Removal Coal Mining Mountain Top Removal (MTR) coal mining refers to surface coal mining (and the associated reclamation operations) that remove entire coal seams running through the upper fraction of a mountain, ridge, or hill, by removing all of the overburden and creating a level plateau or gently rolling contour with no high-walls remaining. Barclays recognises that MTR in the Appalachian region of the USA is a legal mining method, overseen by a robust regulatory framework.