In 2009, the US EPA instituted a requirement for mayfly protection before surface mining permits would be issued. Now the National Mining Association is challenging using mayflies to determine water quality in headwater streams in Central Appalachia's coalfields based on the results of a new study by.....wait for it.... the National Mining Association.
The presence of mayflies is often the only thing protecting a stream from being buried by mountaintop mining debris.
LINK (Via: Bloomberg Business Week)