States and tribes receive half a billion to clean up abandoned coal mines

Andrew Topf | December 18, 2011 | 1:41 am Energy Europe Coal

A number of American states and tribes have received more than a lump of coal in their stockings this Christmas.

The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement on Thursday, together with Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar, announced $485 million is being given to states and tribes to eliminate health and safety hazards caused by past coal mining.

The funds are $90 million more than given last year.

Wyoming received the most, $150 million, followed by Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky and Illinois. The Navajo Nation will get $7.2 million, the Crow Tribe $2.2 millon and the Hopi Tribe $1.4 million.

The full breakdown is as follows:

Alabama	$9,439,875	New Mexico	$5,538,041
Alaska	$3,000,000	North Dakota	$3,921,596
Arkansas	$3,000,000	Ohio	$16,485,743
Colorado	$8,655,603	Oklahoma	$3,000,000
Illinois	$24,080,075	Pennsylvania	$67,152,367
Indiana	$16,141,131	Tennessee	$3,000,000
Iowa	$3,000,000	Texas	$5,413,781
Kansas	$3,000,000	Utah	$4,939,010
Kentucky	$46,998,225	Virginia	$11,330,795
Louisiana	$426,215	West Virginia	$66,495,521
Maryland	$3,000,000	Wyoming	$150,018,677
Mississippi	$257,477	Crow Tribe	$2,164,911
Missouri	$3,000,000	Hopi Tribe	$1,435,253
Montana	$13,402,468	Navajo Nation	$7,216,702