"CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Federal government scientists say a 'growing body of evidence' shows that mountaintop removal coal mining is destroying Appalachian forests and dangerously polluting vital headwater streams.

In a new report, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency outlines the results of dozens of scientific papers published over the last decade about the controversial mining practice.

While EPA scientists focused on direct damage to streams that are buried and on pollution downstream from valley fills, the 119-page report also warns that damage to ecologically important forests is greater than some routinely cited statistics suggest."

Ken Ward Jr. reports for the Charleston Gazette April 3, 2010. [2]