Environmental Geology Class Trip to Centralia Coal Mine
In early October 1999 Amy Leventer's Environmental Geology class took a day trip to Centralia,
Pennsylvania to get a firsthand look at coal mining and its environmental impacts. The tour of the mine
was fascinating. It allowed the students to see massive coal seams running through the tilted rock layers,
and also gave them an appreciation for the working conditions and hazards that miners face. One special
aspect of the Centralia region is that some of the coal seams have been burning underground since 1962.
All efforts to put these fires out have failed. The toxic fumes produced from the fires have forced people
to vacate their homes, leaving Centralia a modern-day ghost town.
