{"id":12444,"date":"2021-09-28T19:23:39","date_gmt":"2021-09-28T23:23:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/epcamr.org\/home\/?p=12444"},"modified":"2021-09-28T19:23:39","modified_gmt":"2021-09-28T23:23:39","slug":"pa-dep-bureau-of-abandoned-mine-reclamation-and-epcamr-highlight-legacy-abandoned-mine-lands-amd-with-inside-climate-news-reporter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/epcamr.org\/home\/2021\/pa-dep-bureau-of-abandoned-mine-reclamation-and-epcamr-highlight-legacy-abandoned-mine-lands-amd-with-inside-climate-news-reporter\/","title":{"rendered":"PA DEP Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation and EPCAMR Highlight Legacy Abandoned Mine Lands & AMD with Inside Climate News Reporter"},"content":{"rendered":"

Air, Land, Water Highlighted on Tour provided in NEPA while Congress Considers the Future of Funds that support Reclamation of Abandoned Mine Lands<\/strong><\/span><\/h1>\n

First and foremost, EPCAMR<\/a> wants to acknowledge all of the coalition partners, reclamation-related industries, Conservation Districts, Trout Unlimited Chapters, watershed associations, and coalfield community groups that have been stepping up and standing up for their communities these last few months on the importance of the Reauthorization of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA). The need is justified and the funding allocations are necessary to continue to reclaim our abandoned mine lands and to treat the AMD water pollution sources to help restore our watersheds.\u00a0 We are sure that most of you are aware that a small fee is collected from the coal industries that remain on every ton of coal mined, both surface and underground, that gets set aside into the Federal Abandoned Mine Land Trust Fund<\/a>. Those funds are vital to the remaining States like PA, and many others throughout Appalachia for reclamation and remediation of our past mining abandoned mine lands and polluted waterways.\u00a0 Those funds get distributed to the abandoned mine land (AML) States in the form of yearly grants to help reclaim AML and treat polluted abandoned mine drainage (AMD) to help restore our watersheds.<\/p>\n

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Today’s tour with James Bruggers<\/a>, a\u00a0 reporter from the Southeast, National Environment Reporting Network<\/a>, from Louisville, KY, covering a story for Inside Climate News<\/a>, was hosted by the PA Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation (PA DEP BAMR)<\/a>. EPCAMR attended as well to provide valuable local insight into several of the sites with expertise and commentary provided by Bobby Hughes<\/a>, EPCAMR Executive Director since two of the three sites are abandoned mine land areas and an AMD site that we have been heavily involved with, along with many other local community partners. These types of projects could not happen without the support of the State and Federal Agencies such as the PA DEP BAMR and the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) and the funding that is provided to reclaim these areas. Private landowner’s permission and approval are also integral to the success of each and every project. James’ full story will appear in a few weeks.<\/p>\n

EPCAMR wanted to provide our view of the importance of today’s tour with him that we hope will get us some National media attention on the importance of Reauthorization sooner, rather than later, as the Infrastructure Bill<\/a> ((HR 3684) is where a lot of the details are located related to SMCRA Reauthorization and funding for abandoned mine land reclamation and AMD remediation. Hopefully, his story will highlight the jobs that can be created in the Appalachian Coalfields for reclamation, the continued removal of the waste culm piles by our partnering Co-Generation Plants, like Panther Creek Partners, who are a part of the ARIPPA<\/a> Trade Association and have been a partner of EPCAMR’s since the mid-90s.<\/p>\n

The EPCAMR Executive Director discussed the possibilities of future AMD Treatment Plants around the Commonwealth that could create long-term jobs and investments in the coalfield communities that are still living with these large volume, acid-laden, mine waters that should be seen as public infrastructure projects with the added benefit of providing clean water and other recreational and industrial use-value to those who live along them and would ultimately benefit from the restoration of those impaired waters. EPCAMR and PA DEP BAMR both reference the SRBC’s Anthracite Region Mine Drainage Remediation Strategy<\/a> on the Tour that discusses the potential for combining certain discharges to treat them more effectively.<\/p>\n

The 3 Sites visited were:<\/p>\n