Land Use Coal operators are guided by the principle that coal extraction carries with it the responsibility of restoring the land. Surface mining today is as much a land reclamation process as it is a way of extracting coal. In fact, the land can be left in better condition after extraction than before the mining started. In addition, electric utilities exercise land stewardship through maintenance of the areas where transmission and distribution lines are sited.
Mining companies plan the reclamation process before digging even begins.
Mining companies work in partnership with federal, state and local agencies to ensure that they meet all applicable land management guidelines and practices. In addition, aerial photography is sometimes employed to document the success of ongoing reclamation efforts. Utilities and mining companies employ hundreds of scientists and biologists who use state of the art technologies to evaluate the resource and wildlife conditions of our lands. Scientific analyses are conducted on water, soil, vegetation and other factors crucial to the success of reclamation activities. Hydrologists study and document how sedimentation from the disturbed areas will be controlled and how ground and surface waters will be protected.