Environment DEC
From the September 2003 issue
Winner of 2003 New York State Mined Land Reclamation Award Announced
DEC Commissioner Erin M. Crotty has announced that Southern Tier Stone Products, LLC, located in Binghamton, Broome County, has won the 2003 New York State Mined Land Reclamation Award. The company received the award for reclamation of a mine near Chenango Valley State Park. The site had been abandoned, and there was no viable operator to complete reclamation.
More than 2,500 mines covering about 44,000 acres of land operate in New York State. DEC works with mine operators and other partners and holds more than $80 million in financial security to ensure reclamation of mined land. Since the Mined Land Reclamation Law was enacted in 1975, more than 21,000 acres of mined land have been reclaimed.
Southern Tier's Plan
Vegetation established on the reclaimed
mine site reduces soil erosion, protects
water quality and enhances surrounding
wildlife habitat conditions
Southern Tier took over the mine in 1996 and subsequently developed a plan to restore the site. Mining at the site pre-dated the enactment of the New York State Mined Land Reclamation Law of 1975, which requires all mining operations permitted after that date to submit a comprehensive reclamation plan to DEC before mining any land parcel in the state.
The reclamation plan focused on final site closure. Southern Tier mined portions of the site to remove snow- and ice-control sand, which was preventing a complete reclamation. They also graded to remove remaining stockpiles, established drainage, and trucked about 8,000 cubic yards of soil to the site for growing plants.
The plan also addressed concerns about mine workings that were visible from the nearby state park and mineral stockpiles that were stored next to Page Brook. Southern Tier built a 100-foot buffer--an unobtrusive earthen berm to prevent potential environmental problems--and removed all debris piled along the brook. DEC gave final reclamation approval to the company on May 21, 2003.
