Mike Korb, P.E. “Making Mine Land Reclamation More of a Community Asset”

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Active mine regulators require mine closure plans reclaimed to a specific post-mining land uses and abandoned mine reclamation focuses on minimizing hazards. Mine closure plans are seldom creative. This presentation will look at and discuss some of the pilot projects in progress, some past projects here and in other countries, and will touch on some “out-of-the-box” ideas for making mine closure and AML projects more sustainable and more of a community asset.

Government & Nonprofit

Sorry, I don’t have a magic formula to determine what
projects will facilitate the revitalizing of our distressed
neighborhoods, but there are tools that we should utilize.
Community-based planning tools that offer participatory,
action-oriented, specific and local strategies for creating
revitalized and sustainable neighborhoods. We need to
make sure we use these tools, that our state’s community
resources departments (in Pennsylvania, ours is named
the DCED – the Department of Community and
Economic Development) have expertise and experience
utilizing, to help tell us what kind of projects will work.

AML reclamation that includes economic development
components and mine closure plans which incorporate
sustainability requires collaboration with all our
customers: abandoned mine landowners, local and
regional development NGOs, local, state and federal
elected and regulatory officials, potential investors,
mining companies, OSMRE, the general public,
civic and heritage organizations, watershed and other
environmental advocates, the press, and, I’m afraid,
etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.

I can’t recall one time I’ve heard a member of the public
talk about what a good job the miners or the government
were doing with mine reclamation. In fact, I’m not sure I
ever heard a similar discussion about reclamation good or
bad. AML tends to have little public exposure. I know
that I was once told by a Congressman one time that it
was the government’s job to “HAVE NO
COMPLAINTS!” I guess if there’s little exposure there’s
less chance to have complaints, but if we want to “Make
Mine Land Reclamation More of a Community Asset,”
YOU ALL need to get the community involved.

Mike Korb, P.E. “Making Mine Land Reclamation More of a Community Asset”

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Tim Altares, PA DEP BAMR - “Pennsylvania’s Abandoned Coal Mine Fires”

Michael Hewitt, GISP

This document discusses Pennsylvania's abandoned coal mine fires, including their locations, hazards, and investigation/remediation efforts. It notes that abandoned coal mine fires have occurred across Pennsylvania and can cause heat, toxic gases, subsidence and pose hazards to communities. The fires are investigated through visual observations, thermal monitoring, subsurface exploration including gas and temperature monitoring. Remediation methods discussed include excavation of hot materials, grout barriers, filling, sealing surfaces, and injection techniques.

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