17th Annual PA Abandoned Mine Reclamation Conference, State College, PA

Robert E. Hughes Michael A. Hewitt

Executive Director Program Manager

rhughes@epcamr.org hardcoal@epcamr.org

Eastern PA Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation (EPCAMR)

www.epcamr.org ; @EPCAMR on Twitter ; /EPCAMR on FaceBook

PA AMR Conference Website - www.treatminewater.com

3D Mine Pool Mapping in NE PA’s Anthracite Coal Region: Reclaiming Past Mining Practices & Restoring Polluted Mine Waters

1762 - Connecticut settlers discover anthracite coal seams in the Wyoming Valley and estimate 16 billion tons of coal lie within the anthracite seams in Northern Coal Field. The recoverable amount is classified at around 7 to 8 billion tons.

1790’s – Anthracite discovered in the Schuylkill (Southern) and Lehigh (Eastern Middle) Regions.

1917 - Anthracite coal production peaks at over 100 million tons per year.

1930s to 1960’s - Anthracite coal mine production steadily declines due to many factors, mostly economic. Peaks briefly due to World Wars.

A Quick History on Anthracite Coal Extraction In Pennsylvania…

That’s a lot of empty space under the ground… Due to over 2 centuries of mining, billions and billions of gallons of water collects in or passes through the abandoned underground mines and surface mines producing AMD pollution …which is not always acidic…

1995 - USGS estimated that the cumulative extraction of anthracite coal was ~ 5.5 billion tons (all fields).

18

9

2438

Also, 4 distinct

alkalinity generating zones

in Northern

Field

A “Few” Layers of Complexity…

a) Availability of Accurate Underground Mine Maps

b) Mine Pool Water Quality & Stratificationi. New Focus on Monitoring Needed (boreholes, shafts)

c) Overburden Geology & Existing Infrastructure in the Coalfields

d) Surface & Mineral Ownership including Solution Mining within the Mine Pools

e) Conditions of the Underground Mine Workings i. Flooded Workings

ii. Weak Roofs

iii. Flushing Projects

iv. Adjacent Mine Fires

v. Subsidence Areas

Challenges EPCAMR faces when tackling AMD Issues

Challenges EPCAMR faces when tackling AMD Issues

f) Management & Control of Underground Mine Pools Across PAi. Determining linkages to the majority of the large mine discharges

in the Bituminous & Anthracite Region

ii. Present substantial challenges • mitigation of environmental damage• alleviating health & safety impacts to residents• mine subsidence• watershed restoration• public infrastructure• mine water storage

iii. Vertical and Horizontal (Directional) drilling techniques should be further evaluated across the Commonwealth for controlling mine pool hydraulic head and/or relocating discharges, conveyance structures to combine and/or redirect discharges

iv. Need to conduct comprehensive hydrogeologic investigations to evaluate mine pool responses to:• rainfall events for future potential storage• in situ treatment, low flow augmentation• controlled releases for consumptive use

mitigation

Ex. Case study at Old Forge Borehole (OFBH)showed ~8 hour lag in mine pool levels vs river levels…

v. Increasing the number of public/private partnerships for treatment and reuse of mine pools that not only benefit the private sector, but will improve the land & waters impacted in the affected AMD impacted communities & watersheds

OFBH Pressure Transducer

Vs.

River Gauge

g) Hydrologic Conditions of the Mine Workings

h) Land Availability for future AMD Treatment Systems Constructioni. Over 300 systems constructed to date across PA (datashed.org)

i) Establishment of Conservation Easements along Right-of-Ways on private property to access AMD discharges for monitoring, conveyance, and or treatment

j) Creation of economic redevelopment potential opportunities and incentives for incubator “green” industries and start-ups i. developing ways to recover and sell metal oxides

ii. reuse the mine water for electricity

iii. low-flow augmentation

iv. consumptive use mitigation

v. fishery improvements

Challenges EPCAMR faces when tackling AMD Issues

Opportunities to Reclaim Our Communities

1. Innovative technologies being pursueda. Rediscovering historic mine maps & reports by State Geologists & others on AMD resourcesb. Converting barrier pillar studies & mine pool studies into GIS & 3D Modelsc. Backtracking from AMD discharges to mine pool boundary limitsd. Monitoring dozens of boreholes regionally to provide current elevations & fluctuations in the mine pools since the cessation of pumping as coal companies went out of business.

2. Updating the region's understanding of our vast hydrogeologically complex mine pools (aka. multi-colliery hydrologic units).

3. EPCAMR has been estimating conservative mine pool water volumes in these underground reservoirs & have been interpreting their hydrogeological connections or isolation from one another.

4. Recent efforts to scan, catalogue, geo-reference, & digitize the historic mine maps for PA’ s MSI Program will produce better raw data for EPCAMR’s 3D Mine Pool Modeling of specific areas throughout the NC & NC PA Coalfields using EarthVision, ArcGIS & Global Mapper software.a. PA DEP Mine Subsidence Insurance Program - http://www.pamsi.org/

b. Pennsylvania Mine Map Atlas - http://www.minemaps.psu.edu/

AMD as a Resource… NOT a Pollutant

a) Mine Water Resource Potential in the Anthracite Region (Report)http://www.epcamr.org/storage/projects/MinePoolMapping/Mine_Water_Resources_of_the_Anthracite_Coal_Fields_-_Report.pdf

b) AMD as a potential recoverable resource via solution mining as a commodity for various industries that can spur & encourage economic redevelopment, watershed restoration, & land reclamation

c) Mine Pool Reuse by various industries I. Geothermal Use of Mine Pools for Open and Closed Loop SystemsII. Consumptive Use MitigationIII. Low flow AugmentationIV. Industrial UsesV. Power Plant Water Usage for heating and cooling and generation of electricity and the Co-Generation Industry Plants

(ARIPPA)VI. MicroHydro Turbine Electrical Generation (Antrim Treatment System in Tioga County)-FERC License Approved

Northern Anthracite Field Area of Concern modeled in the:

ANTHRACITE MINE POOL MAPPING FOR THESOUTHERN AND NORTHERN COAL FIELDS

A report recently completed by EPCAMR with funding from SRBC

ArcGIS 2D representation of mine pools in the Scranton Metropolitan area (orange area are original Ash Report boundaries during mining, brown areas are Hollowell extents after cessation of mining, barrier pillars are gray where breached and black where solid, bright red lines are available cross section data, blue arrows are surface water infiltration points, boreholes are red=inaccessible, green=accessible, and orange=discharging).  Notice average borehole water level in the northern section (Olyphant) are ~100' higher than those in the southern section (Taylor). WHY?

This image file shows the 4DVX cross section files in line ready for heads up digitizing.

This image shows those same 4DVX cross section files and already digitized (traced) to produce scattered raw data to feed into modeler.  

Southern Anthracite Field Area of Concern modeled in the:

ANTHRACITE MINE POOL MAPPING FOR THESOUTHERN AND NORTHERN COAL FIELDS

A report recently completed by EPCAMR with funding from SRBC

EarthVision Model of virgin coal volumes of the Lykens Valley Veins in the Brookside (left), Valley View (middle) and Markson (right) Mines cross section looking west in the Southern Coal Fields

Red lines indicate colliery boundaries

White lines indicate barrier pillars

Brookside Video

Southern Anthracite Field Mine Pool Map from U.S. Bureau of Mines Technical Paper 727 in 1949

^Susquehanna River Basin, Schuylkill River Headwaters^, Upper Lehigh River Basin^

(Spans 3 sub-watershed basins)

Mine pool extents, pool flow direction, barrier pillars and AMD in the northern portion of the Southern Coal Field

1970’s PA Bureau of Forests and Waters Report (Beisecker)

• EPCAMR calculations from EarthVision true 3D Grids:  Total for the Northern Anthracite Coal Field is ~434 billion gal. (regional models complete)

i. Total for Lackawanna Valley is ~160 billion gal.

a. Scranton Metro Mine Pool is ~130 billion gal.; ~2-3x volume stored in Lake Wallenpaupack

OFBH Case study -> http://www.lrca.org/LRCA/pdf/LLWRAP_Exec_Summary1.pdf

ii.  Total for Wyoming Valley is ~274 billion gal.

Total for the Southern Anthracite Coal Field in 10 pools is ~ 8.8 billion gal. (more work needed)

a) Heckscherville Valley Mine Pools Estimate: Total ~6.2 billion gal.

b) Rausch Creek Valley Mine Pools Estimate: Total ~2.6 billion gal.

• USGS estimate from ModFlow:  Total for Western Middle Anthracite Coal field is 60-220 billion gal. http://pa.water.usgs.gov/projects/groundwater/westernmiddle/

Mine Pool Modeling in EarthVision is needed to tighten up range…

EPCAMR Mine Pool Volume Calculations

Western

Middle(Mount Carmel) Model

Northern (Wyoming Valley) Middle Model