CHARLESTON (AP) — Two West Virginia rivers are now listed among the nation’s 10 most endangered.
At No. 1 on American Rivers’ annual list is the Potomac.
It provides drinking water for more than 5 million people and recreational opportunities for countless more in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and Washington, D.C.
The group says it’s threatened by both urban and agricultural pollution.
At No. 9 is southern West Virginia’s Coal River.
The preservation group says it’s threatened by mountaintop removal mining and the valley fills that bury headwater streams.
About 20 percent of the watershed is permitted for mining, and one-third of that has already been mined.
The Coal River has made the list twice before, in 1999 and 2000.
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Online:
American Rivers: http://bit.ly/qcjC
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