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By H. E. Heide

"Before the war, the United States was the world’s leading consumer of tin, the industrial applications of which had become widespread. Domestic production was negligible, and requirements were met almost entirely by imports, principally from British Malaya, United Kingdom and China. Average annual imports for the years 1925-1929 amounted to 78,009 long tons.With the advent of war in Europe and signing of the Japanese-German pact, it was realized that foreign sources of supplies were threatened, and steps were taken by Congress to forestall critical shortages of tin and other minerals. These steps in regard to tin included stock-piling, improving reclamation and conservation, increasing South American production, constructing a smelter in the United States for treatment of tin, ores, and intensifying the search for domestic tin deposits. Annual imports were raised to 140,873 long tons by 1941. On 1945, annual imports had shrunk to 37,675 long tons and consumption had been reduced to 52,100 tons of primary and secondary tin but not tin content of scrap alloy.The Strategic Minerals Act, passed by the Congress in 1939, authorized the investigation of domestic tin deposits.As Alaska had supplied virtually all of the domestic output of tin, an investigation of Alaska deposits was undertaken in 1940 and 1941 by J. B. Mertie, Jr., and Robert R. Coats of the Geological Survey.The Lost River lode tin mine on the Seward Peninsula was examined by H. E. Heide of the Bureau of Mines in 1942. Possibilities for developing a significant amount of tin appeared favorable, and exploration of the ore bodies was started in August 1942."

Jul 1, 1946

By B Mohanty, M Alam, F Gauthuer

A series of eleven full-scale production blasts has been earned out in a limestone quarry to study the effect of delay interval and its precision on overall blasting performance. The quarry employed ANFO and cartridged aluminized emulsion in 75 mm diameter boreholes with 2.6 m burden and 2.9 m spacing on a 6.7 m bench. Both V-cut and echelon designs were studied. The types of detonators tested were regular short period electric detonators with expanding delay intervals, a more precise pyrotechnic-based electric detonator (EXADET) with a fixed (25 ms) delay interval, and the ultra-high precision electronic delay detonator (EDD) with constant (but site-selectable) delay interval. The various techniques employed to assess the blast results are described, and the performance of the three types of detonators compared. The use of both EXADET and EDD lead to improved blast results in echelon design. Of the three delay intervals (25 ms, 38 ms, and 50 ms) studied, the best results were obtained with EDD with a 38 ms delay interval, which translates into a delay of 38 ms/m of effective burden. The results also show the need for modification of current V-cut delay designs to derive full benefits from these high precision detonators.

Jan 1, 1991

By Za-Chieh Moh

This paper presents a summary of the current pile foundation practice in Taiwan. Constructions of driven piles, drilled shafts, and barrette foundations are reviewed. This paper also briefly summarizes the pile works of four major construction projects in Taiwan, namely, Hsin-Ta Power Plant, Taichung Power Plant, Taipei Transit Systems, and Taiwan High Speed Rail.

Jan 1, 1996

By T Hirsi, M Weatherseed, T Ritasalo

Cooling tower design has not advanced significantly in the last decade. Recognising this, Outotec has developed an innovative horizontal outflow cooling tower with increased performance compared to conventional design cooling towers.Outotec® Cooling Towers operate today in applications such as spent electrolyte cooling in zinc plants and for gypsum removal before copper solvent extraction. In such applications the use of this latest design has enabled increased production and lower maintenance costs in the downstream operations.In actual operations, the cooling performance has been confirmed at start-up, and has demonstrated that the towers operate in accordance with the CFD modelling. In the last three years these towers have proven themselves in commercial operation to operate with high efficiency and availability.This case study will outline comparative data, collected over two years at a site where both Outotec and conventional cooling towers are operating. The data shows that Outotec cooling towers require less than half the maintenance time of conventional cooling towers, when adjusted to a total solution flow basis. A close partnership approach with the site has allowed continual development, ensuring high availability and high performance.Experience with previous cooling tower installations guided the development of maintenance philosophies and procedures; this resulted in a design where maintenance intensive components were accessible from the top of the cooling tower. This allows safe access to components and maintenance with little or no downtime.CITATION:Hirsi, T, Ritasalo, T and Weatherseed, M, 2015. Improving cooling tower performance with innovative horizontal outflow design, in Proceedings MetPlant 2015, pp 396–402 (The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy: Melbourne).

Sep 7, 2015

By Victor Raul Alarcon

The Ilo Refinery was commissioned in 1975, with a cathode production capacity of 150,000 tpy. In 1994, Southern Perú Copper Corporation (SPCC) purchased the Refinery from Minero Perú SA. Subsequently, in November 1999, Grupo Mexico acquired control of Southern Perú. The anode production facility is located at the Ilo Refinery. A number of effective operating and quality control practices have been developed that have improved anode quality, as well as increasing anode production capacity to 350,000 tpy. These, and other optimization actions have allowed for a current density increase from 213 A/m2 to 275 A/m2, while maintaining current efficiency at 98% and sustaining the high quality of the cathode. The paper will outline the scope of operational practices in the Anode Plant and provide some discussion on the Ilo Smelter modernization project, and the resulting impact on the existing anode plant.

Jan 1, 2005

The following list contains the names of members whose death notices have been printed in MINING AND METALLURGY from March 15, 1947 through March 15, 1948 Biographical sketches published in MINING AND METALLURGY are indicated in the last two columns Year of Election - Name - Date of Death - Issue Containing Biography - Page 1938 ABERNATHY, G E , (M) Feb 6, 1948 April 1948 266 1935 ARCHER, M T, (M) Oct 26, 1947 Dec 1947 633 1947 ATIKINSON, JAMES E, (S) Feb 6, 1948 June 1947 309 1940 AYRES, VINCENT L, (M) Oct 14, 1947 Jan 1948 59 1915 BABCOCK, JAMES E , (M) April 1, 1947 June 1947 309 1942 BAGGALEY, WILLIAM BLAIR, (A) Aug 28, 1947 Jan 1948 59 1897 BUIN, II POSTER, (M) Mar 9, 1948 April 1948 219 1945 BAMPFIELD, A E (M) Unknown Mar 1948 215

Jan 1, 1952

By Scott Thayer, Michael Murphy, Natalie Cope, Gabriel Esterhuizen, Anthony Iannacchione, Tim Miller, Brent Slaker

"The Subtropolis room-and-pillar mine extracts the Vanport Limestone (Allegheny Formation, Pennsylvanian System) near Petersburg, Ohio. Strata instability problems associated with excessive concentrations of lateral stress caused the mine operator to implement a change in layout design. This mining method has been identified as a stress control layout, which has been used by other underground stone mines in the past with varying degrees of success. Practical experience has shown that entry headings advance in the direction of the principal lateral stress, producing lower stress concentrations with better mining conditions. It is important to minimize stress concentrations along the mining front, so an arrow-shaped advance is recommended. This technique advances more developments (headings) in a “good” direction and reduces developments (crosscuts) in a “bad” direction. As is expected, the stress control layout enhances the potential for shear failures in crosscuts. It is, therefore, important to focus crosscut engineering interventions that either: (a) lower stress concentrations (for example, an arched roof) or (b) enhance strength of the strata containing the shears (for example, rock reinforcement). This study focuses on observing strata conditions on a regular basis and monitoring the response of this strata to changing geologic and mining conditions through 3D Dynamic LiDAR scans.INTRODUCTIONProject AimsThe Subtropolis Mine is extracting the Vanport Limestone in northeastern Ohio. Since the start of mining in 2006, ground conditions have been significantly affected by excessive lateral stress condition. In some other mining districts with this hazard, certain mine layouts have been shown to lessen the potential for unstable ground conditions. The term “lessen” is used to state the realization that stress concentrations are not eliminated but instead occur in less frequency and intensity, and their locations can be projected.The stress-control mine layout, specifically for large-opening room-and-pillar stone mines, naturally evolved at mines suffering from excessive lateral stress problems. These mines will typically experiment with methods to mitigate adverse impacts, thus developing best practices for their conditions. These practices have evolved into a basic framework for the stress control mine layout. For example, Jack Parker was able to write about personal experiences at the White Pine Mine in Michigan (Parker, 1966, 1973). Various researchers at the U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM), the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have studied the effectiveness of stress-control mine layouts over a wide range of geologic conditions (Emery, 1964; Mark and Mucho, 1994; Iannacchione et al., 2003). While the stress control layout design approach has proven successful in many categories, it can be difficult to implement. For example, excessive stress conditions in crosscuts can put the ground control focused intervention at odds with ventilation and haulage constraints, thus limiting optimal crosscut size, shape, and location. Therefore, more information on the effectiveness of this approach is needed."

Jan 1, 2019

By John P. Carter

The U.S. Bureau of Mines conducted research to determine suitable construction materials for use in brine and steam environments produced from high-salinity geothermal brines. The high-temperature, high-salinity geothermal brines in the Salton Sea Known Geothermal Resources Area (KGRA) are a valuable source of energy and mineral values. The brine and steam produced from them are corrosive and cause early failure of many common materials of construction. Mass-loss and electrochemical corrosion measurements were conducted on over 60 metal alloys in brine and steam environments produced from geothermal well Magmamax No.1, located at the Salton Sea KGRA, at temperatures from 1800 to 2150 C, and in synthetic Magmamax brine at 105° and 232° C. General corrosion, crevice and pitting corrosion, and stress corrosion were examined along with the effects of dissolved gases. The alloys with the most acceptable corrosion performance in high-temperature, high-salinity geothermal environments were the high-chromium ferritic stainless steels, the Inconels and Hastelloys, and the titanium alloys. Specific alloys that performed well in wellhead brine included Fe29Cr4Mo, E-Brite 26-1, stabilized Fe26Cr1Mo, 6X, Inconel 625, Hastelloy C-276, Hastelloy S, Hastelloy G, Ti5OA, TiO.2Pd, and TiCode 12.

Jan 1, 2010

By Carl Fisher

A microseismic roof fall warning system was field tested in Western and Eastern coal mines in the United States to better define the capabilities and limitations of the microseismic method in predicting roof fall. Microseismic event and energy type data were obtained and documented for twenty-three coal mine roof falls, Field test results indicate that both the microseismic event and energy methods, as applied in this development effort, have a high probability for successful application in a commercially practical roof fall warning system. Based on the results and experience obtained during field testing, a commercial prototype microseismic roof fall warning system was designed and constructed. Although it was the intent of the program to field test the commercial prototype system, delays in equipment fabrication and contract time limitations did not permit field testing.

Jan 1, 1980

By Wm. Mark Hart

High horizontal stresses and shear failure have been considered the major reasons that cause entry roof failure and falls for underground mining. Therefore, reorientation of the current mining systems or layouts or using angular crosscuts in mains or gate entries becomes more popular if a greater than normal horizontal stress is measured. However, reorientation of the current mining systems or layouts is always expensive and use of the angular crosscuts may weaken the pillar structure at corners. Therefore, cautions must be taken before any decision related to reorientation of the current mining systems or layouts or use of angular crosscuts is going to be made. In order to prevent entry roof failure and falls, the following two issues must be carefully examined and fully understood: 1. Which one, shear stress or tensile stress, is going to be blamed for entry roof failure? 2. Which one, horizontal stress, vertical stress, or local geological weakness plays a major role in entry roof failure and falls? This paper analyzes the mechanisms of entry roof failure and falls for underground mining in general examines the roof fall history at Springvale Colliery, and proposes the means of preventing roof failure and controlling roof falls for Spingvale Colliery in particular.

Jan 1, 1996

By S. R. Zimmerley

[In the course of a flotation investi~ntion, a siliceous gold ore was ground ir, R 'ball mill to ~inils 300-mesh. It mas found that the small mount of zlus 300-~esh mnterial had a go12 assw approximately twice that of the oricinal ors, md thst this oversize ~roduct also contained much abra?.ed iron. >!oreover, the gold assay of the abraded iron, which was separated ma~etic-dl:;, wno ei::ht tiaes tkat of the ore. These facts sug,~estsd th~t sone r3laticnshin existed between the abnormally high .gold content and the preseace of abrade4 iron. It was ciecided, therefore, to investl~ate furtkor ths acsoclation of the ;old nith the iron abraded from the balls durir-g grincing. As a nrelininary ex?rr>hent, a samy?le of siliceous gold ore 786 grolznd for 1-1/2 hours i;l 3 ball mill and the nuln was divided into two products electri~mag-etically. The racult s follow: ]

Jan 1, 1937

By Robert S. Nichols

Fording Coal Limited's mine in the Rocky Mountains near Elkford, B.C. has produced 21.8 million clean tonnes of metallurgical coal from 1971 to 1980, inclusive. This production has come from several pit areas and required the removal of 149.1 million bank cubic meters of waste rock and overburden by truck-shovel and dragline operations. Waste dumps from 30m to 200m in height have been successfully constructed on natural slopes, generally between 10° and 26°. Design considerations for the dumps include foundation and soil conditions, natural slope angles and containment of weak overburden or rehandle materials. Dump control is maintained by monitoring the crest and the face of an active dump area. Crest movement is measured by extensometers locally termed "Spoil Monitors". When crest movement rates progressively increase above normal, dumping operations are temporarily relocated. Some unstable conditions and mass failures have occurred as the result of natural foundation slopes being in excess of 26°, failure of weak water saturated foundation soils or weak material being placed on the dump.

Jan 1, 1983

By J. A. Botín

In modern mining, the core of mine planning and design is the block model, a simplified representation wherein the ore deposit is divided in a number of virtual rock cubes, each characterized by technical and economics parameters. Mining engineers use this model to design the mine and develop production schedules. Traditionally, sustainability issues are not considered in the mine design, planning and engineering processes but rather are incorporated in the later stages of the feasibility evaluation as necessary expenditures and operating costs. This paper describes the results of a research project aiming to develop a methodology to incorporate sustainability parameters directly into the block model, so that they become an integral part of the design, planning and scheduling processes. It is considered that the incorporation of sustainable parameters into the block model would yield a more responsible mine design and improve mining projects sustainability performance

Feb 27, 2013

By Ray L. Tobie, Douglas E. Julin

GENERAL DESCRIPTION Block caving is a distinct caving method applied mostly to large, massive, ore bodies because of its in¬herent low cost and high production capabilities. Areas of sufficient size are removed by undercutting so that the mass above will cave naturally. Drawing of the caved ore at the bottom of the ore column causes the caving action to continue upward until all of the ore above the undercut level is broken into sizes suitable for handling. When properly applied, block caving results in a lower mining cost per ton than any other under¬ground method. There are three distinct forms: (1) dividing the horizontal area into rectangular or preferably square or nearly square blocks, drawing evenly over the entire area to maintain an approximately horizontal plane of con¬tact between broken ore and caved capping; (2) divid¬ing the horizontal area into panels across the ore body, retreating by undercutting manageable areas from one end of the panel to the other and maintaining an in¬clined plane of contact between the broken ore and caved capping (thus the name panel caving); and (3) no division of horizontal area of the ore body into defi¬nite blocks or panels (this is termed mass caving). Undercutting may be from wall to wall, retreating from one end of the ore body to the other, maintaining an inclined plane of contact between the broken ore and caved capping. The total active caved area is deter¬mined by the size of block that will not produce undue stress on workings below the undercutting level and by total production requirements. This type of operation is also referred to as panel caving at some properties. SUITABLE ORE BODIES Block caving in its various forms is applicable to deposits of various shapes and ores of various strengths. Its success is governed by rigid requirements and limi¬tations. In unsuitable deposits or where improperly em¬ployed, the loss of ore may exceed that of any other mining method. Good planning, systematic work pro¬cedures, careful supervision, and good judgment con¬tribute to its success. Ore Characteristics Included as a necessary characteristic in an ore body suited to a successful block-caving operation is a proper fracture pattern. Ore hardness should be another gov¬erning factor, and the toughness or softness of the ore should be considered. There must be sufficient horizon¬tal area available for expansion of the undercut, if neces¬sary, to start the caving process. Large, massive, ore bodies usually meet these conditions. Veinlike deposits must be wide and dip rather steeply to conform to the block-caving limitations. The capping must be of such a nature as to cave when the underlying ore is being removed since the weight of the overburden aids in crushing the ore. The most favorable capping character¬istic is that it breaks into coarse pieces and resists attrition as the block is drawn. Soft capping, by breaking into fine pieces and sifting into the ore or channeling through the ore to the drawpoints, can seriously dilute the ore and hinder the extraction of clean ore from the blocks. Types of Ore In block caving, a fairly uniform distribution of val¬ues in the ore is necessary. Grade values may range from low grade to high grade, but most often the sys¬tem is applied to low-grade ores. Wide veins, thick beds, or massive deposits of homogeneous ore overlain by ground which will cave constitute suitable ore bodies. The ore must be such that it can be supported while blocks are being developed and undercut but breaks up readily when caved. Some applications include porphyry copper, disseminated molybdenite, hematite in the Lake Superior iron district, limonite deposits in northern Spain, the diamond mines of South Africa, asbestos and nickel in Canada, and massive magnetite in Pennsylvania. Size and Shape Outline of the ore body should be fairly regular, and the sides of the ore body should dip steeply. It may not be economical to mine small portions of ore extending into the walls of the deposit, and low-grade inclusions in the ore cannot be left unmined. Some dilution of the ore, as mining progresses, by low-grade or barren cap¬ping is inevitable and, unavoidably, some clean ore is left between drawpoints. Determining Cavability The use of rock mechanics is sometimes advantageous in helping to determine the cavability of an ore deposit. The US Bureau of Mines has information and testing ability which can assist in determining the cavability of ore types. Several competent consulting orga¬nizations knowledgeable in rock mechanics can also as¬sist in evaluating the cavability of an ore body. Some recent work has been done to better define the cavability index of various ore bodies; an example of how this was determined is discussed by McMahon and Kendrick (1969). The intensity of the fracture pattern is a critical parameter to be analyzed. The question to be answered is, "How intense must the fracture pattern be?" Table 1 is a tabulation of the size of rock fragments that appear at the drawpoint of various block-cave mines around the world. These are indicative of the fracture-pattern spac¬ing and, as can be seen, they vary substantially from the almost sandy material at the Mather mine to fairly sizable blocks at the Grace mine. Several sets of fractures are essential to promote good caving. Ideally, two vertical sets at nearly right angles to each other and a third set nearly horizontal are required to insure a good caving ore body. Since initial caving of an ore mass is almost always by the action of gravity acting on these planes of weakness, it is doubtful

Jan 1, 1982

By Montaser S. EL Salmawy, Takahide Wakamatsu, Eishi Kusaka

"In conventional flotation, fluoride ions selectively would react with the aluminum site on the microcline surface and produce negative charged sites for amine to be adsorbed (Smith, 1976). According to this view, aluminum site is considered as a key feature in feldspar flotation. Generally, fluoride ion has been widely used as a modifying agent in silicate flotation. Since O'Meara's patent appeared on HF -amine reagent system to selectively float feldspar from quartz in 1942, relatively few contributions have been devoted in this issue. The reason might be that the process works very well, and accordingly there is no initiative to investigate in this area. However, due to the awareness of international community to restrict using of hazardous reagents like HF, sound engineering practice to search for alternative methods, not utilizing HF, has been launched. Inspection of literature, one can find several works dealing with this issue.In this contribution, the effect of ethoxylation of long chain alcohols on the quartz and feldspar flotation behaviors was investigated for surfactants of the octylphenol polyoxyethylene family. The tests were carried out with an average of 7.5 (Triton X 114), 9.5 (Triton X 100), 30 (Triton X305), 40 (Triton X 405) and 70 (TritonX 705) oxyethylene units. Electrokinetic and flotation studies on quartz have shown that at low pH values, quartz could be floated with polyoxyethylene octytlphenols. The possible mode of adsorption of these nonionic surfactants may be suggested to be due to hydrogen bonding between the oxygen of ether and hydrogen in the free hydroxyl groups on quartz surface. It was anticipated that the selectivity between quartz and microcline would decrease as oxyethylenic chain length increases."

Jan 1, 2003

By Mike Ounpuu

"Locked cycle testing has become more common practice in the last 10 years. Reasons vary from a desire to avoid pilot plant testing, demand for more variability testing within deposits, and perhaps most importantly, a request from the financial institutions who invariably finance many of the projects. Surprisingly, many people don’t understand locked cycle testing, analysis and balancing. This paper provides a brief overview of locked cycle testing, and then progresses into a more detailed discussion on the analysis and balancing of locked cycle test data. The paper endeavors to educate CMP personnel on how to determine if the test was good and if a reasonable metallurgical projection was made. The paper uses case studies to illustrate the key points.INTRODUCTIONA locked cycle test is a repetitive batch used to simulate a continuous circuit. The basic procedure has a complete batch test performed in the first cycle which is then followed by similar batch tests which have “intermediate” material from the previous cycle added to the appropriate location in the current cycle. These batch tests, or cycles, are continued in this iterative manner for an arbitrary number of cycles. The final products from each cycle, i.e. final concentrate and final tailings, are filtered and thus removed from further processing. At the end of the test, all the products, final and intermediate, are dried, weighed and subjected to chemical analysis. The test is balanced and a metallurgical projection is made.This description can be found in many of our classical textbooks for the mineral engineer 1, 2, 3,4. Unfortunately, none of these textbooks provide any discussion beyond the basic procedure. Often, they provide comments such as in Taggart’ where he states; “It is questionable whether in any case it approximates mill results any more closely than the standard batch test”. It is truly surprising that our classic textbooks promote that locked cycle tests are more art than science, and suggest that they can be of dubious value. None of the textbooks provide meaningful insight or discussion in how to assess:"

Jan 1, 2001

By Paul Zinner

Efforts to win an enriched manganiferous product from the Missouri Valley deposits of South Dakota have included an application of most known ore-dressing devices and have been largely unsuccessful. At least two methods showed some promise of success and were the subjects of detailed Investigation by the Bureau of Mines during the period from July 1945 to August 1947. A series of mining and beneficiation tests were undertaken to determine conditions under which the most feasible concentration methods could be employed and to define the limits of such applications in terms of the character of the final beneficiated product. In the absence of a significant current market for any conceivable product of beneficiation, the extent to which applied methods might be considered successful was measured in terms of ratios of recoveries to grade, regardless of the adaptability of such beneficiated products to further metallurgical or direct usage. The results of all investigations show that production of a shale-free, concretionary, manganese-bearing product by any known method requires great sacrifices in manganese recovery. Products of beneficiation, with specifications permitting some inclusion of shale, can probably be most effectively produced by methods employing specialized jigging equipment as the principal functional unit of a process.

Jan 1, 1949

By Allen S. Smith

Analysis of the helium content of a natural gas presents more than the usual difficulties encountered in applying the thermal-conductivity method because of the relatively small amounts of this inert as present and the wide variation in the other constituents. However, the numerous advantages of this method and its adaptability to Continuously recording and control instruments make it worthy of consideration. A specific application of the method described yields quantitative results only when used with gas mixtures of known qualitative compositions which Vary within predetermined limits. Periodic analyses for the helium content of a producing gas well may be conveniently made by an absorption method, and a continuums analytical method is not necessary for this purpose. Natural gas containing 1.75 to 1.90 percent of helium produced from Government-owned wells is processed in the Amarillo (Texas) Helium Plant of the Bureau of lanes. The helium extracted in the plant is supplied to the Army and Navy, and the processed natural gas is sold to a commercial gas company. As complete recovery of the helium in the raw material is not economically practicable, the processed gas contains 0.1 to 0.3 percent of helium, depending upon conditions of operation. Production is checked against the helium removed from the gas, which before the installation of the thermal-conductivity apparatus was calculated from the analysis of a cumulative sample of the processed gas. As conditions of operation affect the residual helium content to a large extent, a composite sample was an uncertain index of the efficiency of the process.

Jan 1, 1934

By Richard H. Bares

One criterion central to most definitions of reclamation is the restoration of mined lands to their original productive potential. This is often difficult to achieve on mined lands in the Northern Great Plains because of the rigorous climate (Bares 19;2) and various soil related problems including sodicity, salinity, soil permeability, low organic matter and plant nutrient deficiencies (Malakondaiah and Safaya 1982). Field study sites were established on recontotured mined areas during the early 1970's (prior to the topsoil mandate) in which several amendments were tested for their ability to improve spoil/topsoil conditions and, hence, increase plant production. Physical and chemical properties of these control (untreated) and amended spoils and topsoils have been summarized (Safaya et al. 1982). A number of grass and legume species combinations were studied. The general effects of one time (prior to seeding), single rate (approximately 100 mT ha-1) application of leonardite and/or slack coal to spoils and topsoils was the reduction of grass dry matter yields (NB 1 test site: dry matter yield (DMY) without slack was 110 g m 2 yr I ; DMY with slack was 80 g m -2 yr 1 I and the promotion of legume establishment and yield (SB test site: DMY without leonardite was 13 g m 2 yr -1; DMY with leonardite was 93 g m 2 yr 1). On South Beulah topsoil, treated with leonardite, production of weedy species was remarkably lower than that without leonardite (SB test site: DMY without leonardite was 252 g m - yr -1; DMY with leonardite was 177 g m 2 yr 1). The general effect of commercial fertilizer applied one time prior to seeding (rates ranging from 9-13-0 to 44-1 12-28 kg ha-1 of N-P-K) was to increase plant production during the first two to three years after which the effect disappeared. This effect was much more pronounced on spoils (NB I test site: DMY on spoils without fertilizer was 53 g m -2 yr -1; DMY on spoils with fertiliser was 132 gm -2 yr -1). Weedy species accounted for most of the biomas, production during the first growing season. Three of the test sites were designed to study plant production on topsoils and spoils. Establishment and production of grass species were comparatively better on topsoils (30 cm in depth) than on spoils while legumes were most successful on the soils (Center test site, 1979; DMY of grasses on topsoil was 170 g m 2 yr -1 DMY of grasses on spoils was 52 g m -2 yr -1; DMY of legumes on topsoil was 20 g m -2 yr -1; DMY of legumes on spoil was 191 g m 2 yr -1). Total plant production on topsoiled (302 m thickness) plots at the South Beulah site (DMY in 1979 of 269 g m 2 yr 1) was comparable to that of native western wheatgrass prairie (DMY of 262 g m -2 yr -1). An experiment was conducted to find out if time of planting would have any effect on establishment of grasses on spoils. It was fund that late fall seeding was superior to spring planting for establishment of wheatgrasses at NB 3 test site (Control Plot, 1975: DMY on spring-seeded was 1 g m -2 yr - 1; DMY on fall-seeded was 55 g m -2 yr -1). In general, wheatgrasses (slender, streambank, thickspike and western) yielded the most aboveground biomass of all the grass species tested; yellow sweetclover was the most successful legume. Yellow sweetclover established and was productive on both spoils and topsoils but only where competition with grasses was apparently minimal. Durar hard fescue established and thrived on topsoil but dry matter production was low compared to that of wheatgrasses. Emerald crown-vetch demonstrated a potential for growth on spoils where water conditions were adequate, whereas side-oats grama, prairie sand-reed, alkali sacaton, and bird's -foot trefoil demonstrated only sporadic success. Little bluestem did not become established at any of the test sites. Peak production of the planted species, especially grasses, was generally reached by the second week of July. Legume and weed production continued to increase into late August.

Jan 1, 1982

REFERENCES AND FOOTNOTES 1. U.S. Department of the Interior, Office of Surface Mining. Surface Coal Mining Reclamation: 10 Years of Progress: 1977-1987. Washington, D.C. August 3, 1987.48 pp. (For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office, Washington D.C. 20402.) 2. The Rural Abandoned Mine Program (RAMP), authorized by Section 406 of SMCRA, provides for the control and prevention o f erosion and sediment damages from unreclaimed abandoned mine lands. 3. The Small Operator Assistance Program (SOAP), authorized by Section 401(b)(1) and 507(c) of SMCRA authorizes up to 10 percent of the fees collected for the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund to be used for technical assistance to help qualified small mine operators obtain techincal data needed for permit applications. Operators who produce fewer than 300,000 tons of coal per year are eligible for assistance. 4. OSM regulations 30 CFR 816.42 and 817.42 require water from areas distrubed by mining activities be in compliance with all applicable state and federal water-quality laws and effluent limitations for coal mining established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 5. Sourse: Abandoned Mine Lands Fee Collection System, Data from OSM-1 form. 6. Sourse: Abandoned Mine Lands Fee Collection System, Data from OSM-1 form. 7. Source: OSM Field Office Annual Reports. 8. Johnson, W. and G.C. Miller, Abandoned Coal-Mine Lands: nature, extent, and cost of reclamation. U. S. Bureau of Mines, 1979,29 pp. PHOTOGRAPHIC CREDITS Front cover, pp. i, 1, 2 bottom, 7 right, 10 bottom left, l 1 top, l l bottom right, 12 top, 13 bottom, 14 bottom right, 15,16 bottom, 17 top, 17 bottom right, 18 bottom, 19, 20 bottom, 21 top, 22, 23, 24 bottom, 25 bottom, 26 bottom left, 26 bottom right, 27, 28, 29 top, 30 bottom, 32 bottom right, 33 top, 34 top, 35 top left, 35 bottom left, 35 bottom right, 36 top, 37, top right, 37 bottom, 38 bottom, 39, 41, 42 top, 43 bottom, 44 bottom left, 44 bottom right, 45, 46, 47, and 53: Chuck Meyers, OSM. Page 2 top and center: Tony Fuhs. Page 3: John Sharkowicz, OSM. Page 6 left: North American Coal Corp. Pages 6 right, 7 left, l l bottom left, 13 top left, 13 top right, 17 bottom left, 21 bottom, 25 top left, 25 top right, 29 bottom, 30 center, 32 top, 32 bottom left, and 38 top: Bob Welch, OSM. Page 10 top left: Donald Stump, OSM. Pages 10 right, 14 top right, 14 center right, 18 top, and 44 top: Ron Hill, EPA. Page 12 bottom: Texas Utilities Co. Pages 16 top, 20 top, 24 top: Tennessee Valley Authority. Page 26 top right and 26 center left: Richard Dick, U.S. Bureau of Mines. Pages 30 top, 33 bottom left, 33 bottom right, 35 top right, 36 bottom, 37 top left, 40 top, 40 bottom, 42 bottom, 43 top left, and 43 top right: Jim Boyer, OSM. Page 31 top left, and 31 top right: Bruce Wage, Western Energy Co. Page 31 bottom: Rex Wilson, OSM. Page 34 bottom: West Virginia Division of Abandoned Mine Lands. Page 35 center: William Weist, Jr., OSM.

Jan 1, 1992