Abandoned mine program reclaims hazardous land for Oklahoma

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  • Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Project Director Robert Toole explains the mission of the project during Wednesday’s Rotary Club meeting in Weatherford. Leanna Cook/WDN
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The Oklahoma Conservation Commission’s Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Project plays an important part in turning former coal mines into viable land and closing mine openings for public safety.

Project Director Robert Toole said the projec focuses on public health and safety, repairing scarred land and improving the environment.

Oklahoma has about 32,000 acres of surface miles and 40,000 acres of underground mines. The majority of these mines are located in Eastern Oklahoma, which has a large vein of coal running through it.

Prior to 1977, 16 counties had active coal mines. Today, Oklahoma only has a few mines left. Taxes from these mines fund the project, which has brought in about $3 million a year since 2008.

These abandoned mines pose four specific hazards to the public: water bodies, highwalls, vertical openings and portals.

Water bodies and highwalls mostly are related to above ground mines. Although the water bodes often contain high-quality water, they can be dangerous, especially in combination with highwalls. Water bodies are dangerous because they often are close to the roads, causing erosion and dangerous drop offs. They also become dumping sites in rural communities, causing environmental problems.

Highwalls are a result of the mining method in that area and have walls which typically are straight and smooth. This makes climbing out of pits and water bodies almost completely impossible. Today, Oklahoma has had 26 people and one escaped circus elephant drown due to these circumstances.

Underground mines have their own particular problems — vertical openings and portals. Vertical openings can be found along the floor and are often disguised by brush and other plants. This poses danger to hikers, hunters and others who are enjoying the outdoors. They often have water in them, and those who fall in are unable to climb out due to the smooth walls.

Portals are old entrances to the mines and have pockets which are void of oxygen, suffocating those who choose to explore.

As of right now, most portals and vertical openings have been eliminated in Oklahoma. However, Toole said the project has faced some challenges. Some portals have a protected species of living inside, which means getting creative on coverings to keep humans out and letting the bats go as they please.

Since Oklahoma has more than 70,000 acres of mine land, the project has a matrix it uses to decide which projects are top priority based on risk, social, economic and environmental factors.

While certain areas might be a priority, funding and the cooperation of land owners ultimately decide which projects get done first. However, if there are known deaths on the abandoned mining property, the OCC can use policing powers to reclaim the land without permission.

When reclaiming land, the project had many factors to consider. Mine land is not good for anything but brush, limiting the replanting options. To get around this problem, Bermuda grass often is planted because “it will grow in concrete,” according to Toole.

The reclaimed land also is turned into bird sanctuaries and habitats for endangered species such as the American burying beetle.

Toole said soil health is the biggest challenge with reclamation.

The Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Project has been in operation for 35 years. The project is funded through coal mining taxes. The project only focuses on abandoned coal mine and does not focus on other Oklahoma mines such as the lead and zinc mining reclamation project in Ottawa County, which is a federal project. However, Toole said his assistant director did some consulting work when the project first started.