JEFFERSON CITY, MO. (AP) -- The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is collecting maps of underground coal mines around the state.
The agency is trying to map abandoned mines because they can collapse and damage homes, buildings and roads.
Currently, the state has maps for about 1,000 coal mines and wants to borrow more. They'll be scanned in high resolution and color and entered in an archive that will also be included in the National Mine Map Repository.
Missouri was the first state west of the Mississippi River to mine coal commercially. Thousands were developed in the state since 1840.
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