A report on the protection and restoration of the Nation's land and water resources under Titles IV and V of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977. Covers program implementation, mining and reclamation today, and improved environmental protection. Includes information on topsoil, roads, blasting and explosives, excess spoil disposal, post-mining land use, remining, acid and toxic drainage prevention and treatment, erosion and sedimentation control, highwall elimination and return to approximate original contour. 100 color photos.

This report deals with the accomplishments of the regulatory and abandoned mine land reclamation programs during the first 15 years of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). This part presents statistical information for the 15 year period. It is organized in two sections; national statistics and state statistics. The national statistics provide an overview of coal mining and the implementation of SMCRA since 1977. The information reported for the states presents a brief description of the coal reserves in each area, accompanied by detailed statistics and graphs that relate each state to the nation as a whole.

Christopher Kennedy University of Toronto, Department of Civil Engineering, 35 St. George Street, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S IA4 Coal is a valuable resource. It provides a significant amount of the World's energy supply and it is the basis for many industries. However, in areas where coal lies close to the Earth's surface and has been exploited by open cast tech niques, radical alterations of landscape and significant impacts on the envi ronment have occurred. This report was prepared to provide guidance to those who are responsible for the prevention of environmental effects from surface mining and for the restoration of the mining areas. Environmental problems of surface coal mining and restoration of the mine sites are discussed in the re port. Particular attention is given to Eastern Europe, which continues to be a major centre of opencast lignite mining. Reclamation of mined lands for for estry, agriculture and wildlife is briefly discussed. However, the shear volume of coal removed from many mines in Eastern Europe is so vast, that there is often insufficient overburden material to refill the pits. Consequently, the main focus of this report is on the creation of lakes in these former surface mines. Many problems have to be overcome in creating healthy lakes for recreation or wildlife. Guidelines for treating water quality problems and further devel opment of lakes are provided. Techniques for dealing with acidic, waters, eutrophication and contamination are discussed.