Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Awards 

Nomination Form & Instructions 

About the Awards 

In 1992, OSMRE launched the annual Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Awards program to recognize 

outstanding reclamation techniques and projects. The program mirrors the objectives of the Surface Mining 

Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to ensure that legacy coal mines are reclaimed and that active mine lands 

are restored to beneficial use.

Eligibility 

AML projects completed by an approved state or Tribal program are eligible for an award, including coal, noncoal, high-priority and emergency projects. One project may be submitted by an approved state or Tribal 

program and must have been completed within two years of the call for nominations.

Abandoned mine reclamation completed by citizen groups or other non-state/non-Tribal organizations are not 

eligible for these awards. 

Award Categories 

OSMRE presents five awards each year. A National Award is presented to the state or Tribe with the highest 

scored reclamation project. A Small Project Award is presented to the state or Tribe that receives less than $6 

million annually in AML funding and completes a project costing less than $1 million. The Appalachian States 

Award is presented to the state or Tribe with the best project within that region. The Interior States Award is 

presented to the state or Tribe with the best project within that region. The Western States and Tribes Award is 

presented to the state or Tribe with the best project within that region. 

Scoring Nominations 

Each nomination is scored by a pool of judges recruited from OSMRE approved state and Tribal AML programs. 

A nomination has the potential to earn 100-points from each judge. Scores for each nomination are averaged to 

get the final score for each nomination. If there is a tie in any of the award categories, a pool of OSMRE judges 

reevaluate and rescore the tied projects. Nominations are evaluated in the following categories:

• Innovative use of Technology.

• Difficulty of achieving reclamation under existing conditions.

• On-site effectiveness.

• Funding.

• Benefits to the community.

• Exceeding the spirit and intent of SMRCA.

Deadline & How to Submit Your Nomination 

Submit nominations by 11:59 p.m. ET, on May 12, 2024 to awards@osmre.gov. 

Questions? 

For more information, email awards@osmre.gov.
Nomination Form 

Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Awards 

Date Submitted: 

Nominator’s Contact Information 

Name: Title: 

Phone: Email: 

Address: 

Award Category (You may check more than one category.) 

Western States and Tribes Appalachian States Award Interior States Award

Small Project Award National Award

Project Information 

AML Program: 

Project Name: 

Project Location: 

Project Start Date: Project End Date: 

Project Estimate: Actual Cost: 

Funding Type(s):

Organizations responsible for reclamation: 
Project Narrative 

Executive Summary: Write a high-level overview of the nominated project that addresses organizations 

responsible for reclamation, project location, start and completion dates, cost, reclaimed features, and benefits 

to the community.

Background: Provide a history of the mine, area, and any other pertinent information.
Innovation of Current Technology: Describe new/improved technology used in the project (i.e. LIDAR). (12 points)
Difficulty of Achieving Reclamation Under Existing Conditions: Describe special or unique considerations and 

on-site difficulty of project. (17 points)
On-site effectiveness: Describe effective or innovative use of technology, how the landscape conforms to the 

natural environment and elimination of significant health or safety problems. (23 points)
Funding: Describe effective use of funds and leveraging partners for funding or technology. (12 points)
Benefits to the community: Describe project support and long-term benefits to the community. (18 points)
Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act: Describe how the project exceeded the spirit and intent of 

SMCRA, increased public awareness of SMCRA, as well as the transferability of reclamation strategies to other

AML programs and projects. (18 points)
Videos, Graphics & Photography: Submit links to videos (3 total) and photography/graphics (12 total 

below). List captions below.

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

Department of the Interior

1849 C Street NW

Washington DC 20240

awards@osmre.gov

You certify that any photographs, images, or videos (the Works) that you submit with your

nomination can be used, published, reproduced and distributed by OSMRE in any of its digital and

print materials indefinitely, without any fee or other form of compensation. This use of the Works

includes but is not limited to OSMRE’s website, instructional materials, reports, social media sites,

videos, publications, emails, press releases, etc. The materials you submit can be used in any OSMRE

program/publication and are not limited to a single program/publication. You certify that you are the

copyright holder or owner of the materials, you are 18 years or older, and you have acquired the

necessary permissions from all person(s) depicted in the materials. You further agree that if the

above representations concerning copyright ownership are determined to be incorrect or false, 

resulting in OSMRE or the U.S. Government being sued for copyright infringement, that you shall 

indemnify OSMRE and/or the U.S. Government for any resulting out-of-pocket expenses arising from 

defending and/or settling such litigation. If OSMRE uses any of the Work in its products or services, it 

agrees to provide proper attribution to the copyright holder.