Disturbed Land Reclamation

The use, extraction, and processing of natural resources often disturbs the landscape. Although this disturbance can be extensive, the land can be reclaimed to a condition that is compatible with or improved beyond its pre-disturbed condition or for a specified end land use. Achieving this result requires the application of practical experience and knowledge concerning the ecosystem and its resources.

EarthFax understands the regulatory roadmap that our mining and other industrial clients face with respect to land reclamation. We also understand the importance of maintaining an efficient and economical operation. As a result, we can provide decades of professional learning and expertise to our clients as they seek to balance the economic and environmental demands of their operations.

We have designed numerous reclamation plans for coal and mineral mining operations at various locations in the world. We have also provided construction management services to ensure that those reclamation plans are implemented in a manner that will achieve the goals that have been established by our clients and approved by the applicable regulatory agencies. Our plans have included the re-establishment of stable drainage channels that are compatible with natural geomorphic conditions, long-term stabilization of disturbed areas to reduce erosion hazards below pre-disturbance conditions, stream and wetland restoration, structure demolition and preservation, adit and shaft closure, topsoil enhancement, site revegetation, and the minimization and treatment of acid-mine drainage.

Our reclamation projects have won State, national, and international awards. Here are a few highlights:

Design and Supervision of Coal Mine Reclamation

EarthFax has developed reclamation plans for several areas disturbed by underground coal mining operations in Utah. Using site-specific topographic data obtained from aerial photographs and land surveys, we have drainage alignments, profiles, and channel sections to efficiently convey runoff from the reclaimed slopes.

Evaluation of Alternatives to Reduce and Control Waste at a Russian Coal Mine

EarthFax was awarded an EcoLinks Challenge Grant through the U.S. Agency for International Development to study alternatives for reducing, controlling, and recycling waste rock at a coal mine located on Sakhalin Island in the Russian Far East. The coal mine, operating since 1913, had been generating but not controlling various waste streams related to coal mine operations.

Design of a Reclamation Plan for a High-Altitude Molybdenum Mine and Mill

EarthFax developed a plan to reclaim land affected by molybdenum mine and mill located at an elevation of over 10,000 feet in Colorado. The ore body represented the largest molybdenum deposit in the world. The mine had been in operation for over 90 years and plans were in place to expand the operation in response to world demand for molybdenum.

Additional Soils and Reclamation Services

You want to open a coal mine and you want your operation to be protective of the environment. That means that you need to identify and segregate the topsoil resources and develop a long-term reclamation plan that is both cost-effective and approvable. EarthFax has not only been there and done that, but they've been there and done it several times.