In accordance with our mission, Earth Conservancy reclaims both land and watersheds impacted by pre-regulatory mining activity in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania.  Our reclamation work includes both lands and watersheds impacted by mining.

Local residents are familiar with the history of mining in the region. Deep mining was conducted extensively in the Wyoming Valley of Luzerne County from the early 1800s to the 1970s to extract valuable anthracite coal resources. This pre-regulatory mining activity resulted in the current problems, such as remnant mine openings, ground subsidence and acid mine water discharges.  Surface mining, which became extensive in the 1940s and 1950s, left unreclaimed pits, dangerous highwalls, unstable spoil piles called culm and mine water discharges.  Remnant structures used for coal processing and preparation activities also remain throughout the Wyoming Valley, posing physical and environmental hazards and a wide array of waste material.

     In short, pre-regulatory mining remnants that should be addressed are:

• Vertical openings and portals
• Refuse piles, called culm
• Hazardous equipment facilities
• Acid Mine Drainage (AMD) outfalls
• Abandoned strip mines
• Subsidence prone areas
• abandoned ponds 

According to the Land Use Plan (LUP), of the 16,300 acres Earth Conservancy purchased from the bankruptcy estate of Glen Alden/Blue Coal Company, only approximately 3,000 acres required reclamation.  Following the guidelines laid out in the LUP, which addresses all 16,300 acres, the plan recommended that approximately 10,000 acres be used as recreational and open space because they were still pristine and untouched by mining activity, much of which has been put into a cooperative use agreement with the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Another 2,200 acres would be used for industrial development, approximately 2,800 acres for residential development, and other small amounts of acreage be used for commercial and institutional development. The majority of the lands requiring reclamation are located in areas convenient to locations that would suit well the responsible reuse and Best Management Practices Earth Conservancy attempts to incorporate in its work.

Both land and watershed reclamation require significant funding to accomplish comprehensive restoration. To achieve our reclamation goals, Earth conservancy has received funding from and partnered with a number of federal, state and local agencies to achieve the reclamation work, including: the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers- Baltimore District, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Environmental Council - Northeast Regional Office, Eastern Pennsylvania Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation, Trout Unlimited and the Pennsylvania Association of Conservation Districts.

In addition to reclamation work, we operate the Earth Conservancy Leaf and Yard Waste Composting Facility, located in Glen Lyon Pennsylvania. Operating on a gratis and donation basis, the facility works year-round to create rich compost to be used in reclamation projects. The facility accepts leaf and yard waste from residents and contractors alike. The composted material is available for Luzerne County residents on a gratis basis and to contractors for a minimal fee.

To read about our specific reclamation projects and programs, click on the tabs in the left column menu.