# Presentation: 663826

## Western Pennsylvania Watershed Program

- AML the Beginning & the Future

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## Abandoned Mine Lands (AML)the Beginning

-   1977 : SMCRA
-   Purpose: reclamation & restoration of land & water resources affected by pre-1977 activities
-   Funding: per-tonnage fees on active mining operations:
-   $.35 surface mined
-   $.15 deep mined
-   $.10 lignite
- + interest on the Fund balance

## AML the Key Issues

-  **Appropriation**
-   **Allocation: Current -v- Historic *****(east -v- west)***
**  ****Priorities & Programs**
** ****Combined Benefits Fund**
** ****Fees: Rates & Expiration**

## AML Fund Balance: 1996-2004

## Allocation

-   East -v- West
-   93% of Identified Priority Sites are in Eastern States
-   Even if fully appropriated, under the current allocation formula OSM                          estimates that it will take more than 47 years to “complete” reclamation

## Pennsylvania Coal ProductionSource US DOE

## The Legacy

-   	4,000+ miles of 	waterways
-   	184,000+ acres of land
-   	$5 to $15 ***Billion*** to 	remediate

## Allocation Comparison

_**High Priority AML Inventory Problems**_
**Pennsylvania**:		Completed: $326 million
- 			Funded: $78 million
- 			***Unfunded***: $4.5 billion
- 			Total:	$5 billion  (***AML Balance: $54.7 million***)
**Wyoming**:		Completed: $114 million
- 			Funded: $3 million
- 			***Unfunded***: $12 million
- 			Total: $130 million (***AML Balance: $393 million***)

## Priorities 

**Abandoned Mine Land Inventory System** **(AMLIS)**
**  ****Priority 1**: Protection of public health, safety, *general welfare*, and property from extreme danger of adverse effects of coal mining practices.
**  ****Priority 2**: Protection of public health, safety, and *general welfare *from adverse effects ...
**  ****Priority 3**:  Restoration of land and water resources and the environment previously degraded by adverse effects ...

## Abandoned Mine Land Inventory System (AMLIS)

- Produced by the Eastern PA Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation (EPCAMR) for the Western PA Watershed Program

## Organization of the Abandoned Mine Land Information System (AMLIS) Database

- A nationwide database held by the Office of Surface Mining (OSM) and populated by the states (PA DEP Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation in PA) to identify high priority coal and non coal hazards eligible for reclamation using the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund. Which are usually only coal-related problems due to mining prior to the enactment of SMCRA in 1977 and meeting the first two objective known as Priorities 1 and 2
- Most of the data was colleted between the early 1980’s to late 1990’s with updates in reclaimed areas as recent as 2005. Consists of 3 separate but integrated databases
**Problem Areas** – the general area affected (encompasses the 2 below)
**Problem Feature Points** - mine shafts, vertical openings, mine drainage seeps, mining structures and old equipment
**Problem Feature Areas** – an actual feature such as a dangerous highwalls, stripping pits, culm banks, underground mine fire, or a subsidence area

- Click on the hyperlinks above for a description.   Source: OSM’s Website http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zinvin.htm

**Notes:**
Sanctioned by SMCRA (1977) was amended in 1990 to add Section 403(c) which required the Secretary of Interior to maintain an inventory of high priority coal sites and provide standardized procedures for states and tribes to update the inventory. The AMLIS database as been around for fifteen years in one form or another. 

The PA DEP BAMR maintains Pennsylvania’s database of Abandoned Mine Land Impacts.  The database, aptly named the Abandoned Mine Land Information System (AMLIS), encompasses an inventory including mine portals, vertical openings, mine drainage seeps, dangerous highwalls  from strip mining, water filled stripping pits, culm banks, landslides, underground mine fires, stream impoundments, and subsidence features just to name a few.  This information is gathered by state inspectors who transfer the information directly into the central database via an online feed to Harrisburg. The database is then sent to the Office of Surface Mining, an office of the federal Department of the Interior, which gives a priority value to the features and distributes funding for reclamation through the Abandoned Mine Trust Fund, a pot of money created by a fee placed on coal removed from the ground by the federal Surface Mining and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) of 1977. 

## Priority 1 & 2 Problem Types 

- Problem 					Type Symbol 	Measured
- _[Clogged Stream Lands](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#csl)_ 			CSL 		Acres
- _[Industrial/Residential Waste](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#irw)_		IRW		Acres
- _[Clogged Streams](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#cs)_			CS		Miles
- _[Polluted Water: ](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#pwai)__[Agr](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#pwai)__[. & ](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#pwai)__[Indust](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#pwai)__[.](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#pwai)_		PWAI		Count
- _[Dangerous ](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#dh)__[Highwall](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#dh)_			DH		Linear Feet
- _[Polluted Water: Human Consumption](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#pwhc)_	PWHC		Count
- _[Dangerous Impoundments](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#di)_			DI		Count
- _[Portals](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#p)_				P		Count
- _[Dangerous Pile and Embankment](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#dpe)_		DPE		Acres
- _[Subsidence](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#s)_				S		Acres
- _[Dangerous Slides](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#ds)_			DS		Acres
- _[Surface Burning](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#sb)_				SB		Acres
- _[Gases: Hazardous/Explosive](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#ghe)_		GHE		Count
- _[Underground Mine Fire](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#umf)_			UMF		Acres
- _[Hazardous Equipment & Facilities](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#hef)_		HEF		Count
- _[Vertical Opening](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#vo)_			VO		Count
- _[Hazardous Water Body](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp12def3.htm#hwb)_			HWB		Count

- Click on the hyperlinks above for a description.   Source: OSM’s Website http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zinvin.htm

## Priority 3 Problem Types 

- Problem 					Type Symbol 	Measured As
- _[Bench](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp3def3.htm#be)_				BE		Acres
- _[Other](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp3def3.htm#o)_					O
- _[Industrial/Residential Waste](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp3def3.htm#dp)_		DP		Acres
- _[Pits](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp3def3.htm#pi)_					PI		Acres
- _[Equipment/Facilities](http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zp3def3.htm#ef)_			EF		Count
- Spoil Area				SA		Acres
- Gob Piles				GO		Acres
- Slurry					SL		Acres
- Highwall				H		Feet
- Slump				SP		Acres
- Haul Road				HR		Acres
- Water Problems			WA		Gal./Minute
- Mine Openings				MO		Count

- Click on the hyperlinks above for a description.   Source: OSM’s Website http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zinvin.htm

## If you have an active internet connection, click the map to zoom in and view a specific area.  

- If you have an active internet connection, click the map to zoom in and view a specific area.

**Notes:**
This link will redirect the user to a PDF on the EPCAMR website.  

## Organization of the Abandoned Mine Land Information System (AMLIS) Database (continued)

- Contains information such as
- Latitude and Longitude
- Local Name
- Estimated amount of Money needed to Reclaim
- And the specific measurements that were used to arrive at this value (ex. acreage, perimeter, length, depth/height, flow/volume...)
- OSM priority value
- And the specific measurements that were used to arrive at this value (ex. the type of feature(s), distance to the nearest population, number of people impacted, injury or death on the site...)
- Comments about the assessment (ex. comments from the assessor, date the assessment was made, name of the assessor  and contact information)

- Source: OSM’s Website http://www.osmre.gov/aml/inven/zinvin.htm

## Organization of the PA DEP Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation Database

- Reclaimed information ranges between 1955 to 2005.
- Contains a historical accounting of reclamation work that has been done within Problem Areas by the PA DEP Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation.
- Contains information such as the type of features addressed, the amount of money spent, the project name, and the OSM Priority Value

**Notes:**
This database does not take into account reclamation projects that were done by other entities.  An effort is being made to incorporate re-mining projects managed by the PA DEP District Mining Offices into the database as well as projects completed by redevelopment authorities, cogeneration facilities, other federal, state and county programs and watershed groups through funding such as Growing Greener, EPCAMR’s Regional Watershed Support Initiative, OSM’s Appalachian Clean Streams Initiative and other funding sources. 

## Reclaimed and Unreclaimed AML in a County in the Anthracite Region: Luzerne Co., PA

- ~45% of the Problem Areas have had Reclamation Work Done

- ~12% of the Streams are Polluted by AMD

- ~13,300 acres of AML Features
- ~2,600 acres of AML are reclaimed
- ~20% of the acreage is reclaimed

- ~ 1:500,000 Scale      Data Source: AMLIS Database, PA DEP BAMR 2005 & 303(d) List (AMD Only), PA DEP BWM 2005

**Notes:**
Most of the acres of AML Features are related to underground mining problems such as subsidence and cropfalls.  Several were grouted with slurry and are now considered reclaimed.  These number could be debated since it is much harder to estimate acreage of an underground related feature.  

## Typical AML Impacted Community in the Anthracite Region: Swoyersville, Luzerne Co., PA

- ~1:10,000 Scale                         Aerial Photo Source: USDA 2004;  Photo with caption source: Times Leader March 27, 2005

## Identify Results for a Culm Pile in the Anthracite Region: Swoyersville, Luzerne Co., PA 

- Identify Results for a Culm Pile in the Anthracite Region: Swoyersville, Luzerne Co., PA

- ~1:10,000 Scale                                 Data Source: AMLIS Database, PA DEP BAMR 2005 Aerial Photo Source: USDA 2004

**Notes:**
The highlighted area is represented by the data on the right of the screen which consists of data entries in the AMLIS Database specifically the Problem Feature Areas (aka polygons).  Entries to point out are the Date_Last=Date Last Mined, ACRES (all in caps)= acres covered by the specific feature, Volume_or=volume of the substance (ex. Dry culm is measured in cubic feet, wet AMD is measured in gallons per minute), Height_or=height or depth of a feature in feet, Length_or=length of a feature in feet, Date_Updat=Date last updated and Update_Off=Office that the update was performed by.  (More interpretation and explanation will be provided for related databases when it becomes necessary.) 

## Identify Results for Reclamation Work Completed at Problem Area 2233, Luzerne Co., PA 

- Identify Results for Reclamation Work Completed at Problem Area 2233, Luzerne Co., PA

- ~1:10,000 Scale                                 Data Source: AMLIS Database, PA DEP BAMR 2005 Aerial Photo Source: USDA 2004

**Notes:**
The Greenish (in this specific case Orangeish) tinged area around the culm piles and AMD discharge areas represented by the data on the right of the screen which consists of data entries in the AMLIS Database specifically the Problem Areas.  The linked data chosen in this view shows the PA DEP BAMR Historical Reclamation Database related via the Problem Area Number.  (The database includes information that is less cryptic than the AMLIS Database and interpretation is self explanatory. ) 

## Reclaimed and Unreclaimed AML in a County in the Bituminous Region: Cambria Co., PA

- ~ 1:500,000 Scale      Data Source: AMLIS Database, PA DEP BAMR 2005 & 303(d) List (AMD Only), PA DEP BWM 2005

- ~4% of the Problem Areas have had Reclamation Work Done

- ~15% of the Streams are Polluted by AMD

- ~5,990 acres of AML Features
- ~517 acres of AML are reclaimed
- ~9% of the acreage is reclaimed

**Notes:**
AML Features are surface mine related.  

## Typical AML Impacted Community in the Bituminous Region: Watkins, Cambria Co., PA 

- ~1:10,000 Scale     	                          Photo Sources: Bruce Golden, WPCAMR 2005 Aerial Photo Source: USDA 2004

- Typical AML Impacted Community in the Bituminous Region: Watkins, Cambria Co., PA

## Identify Results for the Barnes - Watkins Gob Pile, Cambria Co., PA 

- ~1:24,000 Scale                                 Data Source: AMLIS Database, PA DEP BAMR 2005 Aerial Photo Source: USDA 2004

**Notes:**
Again as in the Anthracite Slide, the highlighted area is represented by the data on the right of the screen which consists of data entries in the AMLIS Database specifically the Problem Feature Areas (aka polygons).  Entries to point out are the Date_Last=Date Last Mined, ACRES (all in caps)= acres covered by the specific feature, ACRES (all in caps)= acres covered by the specific feature, Volume_or=volume of the substance (ex. Dry culm is measured in cubic feet, wet AMD is measured in gallons per minute), Height_or=height or depth of a feature in feet, Length_or=length of a feature in feet, Date_Updat=Date last updated and Update_Off=Office that the update was performed by.  This view also shows Project_Cost=an estimated project cost, OSM_Priority=the priority value given to this feature by the Office of Surface Mining, Keyword=1 to 4 letter shorthand for keywords that describe the feature, Mining _Type= type of mining that was conducted in the area, Work_Remaining= a yes(1) or no(2) representation of the reclamation status of the feature  (More interpretation and explanation will be provided for related databases when it becomes necessary.) 

## Identify Results for Reclamation Work Completed at Problem Area 2469, Cambria Co., PA

- ~1:10,000 Scale                                 Data Source: AMLIS Database, PA DEP BAMR 2005 Aerial Photo Source: USDA 2004

**Notes:**
Again the Greenish tinged area around the culm piles and AMD discharge areas represented by the data on the right of the screen which consists of data entries in the AMLIS Database specifically the Problem Areas.  The linked data chosen in this view shows the PA DEP BAMR Historical Reclamation Database related via the Problem Area Number.  (The database includes information that is less cryptic than the AMLIS Database and interpretation is self explanatory. )

## Priorities “General Welfare”

-   1998 OSM Directive
-   Priority 2 if: (a) has an adverse economic impact on a local community, or (b) is in the immediate vicinity of a residential area.
-   “Water Quality Damages” (read: AMD) fit
-   Elevated many “3s” to “2s”

## Abandoned Mine Drainage

**Blackleggs Creek Watershed**

**Monastery Run – St. Vincent**

**SRI – Harbison Walker II**

**AMD & ART**

## Priorities Driving AML 

## Resource Recovery

- Sewickley Creek Watershed Association/Hedin Environmental
- Southern Alleghenies Conservancy

## Advancing New Technology

- Cooks Run bench-scale testing
- Restoring abandoned mine lands

## Advocacy– October 13, 2005 Press Conference

## The New Vehicle for Funding- S2616

- Re-authorization for 15 years
- Mandatory spending
- 10% to 20% reduction in fee
- Mineral Leasing Act coal receipts make up for the reduction
- States 10% set-aside increased to 30%
- $2B at end of Program for PA + WV to be paid at $100M per year

## What Will the New Legislation Do?

- Address all Priority 1 and 2 sites in the state based upon AMLIS data base
- Provide flexibility for water projects through the increased set-aside
- Increase amount of funds to watershed associations and the state DEP

## Next Steps

-     DEP management watershed 9E declared pristine due to 14 AMD treatment systems now on line

- Pine Creek Valley

## Our Vision for the Futureof Pennsylvania’s Streams

- Our Vision for the Futureof Pennsylvania’s Streams