Cartwright’s Mine Reclamation Package Provides Once in a Generation Opportunity for Historic Coal Mining Regions

Charleston, West Virginia - Congressman Matt Cartwright (D-PA) introduced a comprehensive mine reclamation and economic diversification package today, which will provide an immediate economic boost to historic coal producing regions by employing thousands of people in mine reclamation jobs. Included in the package is the vitally important RECLAIM Act, a reauthorization of the Abandoned Mine Land (AML) Fund, and important language that guarantees local community engagement in how federal dollars are spent. 

The RECLAIM Act would invest $1 billion in projects that clean up abandoned coal mines and adjacent, polluted water sources through community development projects geared toward local economic diversification. This bill has wide ranging and bipartisan support in Congress and  statehouses across the country due to its emphasis on employing local workers in regions with historic ties to the declining coal industry. Reauthorizing the AML fund would contribute $1.7 billion over the next 15 years to AML programs to clean-up hazardous sites.

In response, Bill Price, Sierra Club’s Appalachian Organizing Manager in West Virginia, released the following statement: 

“We applaud Congressman Cartwrights’ dogged commitment to the workers, families, and communities in historic coal mining regions. His package is not only an opportunity to clean up thousands of miles of dangerous abandoned coal mines with good paying, long term jobs, but it also gives us a chance to reimagine who we are and what we can build together.

“Across the United States, but especially in Appalachia, the coal industry has employed millions of people, but also taken from millions of people. It’s paid the bills, but also cost us our health, our economic security, and a clean environment. Cleaning up abandoned coal mines and giving the surrounding communities a chance to start fresh with jobs not linked to fossil fuel extraction is a once in a generation opportunity to have something for ourselves. 

“Local folks, with local businesses, serving local needs will do far more for places like West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and eastern Kentucky, than attempting to shore up an industry whose day has come and gone. With the help of this bill, we can diversify our businesses away from fossil fuel extraction and have more local control of our own destinies.”