Coal - Energy Policy Analysis: A Conceptual Framework - page 23

before vegetation is reestablished and they become suitable habitat. With rehabilitation, impacts
on some species are less severe. Complete restoration of natural biotic communities is unlikely
to occur, but reclamation of land and rehabilitation efforts geared to wildlife needs mitigate the
damage of surface mining. Rehabilitation not geared to the needs of wildlife species or improper
management of other land uses after reclamation can preclude reestablishment of many members
of the original fauna (OSM 1979).
Aquatic Habitats
Severe degradation of aquatic habitats often results from surface mining and may be apparent to
some degree many miles downstream from a mining site. Sediment contamination of surface water
is common with surface mining. Sediment yields may increase 1,000 times over their former levels
as a direct result of strip mining. In some circumstances, especially those involving disturbance
of unconsolidated soils, approximately one acre-foot of sediment may be produced annually for
every eighty acres of disturbed land (OSM 1979).
The effects of sediment on aquatic wildlife vary with the species and amount of contamination.
High sediment loads can kill fish directly, bury spawning beds, alter temperature gradients, fill in
pools, spread stream flows over wider, shallower areas, and reduce production of aquatic organ-
isms used as food by other species. These changes destroy the habitat of some valued species and
may enhance habitat for less desirable species. Current conditions are already marginal for some
freshwater fish in the United States. Sedimentation of these waters can result in their elimination.
The heaviest sediment pollution of a drainage normally comes within five to twenty-five years
after mining. In some areas, unrevegetated spoil piles continue to erode even fifty to sixty-five
years after mining (OSM 1979).
The presence of acid-forming materials exposed as a result of surface mining can affect wildlife
by eliminating habitat and by causing direct destruction of some species. Lesser concentrations
can suppress productivity, growth rate, and reproduction of many aquatic species. Acids, dilute
concentrations of heavy metals, and high alkalinity can cause severe wildlife damage in some
areas. The duration of acidic waste pollution can be long-term. Estimates of the time required to
leach exposed acidic materials in the eastern United States range from 800 to 3,000 years (OSM
1979).
Land Use
Surface mining operations and coal transportation facilities are fully dedicated to coal production
for the life of a mine. Mining activities incorporating little or no planning to establish postmining
land use objectives usually result in reclamation of disturbed lands to a land use condition not equal
to the original use. Existing land uses such as livestock grazing and crop and timber production
are temporarily eliminated from the mining area. High-value, intensive land use areas like urban
and transportation systems are not usually affected by mining operations. If mineral values are
sufficient, these improvements may be removed to an adjacent area (OSM 1979).
Topography
Where thick seams are removed, such as in Wyoming, enough overburden may not be avail-
able to replace coal that was removed, and some permanent alteration of the surface contour
results.