Study: spike in birth defects near mountaintop mining

I find mountain-top removal to be extremely repulsive and depressing.

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/06/23/116361/study-spike-in-birth-defects-near.html

Posted on Thursday, June 23, 2011

By John Cheves | Lexington Herald-Leader

Birth defects are more likely to occur in Appalachian counties with mountaintop removal coal mining — including Eastern Kentucky — than in other counties in the region, according to a new study.

The study, published last month in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Research, suggests that birth defects could result from air and water pollution created by mountaintop removal, including mercury, lead and arsenic, which have been shown to pose risks to fetal development.

The study stops short of blaming mountaintop removal for birth defects. But its authors said they tried to account for other possible causes, such as higher rates of smoking, less education and poorer prenatal care among expectant mothers in mining counties. The common factor seemed to be proximity to the blasting of mountains to remove coal, they said.

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