Office of the Secretary Contact: Jerry Childress (202) 208-7941 Embargoed for Release: Until 12:00 p.m. Tuesday, September 17, 2002 INTERIOR SECRETARY NORTON ANNOUNCES 2002 ABANDONED MINE LAND RECLAMATION AWARD WINNERS Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton today announced that abandoned mine land (AML) reclamation projects in Indiana, Maryland, and New Mexico are winners of this year's National Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation awards. "As leaders in the field of mine reclamation, these winners set the standards of excellence for the future, and help preserve and enhance the quality of American life," Norton said. "Their awards carry an added significance this year because 2002 marks the 25th anniversary of the regulation of the coal mining industry under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act," said Norton. Since that law was enacted on August 3, 1977, more than l80,000 acres of abandoned coal mine sites have been reclaimed. Each year the Interior Department's Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM), sponsor of the competition, honors the best examples of abandoned mine land reclamation. OSM Chief of Staff Tom Shope will present the 2002 awards during ceremonies tonight at the National Association of Abandoned Mine Land Programs annual meeting in Park City, Utah. The winners were selected by judges from each OSM Field Office and State and Tribal AML Office. Three regional winners and one national winner were selected. The regional winner with the best score in the judging is the national winner. This year the Indiana Division of Reclamation captured the top honor. The winners are: National Abandoned Mine Land & Mid-Continent Region Awards --The Indiana Division of Reclamation's Sunshine Mine Reclamation Project in Bicknell, Indiana, won the national and regonal awards for elimination of a 25-acre area of gob, slurry, mine drainage, and derelict buildings that travelers referred to as "the ugly old coal mine at the edge of town." The project included regrading refuse, spreading 100 tons per acre of agricultural lime, covering the material with four feet of soil, and planting vegetation. In addition, almost 5,000 linear feet of erosion control features were installed. Most drainage from the reclaimed site has been directed into a small wetland that improves site aesthetics, eliminates off-site sedimentation, and enhances water quality downstream. Appalachian Region Award -- The Maryland Abandoned Mine Land Section of the Bureau of Mines' Kempton Coal Waste Stabilization and Doser Installation Project in Kempton, Maryland, won the Appalachian regional award for reclamation of an early 1900's underground mine that was discharging about 3.5 million gallons of highly acidic mine drainage per day. Discharges from a ventilation airshaft and an 18" diameter borehole had been responsible for eliminating aquatic habitat in more than 35 miles of the Potomac River. The reclamation efforts included installing a water-powered dosing system immediately adjacent to the airshaft discharge. In addition, a total of 160,000 cubic yards of coal refuse was removed from the Kempton Glades Wetland B, designated a Wetland of Special State Concern because of its biologically unique environment. Western Region Award -- The New Mexico Abandoned Mine Land Bureau's Sugarite Canyon Project in Raton, New Mexico, won the western regional award for its reclamation of the Sugarite Canyon. This reclamation stabilized sides of the steep- walled canyon, which were covered with large areas of eroding coal mine waste. The project used a unique design that included construction of straw bale terraces with seedlings planted behind the straw mulch, which provided immediate control of water erosion and long-term stabilization of the steep slopes. This difficult abandoned mine problem has been successfully reclaimed and no longer poses a safety hazard to visitors of the Sugarite Canyon State Park. The Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Awards Program was started in 1992, to publicly recognize outstanding abandoned mine land reclamation and publicize exemplary reclamation techniques. A brochure announcing the year 2003 program, with complete details about how to nominate a project is available from the OSM website at: (www.osmre.gov/awards.htm). -DOI-