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CLASSICS OF ENVIRONMENTAL RECLAMATION

Environmental article by Harold Hough Oct/Nov 2008

Despite public perceptions, over the last few decades the mining industry has often engaged in reclamation work that has gone beyond government regulations. Some mines have teamed up with sportsmen to improve game fishing. Others have taken the lead in repairing centuries-old environmental damage, protecting historical landmarks, and studying endangered species. Thanks to these mining companies and their dedicated employees, America is both environmentally and culturally much richer. The following are examples of mining companies that have set the standard for environmental awareness.

FISHERMEN SHOULD THANK A BADGER (BADGER MINING THAT IS). Walleye fishermen can be thankful Badger Mining in Wisconsin believes in leaving a site in the same or better condition, even if they aren’t responsible for the damage. When they decided to build a new corporate headquarters, they picked an industrial wasteland that was a former dump for local foundries. There was little vegetation at the site and erosion was a problem for the neighboring wetland.

During the construction process, the company moved 150,000 yards of fill and added topsoil to half the property, some of which wasn’t even theirs. The company made the area a wildlife refuge with a four-acre fish lake and a two-acre wetland. Piles of dirt that had blocked the flow of water from the lake were removed so walleye could begin breeding in the area once again.

FISH STRIKE AT GOLDSTRIKE. Fishermen in Wisconsin aren’t the only ones that can thank the mining industry for more sport fishing opportunities. Nevada is home to a large game fish called the Lahontan Trout. Unfortunately, commercial fishing 100 years ago, dams, and water diversion had reduced the Lahontan’s range to three percent of its former habitat.

The Goldstrike Mine helped to reverse that trend. Not only has it donated thousands of dollars to preserve the trout, it has also provided engineering skills for making Mary’s River an interconnected habitat for the fish. The mine has replaced culverts that restricted trout migration, engineered a bridge to replace a culvert, and provided money for its construction. Meantime, volunteer groups of miners restored the river’s banks. While some of the efforts like placing rocks to create pools create rapid results, much of the miners’ work is aimed at improving the fish’s chances for the long term. These volunteers plant willows, which when they grow, will shade and cool the water. They also install fences to keep the cattle out and stabilize the bank.

The result is that Lahontan Trout populations are growing in the Mary’s River for the first time in decades.

MAKE MINE A BUFFALO BURGER. For those who prefer red meat to fish, the Freedom Mine near Beulah, ND reintroduced buffalo to this section of the Great Plains. It all began when a Freedom Mine employee began to raise buffalo for meat. Unlike cattle, buffalo are relatively maintenance free; requiring only grass, water and a fence to keep them in one place. When the Environmental Manager, Joe Friedlander, learned about this hobby, he asked if a herd of them could be brought over to graze on mine land. As grazing animals, the buffalo solved the problem of maintaining a proper balance between winter and summer grasses. When the winter grasses flourish, they are eaten by the buffalo, which opens enough space for the summer grasses to come through, when it’s time.

Buffalo also help reenergize the reclaimed land. When the topsoil is stored, it loses many of the bacteria and nutrients that were built up when it was a part of a living ecosystem. Consequently, when it’s used in reclamation, it can take time for them to build up to normal levels.

Grazing buffalo help the soil regain the original bacteria and nutrients. While grazing, the buffalo’s hooves break up the ground, while their manure and urine enrich the soil. The result is that the grasslands spring back after reclamation faster than with conventional methods.

THAT’S BLUFFS, NOT BUFFALO. The Big Sky Mine in Montana has earned a reputation for its environmental work because they employ creative thinking to solve reclamation problems. A major problem was that the mine was surrounded by flat-topped hills interspersed by wide valleys. Many of the streams in the valleys eroded the surrounding ground so the valleys end in steep sandstone bluffs, which climb from the valley floor to the flat highlands.

When the mine originally received its permit, the mine was restricted to only mining coal in the broad valleys between the bluffs. However, there were considerable coal reserves in the steeper slopes between the bluffs. Unfortunately, the permit didn’t allow mining there and conventional reclamation was too expensive.

The creative solution came from the mine’s reclamation experts, who recommended that the highwalls created during the mining be retained to add to the natural bluffs surrounding the area. In addition to their natural beauty, bluffs are an important part of the ecology because many predator birds like eagles and hawks nest in the cliffs, while small mammals live in the rubble at their base. Fortunately, Montana’s environmental rules allow for alternate reclamation. By sitting down with Montana regulatory people, Big Sky staff and Peabody Group environmentalists were able to develop a plan to create stable bluffs.

The new reclamation method was cheap enough to allow the mine to remove more overburden and mine more coal - thus creating more bluffs. By the time reclamation was over, the mine had added 450,000 square feet of bluff. Several artificial nesting cavities were created in the bluffs so predatory birds would be encouraged to nest there. Rubble zones were also placed at the base of the bluffs for small animals.