How Much Coal Is Left In Central Appalachia?

Sometimes forgotten in the battle over mountaintop removal mining is the fact that miners are chasing smaller and smaller seams, making it less and less economical. While it's far from running out, the easily-obtained coal in southern West Virginia and Eastern Kentucky has all been mined.  Ken Ward reports on that phenomenon here, and his analysis is worth a look.

Persons unfamiliar with coal mining would probably be amazed at the amount of coal that  can be left in the mine after mining is complete. Room and pillar mining leaves huge blocks of coal behind, holding up the ceiling and keeping the surface from subsiding.  From diagrams, it would appear that more coal is left than is taken out. .Here is a diagram showing coal removal methods, although it doesn't show longwall mining, which gets much more coal, but allows the roof to collapse behind the longwall miner.  This is another description of the various mining methods.