Back in the 60's & 70's the B&O hauled trainload after trainload of coal mined from the Egypt Valley in SE Ohio that used Holloway, OH as the main marshalling yard with destinations of Cleveland, Lorain and Burns Harbor. Holloway has been abandonded and rail riped up and scrapped and what still exists of the line from Holloway to Warwick, OH is now operated by RJ Corman.
Was the Egypt Valley coal done in by EPA regulations pertaining to coal fired plants or was the coal seam mined out?
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
I'm sure that there are forum members who can give you a more detailed answer but I do recall that when stricter coal sulphur emissions regulations came into effect in the late 70's/early 80's,mines in parts of Ohio and Illinois (among other locations) closed as a result.
If I'm not mistaken the explosive growth in Powder River basin coal mining was another consequence,because the coal mined there had a lower sulphur content...
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carnej1: asked "...I'm sure that there are forum members who can give you a more detailed answer but I do recall that when stricter coal sulphur emissions regulations came into effect in the late 70's/early 80's,mines in parts of Ohio and Illinois (among other locations) closed as a result..."
BaltACD Back in the 60's & 70's the B&O hauled trainload after trainload of coal mined from the Egypt Valley in SE Ohio that used Holloway, OH as the main marshalling yard with destinations of Cleveland, Lorain and Burns Harbor. Holloway has been abandonded and rail riped up and scrapped and what still exists of the line from Holloway to Warwick, OH is now operated by RJ Corman. Was the Egypt Valley coal done in by EPA regulations pertaining to coal fired plants or was the coal seam mined out?
The questions asked by Both carnej1 and BaltACD raised some intersting questions for me.. I had family ties in the area within the coal industry.
This link seems to explain that the High Sulphur Content was definitely a problem for the Coal from Ohio:
@ http://www.miningartifacts.org/Ohio-MInes.html [Ohio Mines]
While this is a link has a fairly detailed map of the area and some of the railroads of the area:
http://www.coalcampusa.com/eastoh/hocking/hocking.htm
This link is titled : ",, Coal Mines Close in Ohio..." @ http://www.portagecountyteaparty.com/news/state/coal-mines-close-in-ohio.html
Lays out some of the current industry travails with the current Federal regulatory environment.
Most of the coal mines in southern Illinois were closed up in the latter part of the 1950s or early- to mid-1960s due to the seams being mined out, and the high sulplur content of that coal.
Steam locomotives used a lot of the high sulphur coal and the switch to diesel locomotives caused a drop in demand for it.
Most of those destinations ( Cleveland, Lorain and Burns Harbor ) were steel centers. Could the demise of those Ohio coal fields have coincided with the collapse of the domestic steel industry at that time, rather than environmental regulations. The surviving steel mills don't seem to have problems finding coal.
MidlandMike Most of those destinations ( Cleveland, Lorain and Burns Harbor ) were steel centers. Could the demise of those Ohio coal fields have coincided with the collapse of the domestic steel industry at that time, rather than environmental regulations. The surviving steel mills don't seem to have problems finding coal.
The Cleveland coal actually went to Cleveland Electric Illuminating with interchange to the NYC at Whiskey Island.
[quote user="BaltACD"]
[Cleveland electric illumination no longer produces, it only distribute s
The mine seems to be well known for the shovel that worked there.
http://www.stripmine.org/gem_01.htm
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