Why is the SMCRA of 1977 so important? The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) is the primary federal law that regulates the environmental effects of coal mining in the United States.
Why is the SMCRA of 1977 so important?
The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) is the primary federal law that regulates the environmental effects of coal mining in the United States. SMCRA created two programs: one for regulating active coal mines and a second for reclaiming abandoned mine lands.
What is the purpose of SMCRA?
The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) prohibits surface coal mining within the boundaries of any unit of the National Park System. SMCRA also provides the NPS with authority over permitting decisions regarding external surface coal mining.
Was SMCRA successful?
This is the true success of SMCRA. About 29.5 billion tons of coal have been mined while SMCRA has been in place. Most of that, about 90 percent, was used to generate electrical power. During this same time, the coal mining industry has successfully reclaimed more than 2 million acres (2,238,560) of mined lands.
Who is responsible for strip mining?
Title V of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act Most coal-mining States now have the primary responsibility to regulate surface coal mining on lands within their jurisdiction, with OSMRE performing an oversight role.
Why must a mining company reclaim a mine?
It ensures that coal mining operations are conducted in an environmentally responsible manner and that the land is adequately reclaimed during and following the mining process.
Why is strip mining bad?
Strip mining destroys landscapes, forests and wildlife habitats at the site of the mine when trees, plants, and topsoil are cleared from the mining area. This in turn leads to soil erosion and destruction of agricultural land. When rain washes the loosened top soil into streams, sediments pollute waterways.
How do I reclaim a mine?
Reclamation includes the following steps: contouring of land; placement of topsoil or an approved substitute on the graded area; reseeding with native vegetation, crops and/or trees; and years of careful monitoring to assure success.
What does it mean to reclaim a mine?
Reclamation is the combined process by which adverse environmental effects of surface mining are minimized and mined lands are returned to a beneficial end use. End uses may be open space, wildlife habitat, agriculture, or residential and commercial development.
Is it safe to go in abandoned mines?
Abandoned mine sites are a great safety hazards. Many of these structures contain dilapidated frames, open shafts, and water-filled pits. The dangers that are found in the mines include old explosives, hazardous chemicals, bats, snakes, spiders, bobcats, mountain lions and other predators.
What level should you strip mine for diamonds?
Strip mining: to strip mine, you will want to dig down to around the twelfth level from the bottom, and then dig in a straight line.
What do you need to know about SMCRA?
SMCRA requires that companies obtain permits before conducting surface mining. Permit applications must describe what the premining environmental conditions and land use are, what the proposed mining and reclamation will be, how the mine will meet the SMCRA performance standards, and how the land will be used after reclamation is complete.
Who was president when SMCRA was passed into law?
Congress sent him a bill that was even more stringent than those vetoed by Ford, and President Carter signed it into law on August 3, 1977. The regulation of active mines under SMCRA has five major components: Blasting a coal seam in Gillette, Wyoming.
How is SMCRA used to regulate coal mining?
Under SMCRA, the federal government can approve a program, which gives the state the authority to regulate mining operations, if the state demonstrates that it has a law that is at least as strict as SMCRA, and that they have a regulatory agency with the wherewithal to operate the program. Currently, most coal-mining states have approved programs.
Is there an unofficial compilation of all revisions to SMCRA?
This link contains an unofficial compilation of all revisions to SMCRA through July 6, 2012. The file is word searchable. Users of this compilation should be aware that there are slight variations between the enacted version and the version codified in the U.S. Code; when citing SMCRA, the U.S. Code is the only official source.