Local residents’ views of surface mining: Perceived impacts, subjective well-being, and support for regulations in southern Appalachia

Growing public demand for cleaner technologies and alternative energy sources has challenged the sustainability of traditional industries like coal mining. Public support for mining in rural communities may depend partly on how local residents perceive its impacts on their well-being. Nonetheless, community perceptions of and attitudes toward mining have received limited empirical attention. This study surveyed long-term residents of predominantly mining counties in eastern Kentucky to assess how residents perceive environmental change and subjective well-being relative to mining activities and how the perceived impacts of mining and their confidence in reclamation influence their support for public policies regulating surface mining. While residents noted some changes in natural environment conditions over the years, mining operations were not perceived as responsible factor for those changes. We also found that surface mining currently enjoys overwhelming public support, mainly because local residents view mining as part of their community identity and are skeptical about environmental concerns relative to the benefit mining brings. Occupation in mining, perceived past impact, and future risk were all negatively related to subjective well-being. Support for regulations to stop surface mining in the region was significantly impacted by perceived risks and benefits, confidence in reclamation efforts, attitudes toward the mining industry, and trust in local institutions. Considering the ongoing policy debates surrounding cleaner technology and concerns for economic growth in rural areas, this study provides insights on community perception and acceptability of surface mining that will inform policy making and regional development planning in southern Appalachia and similar regions.