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ELKINS MINE DRAINAGE POLLUTION CONTROL DEMONSTRATION PROJECT
Citation:
ELKINS MINE DRAINAGE POLLUTION CONTROL DEMONSTRATION PROJECT. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/7-77/090.
Description:
In 1964 several federal agencies in cooperation with the State of West Virginia initiated a project to demonstrate methods to control the pollution from abandoned underground and surface mines in the Roaring Creek-Grassy Run Watersheds near Elkins, West Virginia. The Roaring Creek-Grassy Run watersheds contained 400 hectares of disturbed land, 1200 hectares of underground mine workings and discharged over 11 metric tons per day of acidity to the Tygart Valley River. The reclamation project was to demonstrate the effectiveness of mine seals, water diversion from underground workings, burial of acid-producing spoils and refuse, surface mine reclamation, and surface mine revegetation. Following a termination order in 1967, major efforts were directed away from the completion of the mine sealings and toward surface mining reclamation and revegetation. In July 1968 the reclamation work was completed with the reclamation and revegetation of 284 hectares of disturbed land and the construction of 101 mine seals. Results of an extensive monitoring program revealed that some reduction in acidity load (as high as 20 percent during 1968 and 1969), and little if any in iron and sulfate loads and flow have occurred in Grassy Run. Roaring Creek had an insignificant change in flow as a result of water diversion, and a decrease of 5 to 16 percent in acidity and sulfate load. Biological recovery in both streams has been nonexistent except in some smaller subwatersheds. Good vegetative cover has been established on almost all of the disturbed areas. Legumes dominate in most areas after eight years.