Coal Impoundment Risk Assessment: A Survey of Mingo and Wyoming County, West Virginia Households

The Coal Impoundment Project at the National Technology Transfer Center, Wheeling Jesuit University contracted with our research team at Eastern Kentucky University to conduct a survey of WV residents. The objective of the survey was to assess risk perceptions and levels of concern of West Virginia residents regarding coal waste, coal
waste impoundments and other related matters through a systematic door-to-door survey of households. In April 2005, using standard survey drop-off/ pick-up methods, university students and faculty surveyed residents of Mingo and Wyoming Counties across two four-day weekends. The decision to survey these Mingo and Wyoming counties was based on much discussion among our team and staff members of the CIP and, in the end, it was decided to survey these counties due to the large number of coal waste impoundments within each and due to the fact that they were largely representative of coal mining communities across West Virginia.

It is important to note that during the survey sweep, many residents expressed a “pro-coal” position. Many said that either they or a family member worked for the coal industry and this was heard repeatedly at the door-steps of many area residents. For this reason, in the analysis of the survey data and the report that follows, it was decided to focus on possible differences in views and opinions between mining versus non-mining households. Subsequent analysis of the survey data, however, led to perhaps our most important overall survey “finding:” That is, there seems to be very little difference in opinion between mining and non-mining households on questions related to coal waste, coal waste impoundments, emergency action planning, compensation strategies and other environmental and water quality issues.