http://www.boston.com/dailynews/101/nation/FARM_SCENE_Played_out_coal_min:.shtml

FARM SCENE: Played-out coal mines bring life to fish industry

By Allison Barker, Associated Press, 4/11/2001 01:26

LILLYBROOK, W.Va. (AP) Americans could soon be dining on sushi made from Arctic char reared in water pumped from closed Appalachian coal mines.

It turns out that the water that caused such headaches when the mines were operational requiring continuous pumping to keep it out of miners' way is perfect for raising coldwater fish. The mines act as sort of natural cisterns, as clean mountain water continually seeps in.

The same attribute that makes southern West Virginia coal so valuable low sulfur content also makes water from its old mines more desirable.

''We feel like with the abandoned mine waters we have in southern West Virginia, southern West Virginia and the coalfields will become known for its high-quality fish like it's known for its high-quality coal now,'' said Mike Whitt, director of the Mingo County Redevelopment Authority.

The water has other benefits as well. It is groundwater, which means it has a constant temperature that's an advantage over farms that use surface water, said Matt Monroe, who coordinates the government-run trout farm High Appalachian deep in West Virginia's coalfields.

And from an economic development perspective, mine water has big appeal in part because there's so much of it, said Ken Semmens, an aquaculture specialist at West Virginia University. Millions of gallons of 55-degree water, often pure enough to drink, flow from hundreds of miles of former mine tunnels and drain into nearby streams.

Fish farming is one of the fastest-growing sectors in U.S. agriculture, increasing to a $1 billion industry by 1998. While the demand for seafood is rising, the harvest of wild fish is declining because of overfishing and increased regulatory pressures.

The partnership West Virginia Aqua has built a $1 million growout farm to complement a hatchery it leases from the Mingo County Redevelopment Authority. The farm uses water from a mine that closed in the 1960s to fatten Arctic char fingerlings from the hatchery. The salmon-like fish often used in sushi is considered a delicacy and can sell for up to $4.50 a pound.

High Appalachian is raising rainbow trout on water piped from a mine that closed in the 1950s.

Gravity pulls water out of the mine through a big pipe. The water travels through a tower where it's aerated to reduce nitrogen and increase oxygen levels. The water then flows into large circular tanks that hold the fish in a building the size of a football field. There, more oxygen is added to keep the fish healthy.

The farm processes about 200,000 pounds of fish a year and sells it to grocery stores, restaurants and hotels.

Some doubters remain, including the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, which isn't interested in using mine water at its seven fish hatcheries.

''If something would happen in undertreatment or overtreatment (of water), you lose,'' said Mike Shingleton, who heads the DNR's cold-water fish management program. ''When you raise trout for anglers, you can't afford to take a risk.''

But Joe Hankins, director of the National Conservation Fund's Freshwater Institute in Shepherdstown, says the state has the water resources to easily increase annual production from 400,000 pounds of fish to 10 million pounds.

Eastern Kentucky also is struggling to lessen dependence on coal and is looking at fish farming as one alternative. Southeast Community College is teaching aquaculture by raising trout with water from a former U.S. Steel mine in Lynch, Ky.

''We wanted to show you can take what was considered an obstacle ... and demonstrate that it can be a moneymaker,'' said Paul Pratt, dean of community and business development at the community college in Cumberland, Ky.

On the Net:

http://www.wvu.edu/(tilde)agexten/aquaculture/index.htm

http://www.conservationfund.org/conservation

-- Anonymous, April 11, 2001