Coal mines, selenium and their legacy for aquatic environments

[monger]

https://thenarwhal.ca/teck-resources-coal-transboundary/

[skearns]

Thanks for the link. That was a really informative read that covers all sides of the dliemma. I am now more educated on the fact that selenium is a natural contaniment in the huge waste rock piles left from the digging that leeches into the environment when exposed to rain and snow. No quick or easy solution

[monger]

This is the issue....so much disturbance, and there is no way to collect all the runoff from snow melt/rain events.

The amount of water that will get treated (with limited success)  in comparison to all the runoff is insignificant. Therefore we are left with a giant, ever-increasing problem of Selenium accumulation that will continue for centuries.

Is the benefit of making steel with a cheap heating fuel greater than a legacy of selenium pollution?

There is already technology available for making steel that does not use metallurgic coal....it just costs a bit more. 

We are not making any new mountains or rivers.

The value of clean water is only going to go up as this messy planet ages