rural medical clinic worker who becomes a lawyer in his fifties. Opposing them are the lawyers at the coal industry’s go-to law firm; well-credentialed doctors who often weigh in for the defense, including a group of radiologists at Johns Hopkins; and Gary’s former employer, Massey Energy, the region’s largest coal company, run by a cantankerous CEO often portrayed in the media as a dark lord of the coalfields. On the line in Gary and John’s longshot legal battle are fundamental principles of fairness and justice, with consequences for miners and their loved ones throughout the nation. Taking readers inside courtrooms, hospitals, homes tucked in Appalachian hollows, and dusty mine tunnels, Hamby exposes how coal companies have not only continually flouted a law meant to protect miners from deadly amounts of dust but also enlisted well-credentialed doctors and lawyers to help systematically deny much-needed benefits to miners. The result is a legal and medical thriller that brilliantly illuminates how a band of laborers — aided by a small group of lawyers, doctors and lay advocates, often working out of their homes or in rural clinics and tiny offices – challenged one of the world's most powerful forces, Big Coal, and won. A deeply troubling yet ultimately triumphant work, Soul Full of Coal Dust is a necessary and timely book about injustice and resistance.