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U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Orphans of the Valley. A status report on abandoned surface mines in the Tennessee Valley. Volume I

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:5964673

Volume 1 of this report provides an overview of abandoned coal and noncoal mineral surface mine lands in the Tennessee Valley. It calls attention to problems associated with abandoned mines and points out reclamation accomplishments by State and Federal agencies. It discusses the upcoming task of returning these sites to productive capabilities and minimizing further damage to the environment. Volume II includes 34 color coded (by mine type), thematic maps of abandoned surface mine lands in the Tennessee Valley. The maps are historical in that they depicted conditions at, or about, the time of enactment of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act on August 3, 1977. Of the 117,000 acres of coal lands and 53,000 acres of noncoal mineral lands surface mined in the Tennessee Valley prior to comprehensive reclamation requirements, some 54,742 acres remain either inadequately or totally unreclaimed.

Research Organization:
Tennessee Valley Authority, Norris (USA). Div. of Land and Economic Resources
OSTI ID:
5964673
Report Number(s):
TVA/ONRED/LER-84/7; ON: DE85901201
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English