Coal mining in the United States: SMCRA`s successful blueprint
- Department of the Interior, Washington, DC (United States)
In his forward in Night Comes to the Cumberlands, former Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall observed that Caudill`s constructive proposals for rehabilitation of the coal counties {open_quotes}will take deep concern by people in Washington and Frankfort to bring them to fruition.{close_quotes} Deep concern for the impacts that poorly regulated surface coal mining were having on the human and natural environment animated a decade-long struggle to establish national policy for surface coal mining. The result was the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977, P.L. 95-97 (SMCRA). Enacted to implement a national framework for regulating the environmental effects of surface coal mining, the law established a national program for controlling environmental impacts and ensuring the reclamation of lands affected by surface mining activity. From the perspective of nearly two decades, most observers would conclude that SMCRA is an example of successful policy implementation. Few national environmental laws have succeeded as well in terms of on-the-ground results: coal production has increased dramatically and industry has made significant gains in productivity while incorporating environmental and reclamation requirements in its daily operations, lowering the cost of reclamation and environmental protection. This article discusses and evaluates the SMCRA and its effect on surface coal mining. 2 tabs.
- OSTI ID:
- 478386
- Journal Information:
- Natural Resources and Environment, Journal Name: Natural Resources and Environment Journal Issue: 3 Vol. 11; ISSN 0882-3812; ISSN NRENEL
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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