From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access (<wais.access.gpo.gov>)

Coal mining in the eastern United States has been an important industry for several centuries. The lack of adequate environmental controls, until recently, has produced hundreds of thousands of acres of abandoned mine land (AML). Prior to passage of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) in 1977, reclamation of coal mining sites was not a federal requirement, and drainage from AML has become a significant water quality problem in Appalachia.

Based on information supplied by the Interstate Mining Compact Commission (IMCC) and the Office of Surface Mining (OSM) Abandoned Mine Land Inventory System, EPA estimates there currently are over 1.1 million acres of abandoned coal mine lands in the United States. These have produced over 9,709 miles of streams polluted by acid mine drainage. In addition, there are over 18,000 miles of abandoned highwalls, 16,326 acres of dangerous piles and embankments, and 874 dangerous impoundments. Of the land disturbed by coal mining between 1930 and 1971, only 30 percent has been reclaimed to acceptable levels. Several states have indicated that acid mine drainage from abandoned coal mine land is their most serious water pollution problem. Streams that are impacted by acid mine drainage characteristically have low pH levels (less than 6.0 standard units) and contain high concentrations of sulfate, acidity, dissolved iron and other metals.

[Federal Register: July 30, 2001 (Volume 66, Number 146)] [Proposed Rules][Page 39300-39303]