Majestic Mines

Pulling up we asked each other, "Where are we?!" After parking the car I got out and walked on a path through overgrown grass toward a rocky landing, which I later found out was actually coal. Past the landing was a small stream. On the other side of the stream was a repugnant orange-colored-ground. As I got closer to take in the scenery I noticed the streams characteristics. The water was tinted orange and was so still it was eerie. The closer I got to the stream, the close I got to the strange orange muck. One girl noted, "It looks like ravioli." As I looked around I saw no animal life in the water or on the luminous orange land. The smell was pungent and had an "old" sent to it. The trees up above, a vibrant green, made the land look depressing.

To dig a little deeper as to why the land looked as it did, I took a Ph test, which calculated the Ph level in the water. The lower the Ph number, the more acidic the water was; the higher the Ph number, the more basic the water was. Ph levels were taken both in the stream and at the mouth of the mine, which was past the orange muck. Up by the mouth the Ph level was 4, down by the stream the Ph level was 3. Brian Blair, who works with the land, told me that nothing, other than some bacteria can possibly live in water with a Ph level of 3.

Blair also helped me to understand the water and land more. While speaking with him he told me why the ground and water gave off an orange hue. He said that the water has metals in, particularly iron. When the metals in the water meet with oxygen, they turn an orange color. As I thought about how un-sanitary the land and water was, I began to wonder what can be done about it. Blair told me that to try to keep the water semi-clean, they use what is called a limestone doser. The doser is a machine and it helps to treat the water by dispensing limestone into the stream every now-and-then. To bring about awareness to the problem Blair and his colleagues take people on tours and do experiments throughout the year.

As I finished my time up at Majestic Mines I was glad to have experienced going because I never even heard of it. I was also hoping that more people will one day discover it and the problem can become more well-known; in return, maybe something could be done.