[Old School]

I am suggesting that things like coal mining and clear
cutting the rain forests and over ranching grasslands
provide short term economic benefits. These activities
provide jobs and energy and function in our current
economic system. However, each of these things, individually
and collectively, come with a cost. They come with a
human and environmental toll. I am not seeking to
say that a tobacco farmer causes lung cancer; however,
burning tobacco in a cigarette loaded with chemicals
does. Mountain top removal, and other such practices,
produces jobs, produces coal, which benefits the
current economy, BUT MTR comes at a cost, which, unless
one is in real denial, must be conceded without need
for "let's hear your thoughts."

Why stop at Coal Mining and Clear Cutting the forest? In my opinion everything man does has some impact on the environment, from farming to the vehicles we drive to the chemicals we use every singe day, these also have a impact on the environment, they also provide jobs, and benefit the economy. But this disscussion is about coal mining, as I stated earlier, everything man does has some impact on the environment some more than others. Some think MTR has a huge impact on the environment while others like myself think the impacts are minimal, and that the positives outweigh the negatives.