Coal mine water treatment is necessary since rivers, lakes, drinking water supplies and streams are heavily impacted by power plants and coal mines. Coal is usually associated with billowing smokestacks than it is associated with water. Every stage of the lifecycle of coal can impact local water supplies.
Coal mining
Coal
mining can negatively impact water supplies. The fundamental issue involves the
mining activities contaminating nearby lakes, rivers and aquifers by what comes
out of the mine – usually acidic water containing heavy metals like copper,
arsenic and lead. The process is referred to as acid mine drainage. This
happens when substances such as fool’s gold or iron sulfide are oxidized after
being exposed to water and air. Runoff can change the pH of water in the nearby
streams to the same level as that of vinegar.
Without
a coal
mine treatment plant to purify the water, the effects can be
devastating. Another form of coal mining is known as mountain top removal. This
is a highly destructive process of flattening mountains to uncover thin seams
of coal that aren’t accessible by traditional underground methods. After
clearing forests and vegetation, explosives are used to blow the tops of
mountains. This sometimes destroys more than 600 feet of elevation. The debris
that comes out of the explosion is dumped into the valleys below. This process
has buried over 2000 miles of headwater streams. It has polluted more.
Water use
Coal mine water treatment
is not just required on coal mines to treat water for use but also to ensure
that the environment isn’t polluted by the activities. All coal plants rely on
water and they function by heating water to create steam. The water is then
used to turn turbines to generate electricity. However, the water must come
from a nearby lake or river.
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