The state Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committee recently advanced legislation that would reauthorize the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund (AMRF) through 2036.
The fund is scheduled to end in 2021.
The federal AMRF provides states with resources to help reclaim and restore abandoned mine lands. Pennsylvania receives approximately $25 million annually and administers the fund through the Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation.
The bureau is responsible for resolving problems such as dangerous highwalls, mining-impacted water supplies, mine subsidence, open shafts and portals, mine fires, and other hazards resulting from past coal mining. Problems are resolved under the federal Office of Surface Mining requirements.
“More than 5,000 abandoned mine sites have left deep scars across our great commonwealth,” said Sen. John Yudichak (D–Luzerne/Carbon), who sponsored the bill. “In northeastern Pennsylvania, we have witnessed an economic resurgence by reclaiming abandoned mine lands for economic development and recreational opportunities. It is vitally important for Congress to reauthorize the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund so that we can continue to make strides in cleaning up Pennsylvania’s landscape and turn environmental hazards into opportunities.”
The bill also urges the federal government to raise the mandatory distribution to $5 million for program states.