Who's mining the farm. [Land ownership in Illinois]

Book · Sun Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1978

OSTI ID:6568010

Smith, J M; Ostendorf, D; Schechtman, M

The land ownership data gathered in late 1977 and early 1978 using the methodology outlined above, provides us with the current picture of coal company land control from past mining operations, as well as for future mining purposes. In order to understand the implications of this land control, this report covers several other important areas of concern. It is important that citizens know the companies they are ultimately dealing with in the coal industry. Therefore, included a major discussion of the trend towards consolidation of control in the coal industry by the nation's major energy corporations. An appendix of corporate profiles on the major companies involved in Illinois offers additional information on these corporations' national energy interest. A historical look at the changes in patterns of land ownership and use related to surface mining indicates new trends of long-term corporate land control as reclamation laws have been enforced. The tendency of coal companies to establish secondary farm corporations on land they have mined demands and receives special focus. Despite better reclamation laws, studies show that surface mining continues to take land out of profitable row crop production, particularly, in north central Illinois. Realizing that the coal industry has different impacts in different regions of the state, we have included case studies of two counties, Knox and Williamson, as representative of the northern and southern coal producing regions. In the course of these studies and investigations it was discovered that the State and many coal counties are ill-prepared for the current coal boom. There are, for example, inadequate taxation procedures and land use planning efforts. The report concludes with some suggestions that will begin to insure that the land and people in Illinois' coal regions are not exploited in the rush for coal production.

• OSTI ID: 6568010
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

01 COAL, LIGNITE, AND PEAT
015000 -- Coal
Lignite
& Peat-- Economic
Industrial
& Business Aspects
29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
294001 -- Energy Planning & Policy-- Coal
530100* -- Environmental-Social Aspects of Energy Technologies-- Social & Economic Studies-- (-1989)
AGRICULTURE
COAL INDUSTRY
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
FARMS
GREAT LAKES REGION
ILLINOIS
INDUSTRY
INSTITUTIONAL FACTORS
MINING
NORTH AMERICA
OWNERSHIP
PUBLIC OPINION
RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
SOCIO-ECONOMIC FACTORS
SURFACE MINING
USA