Kentucky gets big share of federal grants to clean up decades-old coal mines

Kentucky gets big share of federal grants to clean up decades-old coal mines

A former strip mine sight in Knott County, Kentucky.(Justin Hicks / KPR)Environmental damage caused decades ago by coal mining still harms many Kentucky communities. A fresh cache of grant funding will boost efforts to repair the eroded quality of land and water supplies near long-shuttered mines.Of the states receiving grants, Kentucky will get the fourth-highest share, at $69.5 million. The money is distributed based on historic coal productio…