Sample records for mining forest management

  1. 76 FR 41192 - Mines Management Inc. Montanore Project, Kootenai National Forest, Lincoln County, MT

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-07-13

    ... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Mines Management Inc. Montanore Project, Kootenai... can be reviewed at: http://www.fs.fed.usda.gov/goto/kootenai/projects . Mines Management Inc. owns two... of Environmental Quality, issued a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the Montanore Project. In...

  2. 36 CFR 9.5 - Recordation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Recordation. 9.5 Section 9.5 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.5 Recordation. (a) Any unpatented mining claim in a unit in existence...

  3. 36 CFR 9.5 - Recordation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Recordation. 9.5 Section 9.5 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.5 Recordation. (a) Any unpatented mining claim in a unit in existence...

  4. 36 CFR 9.5 - Recordation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Recordation. 9.5 Section 9.5 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.5 Recordation. (a) Any unpatented mining claim in a unit in existence...

  5. 36 CFR 9.5 - Recordation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Recordation. 9.5 Section 9.5 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.5 Recordation. (a) Any unpatented mining claim in a unit in existence...

  6. 36 CFR 9.5 - Recordation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Recordation. 9.5 Section 9.5 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.5 Recordation. (a) Any unpatented mining claim in a unit in existence...

  7. 43 CFR 3830.5 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... location under the General Mining Law, including, but not limited to, those lands within forest reservations in the National Forest System and wildlife refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge System. Filed... OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) LOCATING, RECORDING, AND MAINTAINING MINING CLAIMS OR...

  8. 43 CFR 3830.5 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... location under the General Mining Law, including, but not limited to, those lands within forest reservations in the National Forest System and wildlife refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge System. Filed... OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) LOCATING, RECORDING, AND MAINTAINING MINING CLAIMS OR...

  9. 43 CFR 3830.5 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... location under the General Mining Law, including, but not limited to, those lands within forest reservations in the National Forest System and wildlife refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge System. Filed... OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) LOCATING, RECORDING, AND MAINTAINING MINING CLAIMS OR...

  10. 43 CFR 3830.5 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... location under the General Mining Law, including, but not limited to, those lands within forest reservations in the National Forest System and wildlife refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge System. Filed... OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) LOCATING, RECORDING, AND MAINTAINING MINING CLAIMS OR...

  11. Hydrological principles for sustainable management of forest ecosystems

    Treesearch

    Irena F. Creed; Gabor Z. Sass; Jim M. Buttle; Julia A. Jones

    2011-01-01

    Forested landscapes around the world are changing as a result of human activities, including forest management, fire suppression, mountaintop mining, conversion of natural forests to plantations, and climate change (Brockerhoff et al., 2008; Cyr et al., 2009; Johnston et al., 2010; Miller et al., 2009; Kelly et al., 2010; Palmer et al., 2010). Forests...

  12. Impact of mining and forest regeneration on small mammal biodiversity in the Western Region of Ghana.

    PubMed

    Attuquayefio, Daniel K; Owusu, Erasmus H; Ofori, Benjamin Y

    2017-05-01

    Much of the terrestrial biodiversity in sub-Saharan Africa is supported by tropical rainforest. Natural resource development, particularly surface mining in the rainforest, poses great risks to the region's rich and endemic biodiversity. Here, we assessed the impact of surface mining and the success of forest rehabilitation on small mammal diversity in the Western Region of Ghana. We surveyed small mammals in the project area and two adjoining forest reserves (control sites) before the mining operation and 10 years after mine closure and forest rehabilitation (topsoil replacement and revegetation). The forest reserves recorded higher species abundance than the mining areas. Majority of the species captured in the forest reserves, including Hylomyscus alleni, Praomys tullbergi, Malacomys cansdalei, and Hybomys trivirgatus, are forest obligate species. Only one individual each of H. alleni and P. tullbergi was captured in the naturally regenerated areas (core areas of mining activities that were allowed to revegetate naturally), while 32 individuals belonging to four species (Lophuromys sikapusi, Mus musculoides, Mastomys erythroleucus, and Crocidura olivieri) were recorded in the rehabilitated areas. Our data suggested negative effects of mining on small mammal diversity and the restoration of species diversity and important ecological processes after rehabilitation of altered habitats. We strongly encourage deliberate conservation efforts, particularly the development of management plans that require the restoration of degraded land resulting from mining activities.

  13. 36 CFR 9.11 - Reclamation requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Reclamation requirements. 9.11 Section 9.11 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.11 Reclamation requirements. (a) As contemporaneously as...

  14. 36 CFR 9.11 - Reclamation requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Reclamation requirements. 9.11 Section 9.11 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.11 Reclamation requirements. (a) As contemporaneously as...

  15. 36 CFR 9.16 - Penalties.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Penalties. 9.16 Section 9.16 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.16 Penalties. Undertaking any operation within the boundaries of any...

  16. 36 CFR 9.11 - Reclamation requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Reclamation requirements. 9.11 Section 9.11 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.11 Reclamation requirements. (a) As contemporaneously as...

  17. 36 CFR 9.16 - Penalties.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Penalties. 9.16 Section 9.16 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.16 Penalties. Undertaking any operation within the boundaries of any...

  18. 36 CFR 9.11 - Reclamation requirements.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Reclamation requirements. 9.11 Section 9.11 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.11 Reclamation requirements. (a) As contemporaneously as...

  19. 36 CFR 9.16 - Penalties.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Penalties. 9.16 Section 9.16 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.16 Penalties. Undertaking any operation within the boundaries of any...

  20. 36 CFR 9.16 - Penalties.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Penalties. 9.16 Section 9.16 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.16 Penalties. Undertaking any operation within the boundaries of any...

  1. 36 CFR 9.16 - Penalties.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Penalties. 9.16 Section 9.16 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.16 Penalties. Undertaking any operation within the boundaries of any...

  2. 36 CFR 9.17 - Public inspection of documents.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Public inspection of documents. 9.17 Section 9.17 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.17 Public inspection of documents. (a) Upon...

  3. 36 CFR 9.7 - Assessment work.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Assessment work. 9.7 Section 9.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.7 Assessment work. (a) An access permit and approved plan of...

  4. 36 CFR 9.13 - Performance bond.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Performance bond. 9.13 Section 9.13 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.13 Performance bond. (a) Upon approval of a plan of...

  5. 36 CFR 9.7 - Assessment work.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Assessment work. 9.7 Section 9.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.7 Assessment work. (a) An access permit and approved plan of...

  6. 36 CFR 9.1 - Purpose and scope.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Purpose and scope. 9.1 Section 9.1 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.1 Purpose and scope. These regulations control all activities within...

  7. 36 CFR 9.4 - Surface disturbance moratorium.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Surface disturbance moratorium. 9.4 Section 9.4 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.4 Surface disturbance moratorium. (a) For a...

  8. 36 CFR 9.1 - Purpose and scope.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Purpose and scope. 9.1 Section 9.1 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.1 Purpose and scope. These regulations control all activities within...

  9. 36 CFR 9.14 - Appeals.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Appeals. 9.14 Section 9.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.14 Appeals. (a) Any operator aggrieved by a decision of the Regional...

  10. 36 CFR 9.4 - Surface disturbance moratorium.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Surface disturbance moratorium. 9.4 Section 9.4 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.4 Surface disturbance moratorium. (a) For a...

  11. 36 CFR 9.1 - Purpose and scope.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Purpose and scope. 9.1 Section 9.1 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.1 Purpose and scope. These regulations control all activities within...

  12. 36 CFR 9.17 - Public inspection of documents.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Public inspection of documents. 9.17 Section 9.17 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.17 Public inspection of documents. (a) Upon...

  13. 36 CFR 9.14 - Appeals.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Appeals. 9.14 Section 9.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.14 Appeals. (a) Any operator aggrieved by a decision of the Regional...

  14. 36 CFR 9.3 - Access permits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Access permits. 9.3 Section 9.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.3 Access permits. (a) All special use or other permits dealing with...

  15. 36 CFR 9.14 - Appeals.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Appeals. 9.14 Section 9.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.14 Appeals. (a) Any operator aggrieved by a decision of the Regional...

  16. 36 CFR 9.17 - Public inspection of documents.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Public inspection of documents. 9.17 Section 9.17 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.17 Public inspection of documents. (a) Upon...

  17. 36 CFR 9.4 - Surface disturbance moratorium.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Surface disturbance moratorium. 9.4 Section 9.4 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.4 Surface disturbance moratorium. (a) For a...

  18. 36 CFR 9.3 - Access permits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Access permits. 9.3 Section 9.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.3 Access permits. (a) All special use or other permits dealing with...

  19. 36 CFR 9.3 - Access permits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Access permits. 9.3 Section 9.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.3 Access permits. (a) All special use or other permits dealing with...

  20. 36 CFR 9.3 - Access permits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Access permits. 9.3 Section 9.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.3 Access permits. (a) All special use or other permits dealing with...

  1. 36 CFR 9.13 - Performance bond.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Performance bond. 9.13 Section 9.13 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.13 Performance bond. (a) Upon approval of a plan of...

  2. 36 CFR 9.3 - Access permits.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Access permits. 9.3 Section 9.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.3 Access permits. (a) All special use or other permits dealing with...

  3. 36 CFR 9.7 - Assessment work.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Assessment work. 9.7 Section 9.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.7 Assessment work. (a) An access permit and approved plan of...

  4. 36 CFR 9.1 - Purpose and scope.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Purpose and scope. 9.1 Section 9.1 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.1 Purpose and scope. These regulations control all activities within...

  5. 36 CFR 9.14 - Appeals.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Appeals. 9.14 Section 9.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.14 Appeals. (a) Any operator aggrieved by a decision of the Regional...

  6. 36 CFR 9.17 - Public inspection of documents.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Public inspection of documents. 9.17 Section 9.17 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.17 Public inspection of documents. (a) Upon...

  7. 36 CFR 9.1 - Purpose and scope.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Purpose and scope. 9.1 Section 9.1 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.1 Purpose and scope. These regulations control all activities within...

  8. 36 CFR 9.4 - Surface disturbance moratorium.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Surface disturbance moratorium. 9.4 Section 9.4 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.4 Surface disturbance moratorium. (a) For a...

  9. 36 CFR 9.14 - Appeals.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Appeals. 9.14 Section 9.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.14 Appeals. (a) Any operator aggrieved by a decision of the Regional...

  10. 43 CFR 3809.2 - What is the scope of this subpart?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... inform the public. (b) This subpart does not apply to lands in the National Park System, National Forest... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) MINING CLAIMS UNDER THE GENERAL MINING LAWS... applies to all operations authorized by the mining laws on public lands where the mineral interest is...

  11. 43 CFR 3809.2 - What is the scope of this subpart?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... inform the public. (b) This subpart does not apply to lands in the National Park System, National Forest... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) MINING CLAIMS UNDER THE GENERAL MINING LAWS... applies to all operations authorized by the mining laws on public lands where the mineral interest is...

  12. 43 CFR 3809.2 - What is the scope of this subpart?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... inform the public. (b) This subpart does not apply to lands in the National Park System, National Forest... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) MINING CLAIMS UNDER THE GENERAL MINING LAWS... applies to all operations authorized by the mining laws on public lands where the mineral interest is...

  13. 43 CFR 3809.2 - What is the scope of this subpart?

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... inform the public. (b) This subpart does not apply to lands in the National Park System, National Forest... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) MINING CLAIMS UNDER THE GENERAL MINING LAWS... applies to all operations authorized by the mining laws on public lands where the mineral interest is...

  14. Restoring Sustainable Forests on Appalachian Mined Lands for Wood Products, Renewable Energy, Carbon Sequestration, and Other Ecosystem Services

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    James A. Burger; J. Galbraith; T. Fox

    2005-12-01

    The overall purpose of this project is to evaluate the biological and economic feasibility of restoring high-quality forests on mined land, and to measure carbon sequestration and wood production benefits that would be achieved from forest restoration procedures. We are currently estimating the acreage of lands in Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, and Pennsylvania mined under SMCRA and reclaimed to non-forested post-mining land uses that are not currently under active management, and therefore can be considered as available for carbon sequestration. To determine actual sequestration under different forest management scenarios, a field study was installed as a 3 x 3more » factorial in a random complete block design with three replications at each of three locations, one each in Ohio, West Virginia, and Virginia. The treatments included three forest types (white pine, hybrid poplar, mixed hardwood) and three silvicultural regimes (competition control, competition control plus tillage, competition control plus tillage plus fertilization). Each individual treatment plot is 0.5 acres. Each block of nine plots is 4.5 acres, and the complete installation at each site is 13.5 acres. Regression models of chemical and physical soil properties were created in order to estimate the SOC content down the soil profile. Soil organic carbon concentration and volumetric percent of the fines decreased exponentially down the soil profile. The results indicated that one-third of the total SOC content on mined lands was found in the surface 0-13 cm soil layer, and more than two-thirds of it was located in the 0-53 cm soil profile. A relative estimate of soil density may be best in broad-scale mine soil mapping since actual D{sub b} values are often inaccurate and difficult to obtain in rocky mine soils. Carbon sequestration potential is also a function of silvicultural practices used for reforestation success. Weed control plus tillage may be the optimum treatment for hardwoods and white pine, as any increased growth resulting from fertilization may not offset the decreased survival that accompanied fertilization. Relative to carbon value, our analysis this quarter shows that although short-rotation hardwood management on reclaimed surface mined lands may have higher LEVs than traditional long-rotation hardwood management, it is only profitable in a limited set of circumstances.« less

  15. 36 CFR 9.9 - Plan of operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Plan of operations. 9.9 Section 9.9 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.9 Plan of operations. (a) No operations shall be conducted within any...

  16. 36 CFR 9.6 - Transfers of interest.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Transfers of interest. 9.6 Section 9.6 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.6 Transfers of interest. (a) Whenever a claimant who has recorded his...

  17. 36 CFR 9.12 - Supplementation or revision of plan of operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Supplementation or revision of plan of operations. 9.12 Section 9.12 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.12 Supplementation or revision of...

  18. 36 CFR 9.6 - Transfers of interest.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Transfers of interest. 9.6 Section 9.6 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.6 Transfers of interest. (a) Whenever a claimant who has recorded his...

  19. 36 CFR 9.18 - Surface use and patent restrictions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Surface use and patent restrictions. 9.18 Section 9.18 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.18 Surface use and patent restrictions. (a) The...

  20. 36 CFR 9.9 - Plan of operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Plan of operations. 9.9 Section 9.9 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.9 Plan of operations. (a) No operations shall be conducted within any...

  1. 36 CFR 9.6 - Transfers of interest.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Transfers of interest. 9.6 Section 9.6 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.6 Transfers of interest. (a) Whenever a claimant who has recorded his...

  2. 36 CFR 9.18 - Surface use and patent restrictions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Surface use and patent restrictions. 9.18 Section 9.18 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.18 Surface use and patent restrictions. (a) The...

  3. 36 CFR 9.18 - Surface use and patent restrictions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Surface use and patent restrictions. 9.18 Section 9.18 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.18 Surface use and patent restrictions. (a) The...

  4. 36 CFR 9.12 - Supplementation or revision of plan of operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Supplementation or revision of plan of operations. 9.12 Section 9.12 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.12 Supplementation or revision of...

  5. 36 CFR 9.9 - Plan of operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Plan of operations. 9.9 Section 9.9 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.9 Plan of operations. (a) No operations shall be conducted within any...

  6. 36 CFR 9.8 - Use of water.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Use of water. 9.8 Section 9.8 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.8 Use of water. (a) No operator may use for operations any water from...

  7. 36 CFR 9.18 - Surface use and patent restrictions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Surface use and patent restrictions. 9.18 Section 9.18 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.18 Surface use and patent restrictions. (a) The...

  8. 36 CFR 9.18 - Surface use and patent restrictions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Surface use and patent restrictions. 9.18 Section 9.18 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.18 Surface use and patent restrictions. (a) The...

  9. 36 CFR 9.12 - Supplementation or revision of plan of operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Supplementation or revision of plan of operations. 9.12 Section 9.12 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.12 Supplementation or revision of...

  10. 36 CFR 9.12 - Supplementation or revision of plan of operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Supplementation or revision of plan of operations. 9.12 Section 9.12 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.12 Supplementation or revision of...

  11. 36 CFR 9.9 - Plan of operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Plan of operations. 9.9 Section 9.9 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.9 Plan of operations. (a) No operations shall be conducted within any...

  12. 36 CFR 9.8 - Use of water.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Use of water. 9.8 Section 9.8 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.8 Use of water. (a) No operator may use for operations any water from...

  13. 36 CFR 9.6 - Transfers of interest.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Transfers of interest. 9.6 Section 9.6 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.6 Transfers of interest. (a) Whenever a claimant who has recorded his...

  14. 36 CFR 9.12 - Supplementation or revision of plan of operations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Supplementation or revision of plan of operations. 9.12 Section 9.12 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.12 Supplementation or revision of...

  15. 36 CFR 9.6 - Transfers of interest.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Transfers of interest. 9.6 Section 9.6 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.6 Transfers of interest. (a) Whenever a claimant who has recorded his...

  16. Average growth rates in the spruce-fir region of New England, based on remeasured plots

    Treesearch

    C. Allen Bickford; Franklin R. Longwood; Robert Bain

    1961-01-01

    The fact that trees grow makes the extraction of logs and bolts from a forest different from the extraction of ore from a mine. Every mine has a limit, and sooner or later it must be abandoned, either because the vein has run out or because the mine has become too costly to operate. But a properly managed forest - one where cutting maintains production - never becomes...

  17. 76 FR 14968 - Environmental Impacts Statements; Notice of Availability

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-03-18

    .... 20110076, Draft Supplement, USFS, MT, Grizzly Vegetation and Transportation Management Project, Updated and... Management Actions, Three Rivers Ranger District, Kootenai National Forest, Lincoln County, MT, Comment..., Section 30 Limestone Mining Project, Proposal to Implement Mining Actions, Mystic Ranger District, Black...

  18. 75 FR 21036 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal Extension and Opportunity for Public Meeting; Oregon

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-04-22

    ...,400 acres of National Forest System land from mining in order to protect the major anadromous fish...: Bureau of Land Management, Interior. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The United States Forest Service (USFS) has..., from location and entry under the United States mining laws (30 U.S.C. ch. 2), for an additional 20...

  19. 36 CFR 9.15 - Use of roads by commercial vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Use of roads by commercial vehicles. 9.15 Section 9.15 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.15 Use of roads by commercial vehicles. (a) After...

  20. 36 CFR 9.15 - Use of roads by commercial vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Use of roads by commercial vehicles. 9.15 Section 9.15 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.15 Use of roads by commercial vehicles. (a) After...

  1. 36 CFR 9.15 - Use of roads by commercial vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Use of roads by commercial vehicles. 9.15 Section 9.15 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.15 Use of roads by commercial vehicles. (a) After...

  2. 36 CFR 9.15 - Use of roads by commercial vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Use of roads by commercial vehicles. 9.15 Section 9.15 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.15 Use of roads by commercial vehicles. (a) After...

  3. 36 CFR 9.8 - Use of water.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Use of water. 9.8 Section 9.8 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.8 Use of water. (a) No operator may use for operations any water from a point of diversion which is within the...

  4. 36 CFR 9.8 - Use of water.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Use of water. 9.8 Section 9.8 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.8 Use of water. (a) No operator may use for operations any water from a point of diversion which is within the...

  5. 76 FR 20940 - Troy Mine, Incorporated, Troy Mine Revised Reclamation Plan, Kootenai National Forest, Lincoln...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-04-14

    ... mine. The ore is mined using the ``room-and-pillar method.'' The mine permit area covers 2,782 acres of.... Production stopped in 1993 and reinitiated in 2005 and is projected to continue for 3-5 years until the... evaluations necessary to complete design of reclamation elements that include a short-term water management...

  6. 76 FR 75900 - Notice of Application for Withdrawal Extension and Opportunity for Public Meeting; Wyoming

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-12-05

    ... of National Forest System land in the Shoshone National Forest from mining in order to protect the... of National Forest System land in the Shoshone National Forest from location and entry under the... of Land Management, Interior. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The United States Forest Service (USFS) has...

  7. [Soil seed bank formation during early revegetation of areas affected by mining in a tropical rain forest of Chocó, Colombia].

    PubMed

    Valois-Cuesta, Hamleth; Martínez-Ruiz, Carolina; Urrutia-Rivas, Yorley

    2017-03-01

    Mining is one of the main economic activities in many tropical regions and is the cause of devastation of large areas of natural tropical forests. The knowledge of the regenerative potential of mining disturbed areas provides valuable information for their ecological restoration. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of age of abandonment of mines and their distance from the adjacent forest, on the formation of soil seed bank in abandoned mines in the San Juan, Chocó, Colombia. To do this, we determined the abundance and species composition of the soil seed bank, and the dynamics of seed rain in mines of different cessation period of mining activity (6 and 15 years), and at different distances from the adjacent forest matrix (50 and 100 m). Seed rain was composed by five species of plants with anemocorous dispersion, and was more abundant in the mine of 6 years than in the mine of 15 years. There were no significant differences in the number of seeds collected at 50 m and 100 m from the adjacent forest. The soil seed bank was represented by eight species: two with anemocorous dispersion (common among the seed rain species) and the rest with zoochorous dispersion. The abundance of seeds in the soil did not vary with the age of the mine, but was higher at close distances to the forest edge than far away. During the early revegetation, the formation of the soil seed bank in the mines seems to be related to their proximity to other disturbed areas, rather than their proximity to the adjacent forest or the cessation activity period of mines. Therefore, the establishment of artificial perches or the maintenance of isolated trees in the abandoned mines could favour the arrival of bird-dispersed seeds at mines. However, since the soil seed bank can be significantly affected by the high rainfall in the study area, more studies are needed to evaluate management actions to encourage soil seed bank formation in mines of high-rainfall environments in the Chocó region.

  8. Trees for reclamation in the Eastern United States

    Treesearch

    C. W. Moody; Daniel T. Kimbrell

    1980-01-01

    The Alabama Forestry Commission promotes reclamation through forest resource education providing seedlings for reclamation and assistance to industry and landowners. Approximately 85% of the lands mined in 1979 will go into forest production. Good forest management on reclaimed lands will enable Alabama to meet its future demands for forest products.

  9. The canary in the coal mine: Sprouts as a rapid indicator of browse impact in managed forests

    Treesearch

    Alex Royo; David W. Kramer; Karl V. Miller; Nathan P. Nibbelink; Susan L. Stout

    2016-01-01

    Forest managers are frequently confronted with sustaining vegetation diversity and structure in land-scapes experiencing high ungulate browsing pressure. Often, managers monitor browse damage and risk to plant communities using vegetation as indicators (i.e., phytoindicators). Although useful, the efficacy of traditional phytoindicators is sometimes hampered by limited...

  10. Differential Responses of Herbivores and Herbivory to Management in Temperate European Beech

    PubMed Central

    Gossner, Martin M.; Pašalić, Esther; Lange, Markus; Lange, Patricia; Boch, Steffen; Hessenmöller, Dominik; Müller, Jörg; Socher, Stephanie A.; Fischer, Markus; Schulze, Ernst-Detlef; Weisser, Wolfgang W.

    2014-01-01

    Forest management not only affects biodiversity but also might alter ecosystem processes mediated by the organisms, i.e. herbivory the removal of plant biomass by plant-eating insects and other arthropod groups. Aiming at revealing general relationships between forest management and herbivory we investigated aboveground arthropod herbivory in 105 plots dominated by European beech in three different regions in Germany in the sun-exposed canopy of mature beech trees and on beech saplings in the understorey. We separately assessed damage by different guilds of herbivores, i.e. chewing, sucking and scraping herbivores, gall-forming insects and mites, and leaf-mining insects. We asked whether herbivory differs among different forest management regimes (unmanaged, uneven-aged managed, even-aged managed) and among age-classes within even-aged forests. We further tested for consistency of relationships between regions, strata and herbivore guilds. On average, almost 80% of beech leaves showed herbivory damage, and about 6% of leaf area was consumed. Chewing damage was most common, whereas leaf sucking and scraping damage were very rare. Damage was generally greater in the canopy than in the understorey, in particular for chewing and scraping damage, and the occurrence of mines. There was little difference in herbivory among differently managed forests and the effects of management on damage differed among regions, strata and damage types. Covariates such as wood volume, tree density and plant diversity weakly influenced herbivory, and effects differed between herbivory types. We conclude that despite of the relatively low number of species attacking beech; arthropod herbivory on beech is generally high. We further conclude that responses of herbivory to forest management are multifaceted and environmental factors such as forest structure variables affecting in particular microclimatic conditions are more likely to explain the variability in herbivory among beech forest plots. PMID:25119984

  11. 43 CFR 3823.0-5 - Definition.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) AREAS SUBJECT TO SPECIAL MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.0-5 Definition. As used in this subpart the term National Forest Wilderness means an area or part of an area of National Forest...

  12. 43 CFR 3823.0-5 - Definition.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) AREAS SUBJECT TO SPECIAL MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.0-5 Definition. As used in this subpart the term National Forest Wilderness means an area or part of an area of National Forest...

  13. 43 CFR 3823.0-5 - Definition.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) AREAS SUBJECT TO SPECIAL MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.0-5 Definition. As used in this subpart the term National Forest Wilderness means an area or part of an area of National Forest...

  14. 43 CFR 3823.0-5 - Definition.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) AREAS SUBJECT TO SPECIAL MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.0-5 Definition. As used in this subpart the term National Forest Wilderness means an area or part of an area of National Forest...

  15. The Detection and Characterization of Urbanization, Industrialization, and Longwall Mining Impacts on Forest Ecosystems Through the Use of GiS and Remote Sensing Techniques

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pfeil-McCullough, Erin Kathleen

    Urbanization has far reaching and significant effects on forest ecosystems, directly through urban development and indirectly through supportive processes such as coal mining and agriculture. Urban processes modify the landscape leading to altered hillslope hydrology, increased disturbance, and the introduction of non-native forest pathogens. This dissertation addresses several challenges in our ability to detect these urbanization impacts on forests via geospatial analyses. The role of forests in urban hydrological processes has been extensively studied, but the impacts of urbanized hydrology on forests remain poorly examined. This dissertation documented impacts to hydrology and forests at variety of temporal and spatial scales: 1) A geospatial comparison of the historic and contemporary forests of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania revealed substantial shifts in tree species, but less change in the species soil moisture preference. These results document additional evidence that increased heterogeneity in urban soil moisture alters forest structure. 2) To examine soil moisture changes, impacts of longwall mine subsidence were assessed by using a Landsat based canopy moisture index and hot spot analysis tools at the forest patch scale. Declines in forest canopy moisture were detected over longwall mines as mining progressed through time, and results contradicted assumptions that the hydrological impacts overlying LMS recover within 4-5 years following subsidence of undermined land. 3) Utilizing a landslide susceptibility model (SINMAP), increases in landslide susceptibility were predicted in Pittsburgh, PA based on several scenarios of ash tree loss to the emerald ash borer (EAB), a bark beetle that rapidly kills ash trees. This model provides a tool to predict changes in landslide susceptibility following tree loss, increasing the understanding of urban forest function and its role in slope stability. Detecting how urbanized hydrology impacts forest health, function, and development is fundamental to sustaining the services forests provide. Results from this dissertation will ultimately allow improvements in the management and protection of both trees and water resources in urban systems and beyond.

  16. 75 FR 1077 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal Extension and Opportunity for Public Meeting; AK

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-01-08

    ... approximately 1,855 acres of National Forest System land from surface entry and mining--but not from mineral... withdrawal comprises approximately 1,855 acres of National Forest System land located in the Chugach National... Management, Interior. ACTION: Notice. SUMMARY: The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest...

  17. 75 FR 75183 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal and Opportunity for Public Meeting; Idaho

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-12-02

    ... public land adjacent to the Clearwater National Forest from mining to protect the Lenore Tree Improvement...: The Forest Service (FS) has filed an application with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) requesting... will remain open to mineral leasing and to all activities currently consistent with applicable Forest...

  18. 30 CFR 761.11 - Areas where surface coal mining operations are prohibited or limited.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... national forest. This prohibition does not apply if the Secretary finds that there are no significant... respect to lands that do not have significant forest cover within national forests west of the 100th... Act of 1975, 30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.; and the National Forest Management Act of 1976, 16 U.S.C. 1600 et...

  19. 30 CFR 761.11 - Areas where surface coal mining operations are prohibited or limited.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... national forest. This prohibition does not apply if the Secretary finds that there are no significant... respect to lands that do not have significant forest cover within national forests west of the 100th... Act of 1975, 30 U.S.C. 181 et seq.; and the National Forest Management Act of 1976, 16 U.S.C. 1600 et...

  20. Traditional knowledge for sustainable forest management and provision of ecosystem services

    Treesearch

    John Parrotta; Yeo-Chang Youn; Leni D. Camacho

    2016-01-01

    Forests, and the people who depend on them, are under enormous pressure worldwide. Deforestation in many parts of the world continues at an alarming pace, the result of agricultural conversion for food and industrial crops such as oil palm, livestock production, mining, and energy and industrial infrastructure development. Forest degradation is even more widespread,...

  1. Soil Quality of Bauxite Mining Areas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Terezinha Gonçalves Bizuti, Denise; Dinarowski, Marcela; Casagrande, José Carlos; Silva, Luiz Gabriel; Soares, Marcio Roberto; Henrique Santin Brancalion, Pedro

    2015-04-01

    The study on soil quality index (SQI) aims to assess the current state of the soil after use and estimating its recovery through sustainable management practices This type of study is being used in this work in order to check the efficiency of forest recovery techniques in areas that have been deeply degraded by bauxite mining process, and compare them with the area of native forest, through the determination of SQI. Treatments were newly mined areas, areas undergoing restoration (topsoil use with planting of native forest species), areas in rehabilitation (employment of the green carpet with topsoil and planting of native forest species) and areas of native forests, with six repetitions, in areas of ALCOA, in the municipality of Poços de Caldas/MG. To this end, we used the additive pondered model, establishing three functions: Fertility, water movement and root development, based on chemical parameters (organic matter, base saturation, aluminum saturation and calcium content); physical (macroporosity, soil density and clay content); and microbiological testing (basal respiration by the emission of CO2 ). The SQIs obtained for each treatment was 41%, 56%, 63% and 71% for newly mined areas, native forest, areas in restoration and rehabilitation, respectively. The recovering technique that most approximates the degraded soil to the soil of reference is the restoration, where there was no statistically significant difference of areas restored with native forest. It was found that for the comparison of the studied areas must take into account the nutrient cycling, that disappear with plant removal in mining areas, once the soil of native forest features low fertility and high saturation by aluminum, also taking in account recovering time.

  2. 43 CFR 5500.0-3 - Authority.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... are on lands administered by the Secretary of Agriculture for national forest purposes or for purposes..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FOREST MANAGEMENT (5000) NONSALE DISPOSALS; GENERAL Nonsale Disposals; General... lands embraced within an unpatented mining claim located after July 23, 1955, if the disposal of such...

  3. 43 CFR 5500.0-3 - Authority.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... are on lands administered by the Secretary of Agriculture for national forest purposes or for purposes..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FOREST MANAGEMENT (5000) NONSALE DISPOSALS; GENERAL Nonsale Disposals; General... lands embraced within an unpatented mining claim located after July 23, 1955, if the disposal of such...

  4. 43 CFR 5500.0-3 - Authority.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... are on lands administered by the Secretary of Agriculture for national forest purposes or for purposes..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FOREST MANAGEMENT (5000) NONSALE DISPOSALS; GENERAL Nonsale Disposals; General... lands embraced within an unpatented mining claim located after July 23, 1955, if the disposal of such...

  5. 43 CFR 5500.0-3 - Authority.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... are on lands administered by the Secretary of Agriculture for national forest purposes or for purposes..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FOREST MANAGEMENT (5000) NONSALE DISPOSALS; GENERAL Nonsale Disposals; General... lands embraced within an unpatented mining claim located after July 23, 1955, if the disposal of such...

  6. Restoring Forests and Associated Ecosystem Services on Appalachian Coal Surface Mines

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zipper, Carl E.; Burger, James A.; Skousen, Jeffrey G.; Angel, Patrick N.; Barton, Christopher D.; Davis, Victor; Franklin, Jennifer A.

    2011-05-01

    Surface coal mining in Appalachia has caused extensive replacement of forest with non-forested land cover, much of which is unmanaged and unproductive. Although forested ecosystems are valued by society for both marketable products and ecosystem services, forests have not been restored on most Appalachian mined lands because traditional reclamation practices, encouraged by regulatory policies, created conditions poorly suited for reforestation. Reclamation scientists have studied productive forests growing on older mine sites, established forest vegetation experimentally on recent mines, and identified mine reclamation practices that encourage forest vegetation re-establishment. Based on these findings, they developed a Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) that can be employed by coal mining firms to restore forest vegetation. Scientists and mine regulators, working collaboratively, have communicated the FRA to the coal industry and to regulatory enforcement personnel. Today, the FRA is used routinely by many coal mining firms, and thousands of mined hectares have been reclaimed to restore productive mine soils and planted with native forest trees. Reclamation of coal mines using the FRA is expected to restore these lands' capabilities to provide forest-based ecosystem services, such as wood production, atmospheric carbon sequestration, wildlife habitat, watershed protection, and water quality protection to a greater extent than conventional reclamation practices.

  7. Water yield issues in the jarrah forest of south-western Australia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ruprecht, J. K.; Stoneman, G. L.

    1993-10-01

    The jarrah forest of south-western Australia produces little streamflow from moderate rainfall. Water yield from water supply catchments for Perth, Western Australia, are low, averaging 71 mm (7% of annual rainfall). The low water yields are attributed to the large soil water storage available for continuous use by the forest vegetation. A number of water yield studies in south-western Australia have examined the impact on water yield of land use practices including clearing for agricultural development, forest harvesting and regeneration, forest thinning and bauxite mining. A permanent reduction in forest cover by clearing for agriculture led to permanent increases of water yield of approximately 28% of annual rainfall in a high rainfall catchment. Thinning of a high rainfall catchment led to an increase in water yield of 20% of annual rainfall. However, it is not clear for how long the increased water yield will persist. Forest harvesting and regeneration have led to water yield increases of 16% of annual rainfall. The subsequent recovery of vegetation cover has led to water yields returning to pre-disturbance levels after an estimated 12-15 years. Bauxite mining of a high rainfall catchment led to a water yield increase of 8% of annual rainfall, followed by a return to pre-disturbance water yield after 12 years. The magnitude of specific streamflow generation mechanisms in small catchments subject to forest disturbance vary considerably, typically in a number of distinct stages. The presence of a permanent groundwater discharge area was shown to be instrumental in determining the magnitude of the streamflow response after forest disturbance. The long-term prognosis for water yield from areas subject to forest thinning, harvesting and regeneration, and bauxite mining are uncertain, owing to the complex interrelationship between vegetation cover, tree height and age, and catchment evapotranspiration. Management of the forest for water yield needs to acknowledge this complexity and evaluate forest management strategies both at the large catchment scale and at long time-scales. The extensive network of small catchment experiments, regional studies, process studies and catchment modelling at both the small and large scale, which are carried out in the jarrah forest, are all considered as integral components of the research to develop these management strategies to optimise water yield from the jarrah forest, without forfeiting other forest values.

  8. 36 CFR 9.13 - Performance bond.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Performance bond. 9.13... MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.13 Performance bond. (a) Upon approval of a plan of operations the operator shall be required to file a suitable performance bond with satisfactory surety...

  9. 36 CFR 9.13 - Performance bond.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Performance bond. 9.13... MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.13 Performance bond. (a) Upon approval of a plan of operations the operator shall be required to file a suitable performance bond with satisfactory surety...

  10. 36 CFR 9.13 - Performance bond.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Performance bond. 9.13... MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.13 Performance bond. (a) Upon approval of a plan of operations the operator shall be required to file a suitable performance bond with satisfactory surety...

  11. The impact of gold mining and agricultural concessions on the tree cover and local communities in northern Myanmar.

    PubMed

    Papworth, Sarah; Rao, Madhu; Oo, Myint Myint; Latt, Kyaw Thinn; Tizard, Robert; Pienkowski, Thomas; Carrasco, L Roman

    2017-04-24

    Myanmar offers unique opportunities for both biodiversity conservation and foreign direct investment due to projected economic growth linked to natural resource exploitation. Industrial-scale development introduces new land uses into the landscape, with unknown repercussions for local communities and biodiversity conservation. We use participatory mapping of 31 communities, focus groups in 28 communities, and analyses of forest cover change during 2000-2010 using MODIS vegetation continuous fields images, to understand the social and environmental impacts of gold mining and agricultural concessions in Myanmar's Hukaung Valley (~21,800 km 2 ). Local communities, particularly the poorest households, benefit from work and trade opportunities offered by gold mining and agricultural companies but continue to depend on forests for house construction materials, food, and income from the sale of forest resources. However, gold mining and agricultural concessions reduce tree cover, potentially reducing access to forest resources and further marginalizing these households. Our analyses do not provide evidence that long-term resident communities contributed to forest cover loss between 2000 and 2010. We argue that landscape management, which recognizes local community rights to customary community use areas, and appropriate zoning for commercial land uses and protected areas could contribute to both local livelihoods and protect biodiversity throughout Myanmar during economic growth.

  12. The impact of gold mining and agricultural concessions on the tree cover and local communities in northern Myanmar

    PubMed Central

    Papworth, Sarah; Rao, Madhu; Oo, Myint Myint; Latt, Kyaw Thinn; Tizard, Robert; Pienkowski, Thomas; Carrasco, L. Roman

    2017-01-01

    Myanmar offers unique opportunities for both biodiversity conservation and foreign direct investment due to projected economic growth linked to natural resource exploitation. Industrial-scale development introduces new land uses into the landscape, with unknown repercussions for local communities and biodiversity conservation. We use participatory mapping of 31 communities, focus groups in 28 communities, and analyses of forest cover change during 2000–2010 using MODIS vegetation continuous fields images, to understand the social and environmental impacts of gold mining and agricultural concessions in Myanmar’s Hukaung Valley (~21,800 km2). Local communities, particularly the poorest households, benefit from work and trade opportunities offered by gold mining and agricultural companies but continue to depend on forests for house construction materials, food, and income from the sale of forest resources. However, gold mining and agricultural concessions reduce tree cover, potentially reducing access to forest resources and further marginalizing these households. Our analyses do not provide evidence that long-term resident communities contributed to forest cover loss between 2000 and 2010. We argue that landscape management, which recognizes local community rights to customary community use areas, and appropriate zoning for commercial land uses and protected areas could contribute to both local livelihoods and protect biodiversity throughout Myanmar during economic growth. PMID:28436455

  13. 75 FR 10815 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal Extension and Opportunity for Public Meeting; Oregon

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-03-09

    ... approximately 540 acres of National Forest System land from mining in order to protect the scenic and... INFORMATION CONTACT: David Krantz, Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, (541) 618-2037, or Charles R. Roy...: Bureau of Land Management, Interior. [[Page 10816

  14. 36 CFR 9.15 - Use of roads by commercial vehicles.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Use of roads by commercial... INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.15 Use of roads by commercial vehicles. (a) After January 26, 1977, no commercial vehicle shall use roads administered by the National Park Service without...

  15. 36 CFR 9.7 - Assessment work.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Assessment work. 9.7 Section... MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.7 Assessment work. (a) An access permit and approved plan of operations must be obtained by a claimant prior to the performance of any assessment work required by Revised...

  16. 36 CFR 9.7 - Assessment work.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Assessment work. 9.7 Section... MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.7 Assessment work. (a) An access permit and approved plan of operations must be obtained by a claimant prior to the performance of any assessment work required by Revised...

  17. Matrix Intensification Alters Avian Functional Group Composition in Adjacent Rainforest Fragments

    PubMed Central

    Deikumah, Justus P.; McAlpine, Clive A.; Maron, Martine

    2013-01-01

    Conversion of farmland land-use matrices to surface mining is an increasing threat to the habitat quality of forest remnants and their constituent biota, with consequences for ecosystem functionality. We evaluated the effects of matrix type on bird community composition and the abundance and evenness within avian functional groups in south-west Ghana. We hypothesized that surface mining near remnants may result in a shift in functional composition of avifaunal communities, potentially disrupting ecological processes within tropical forest ecosystems. Matrix intensification and proximity to the remnant edge strongly influenced the abundance of members of several functional guilds. Obligate frugivores, strict terrestrial insectivores, lower and upper strata birds, and insect gleaners were most negatively affected by adjacent mining matrices, suggesting certain ecosystem processes such as seed dispersal may be disrupted by landscape change in this region. Evenness of these functional guilds was also lower in remnants adjacent to surface mining, regardless of the distance from remnant edge, with the exception of strict terrestrial insectivores. These shifts suggest matrix intensification can influence avian functional group composition and related ecosystem-level processes in adjacent forest remnants. The management of matrix habitat quality near and within mine concessions is important for improving efforts to preserveavian biodiversity in landscapes undergoing intensification such as through increased surface mining. PMID:24058634

  18. Matrix intensification alters avian functional group composition in adjacent rainforest fragments.

    PubMed

    Deikumah, Justus P; McAlpine, Clive A; Maron, Martine

    2013-01-01

    Conversion of farmland land-use matrices to surface mining is an increasing threat to the habitat quality of forest remnants and their constituent biota, with consequences for ecosystem functionality. We evaluated the effects of matrix type on bird community composition and the abundance and evenness within avian functional groups in south-west Ghana. We hypothesized that surface mining near remnants may result in a shift in functional composition of avifaunal communities, potentially disrupting ecological processes within tropical forest ecosystems. Matrix intensification and proximity to the remnant edge strongly influenced the abundance of members of several functional guilds. Obligate frugivores, strict terrestrial insectivores, lower and upper strata birds, and insect gleaners were most negatively affected by adjacent mining matrices, suggesting certain ecosystem processes such as seed dispersal may be disrupted by landscape change in this region. Evenness of these functional guilds was also lower in remnants adjacent to surface mining, regardless of the distance from remnant edge, with the exception of strict terrestrial insectivores. These shifts suggest matrix intensification can influence avian functional group composition and related ecosystem-level processes in adjacent forest remnants. The management of matrix habitat quality near and within mine concessions is important for improving efforts to preserveavian biodiversity in landscapes undergoing intensification such as through increased surface mining.

  19. RESTORING SUSTAINABLE FORESTS ON APPALACHIAN MINED LANDS FOR WOOD PRODUCTS, RENEWABLE ENERGY, CARBON SEQUESTRATION, AND OTHER ECOSYSTEM SERVICES

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    James A. Burger; J. Galbraith; T. Fox

    2005-06-08

    The overall purpose of this project is to evaluate the biological and economic feasibility of restoring high-quality forests on mined land, and to measure carbon sequestration and wood production benefits that would be achieved from forest restoration procedures. We are currently estimating the acreage of lands in VA, WV, KY, OH, and PA mined under SMCRA and reclaimed to non-forested post-mining land uses that are not currently under active management, and therefore can be considered as available for carbon sequestration. To determine actual sequestration under different forest management scenarios, a field study was installed as a 3 x 3 factorialmore » in a random complete block design with three replications at each of three locations, Ohio, West Virginia, and Virginia. The treatments included three forest types (white pine, hybrid poplar, mixed hardwood) and three silvicultural regimes (competition control, competition control plus tillage, competition control plus tillage plus fertilization). Each individual treatment plot is 0.5 acres. Each block of nine plots is 4.5 acres, and the complete installation at each site is 13.5 acres. During the reporting period we compiled and evaluated all soil properties measured on the study sites. Statistical analysis of the properties was conducted, and first year survival and growth of white pine, hybrid poplars, and native hardwoods was assessed. Hardwood species survived better at all sites than white pine or hybrid poplar. Hardwood survival across treatments was 80%, 85%, and 50% for sites in Virginia, West Virginia, and Ohio, respectively, while white pine survival was 27%, 41%, and 58%, and hybrid poplar survival was 37%, 41%, and 72% for the same sites, respectively. Hybrid poplar height and diameter growth were superior to those of the other species tested, with the height growth of this species reaching 126.6cm after one year in the most intensive treatment at the site in Virginia. To determine carbon in soils on these sites, we developed a cost-effective method for partitioning total soil carbon to pedogenic carbon and geogenic carbon in mine soils. We are in the process of evaluating the accuracy and precision of the proposed carbon partitioning technique for which we are designing an experiment with carefully constructed mine soil samples. In a second effort, as part of a mined land reforestation project for carbon sequestration in southwestern Virginia we implemented the first phase of the carbon monitoring protocol that was recently delivered to DOE.« less

  20. Green Is the New Black: The Need for a New Currency That Values Water Resources in Rapidly Developing Landscapes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Creed, I. F.; Webster, K. L.; Kreutzweiser, D. P.; Beall, F.

    2014-12-01

    Canada's boreal forest supports many aquatic ecosystem services (AES) due to the intimate linkage between aquatic systems and their surrounding terrestrial watersheds in forested landscapes. There is an increasing risk to AES because natural development activities (forest management, mining, energy) have resulted in disruptions that deteriorate aquatic ecosystems at local (10s of km2) to regional (100s of km2) scales. These activities are intensifying and expanding, placing at risk the healthy aquatic ecosystems that provide AES and may threaten the continued development of the energy, forest, and mining sectors. Remarkably, we know little about the consequences of these activities on AES. The idea that AES should be explicitly integrated into modern natural resource management regulations is gaining broad acceptance. A major need is the ability to measure cumulative effects and determine thresholds (the points where aquatic ecosystems and their services cannot recover to a desired state within a reasonable time frame) in these cumulative effects. However, there is no single conceptual approach to assessing cumulative effects that is widely accepted by both scientists and managers. We present an integrated science-policy framework that enables the integration of AES into forest management risk assessment and prevention/mitigation strategies. We use this framework to explore the risk of further deterioration of AES by (1) setting risk criteria; (2) using emerging technologies to map process-based indicators representing causes and consequences of risk events to the deterioration of AES; (3) assessing existing prevention and mitigation policies in place to avoid risk events; and (4) identifying priorities for policy change needed to reduce risk event. Ultimately, the success of this framework requires that higher value be placed on AES, and in turn to improve the science and management of the boreal forest.

  1. 36 CFR 9.8 - Use of water.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Use of water. 9.8 Section 9.8... MANAGEMENT Mining and Mining Claims § 9.8 Use of water. (a) No operator may use for operations any water from... Regional Director. The Regional Director shall not approve a plan of operations requiring the use of water...

  2. GIS applications in riparian management

    Treesearch

    Carrie Christman; Douglas W. Shaw; Charles L. Spann; Penny Luehring

    1996-01-01

    GIS was used to prioritize watersheds for treatment needs across the USDA Forest Service Southwestern Region. Factors in this analysis included soil condition, riparian habitat, population centers and mining sites.

  3. North American Bats and Mines Project: A cooperative approach for integrating bat conservation and mine-land reclamation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ducummon, S.L.

    Inactive underground mines now provide essential habitat for more than half of North America`s 44 bat species, including some of the largest remaining populations. Thousands of abandoned mines have already been closed or are slated for safety closures, and many are destroyed during renewed mining in historic districts. The available evidence suggests that millions of bats have already been lost due to these closures. Bats are primary predators of night-flying insects that cost American farmers and foresters billions of dollars annually, therefore, threats to bat survival are cause for serious concern. Fortunately, mine closure methods exist that protect both batsmore » and humans. Bat Conservation International (BCI) and the USDI-Bureau of Land Management founded the North American Bats and Mines Project to provide national leadership and coordination to minimize the loss of mine-roosting bats. This partnership has involved federal and state mine-land and wildlife managers and the mining industry. BCI has trained hundreds of mine-land and wildlife managers nationwide in mine assessment techniques for bats and bat-compatible closure methods, published technical information on bats and mine-land management, presented papers on bats and mines at national mining and wildlife conferences, and collaborated with numerous federal, state, and private partners to protect some of the most important mine-roosting bat populations. Our new mining industry initiative, Mining for Habitat, is designed to develop bat habitat conservation and enhancement plans for active mining operations. It includes the creation of cost-effective artificial underground bat roosts using surplus mining materials such as old mine-truck tires and culverts buried beneath waste rock.« less

  4. Global demand for gold is another threat for tropical forests

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Alvarez-Berríos, Nora L.; Aide, T. Mitchell

    2015-01-01

    The current global gold rush, driven by increasing consumption in developing countries and uncertainty in financial markets, is an increasing threat for tropical ecosystems. Gold mining causes significant alteration to the environment, yet mining is often overlooked in deforestation analyses because it occupies relatively small areas. As a result, we lack a comprehensive assessment of the spatial extent of gold mining impacts on tropical forests. In this study, we provide a regional assessment of gold mining deforestation in the tropical moist forest biome of South America. Specifically, we analyzed the patterns of forest change in gold mining sites between 2001 and 2013, and evaluated the proximity of gold mining deforestation to protected areas (PAs). The forest cover maps were produced using the Land Mapper web application and images from the MODIS satellite MOD13Q1 vegetation indices 250 m product. Annual maps of forest cover were used to model the incremental change in forest in ˜1600 potential gold mining sites between 2001-2006 and 2007-2013. Approximately 1680 km2 of tropical moist forest was lost in these mining sites between 2001 and 2013. Deforestation was significantly higher during the 2007-2013 period, and this was associated with the increase in global demand for gold after the international financial crisis. More than 90% of the deforestation occurred in four major hotspots: Guianan moist forest ecoregion (41%), Southwest Amazon moist forest ecoregion (28%), Tapajós-Xingú moist forest ecoregion (11%), and Magdalena Valley montane forest and Magdalena-Urabá moist forest ecoregions (9%). In addition, some of the more active zones of gold mining deforestation occurred inside or within 10 km of ˜32 PAs. There is an urgent need to understand the ecological and social impacts of gold mining because it is an important cause of deforestation in the most remote forests in South America, and the impacts, particularly in aquatic systems, spread well beyond the actual mining sites.

  5. Hydrologic Investigations Concerning Lead Mining Issues in Southeastern Missouri

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Kleeschulte, Michael J.

    2008-01-01

    Good stewardship of our Nation's natural resources demands that the extraction of exploitable, minable ore deposits be conducted in harmony with the protection of the environment, a dilemma faced by many land and water management agencies in the Nation's mining areas. As ore is mined, milled, and sent to the smelter, it leaves footprints where it has been in the form of residual trace metals. Often these footprints become remnants that can be detrimental to other natural resources. This emphasizes the importance of understanding the earth's complex physical and biological processes and their interactions at increasingly smaller scales because subtle changes in one component can substantially affect others. Understanding these changes and resulting effects requires an integrated, multidisciplinary scientific approach. As ore reserves are depleted in one area, additional exploitable deposits are required to replace them, and at times these new deposits are discovered in previously unmined areas. Informed decisions concerning resource management in these new, proposed mining areas require an understanding of the potential consequences of the planned mining actions. This understanding is usually based on knowledge that has been accumulated from studying previously mined areas with similar geohydrologic and biologic conditions. If the two areas experience similar mining practices, the information should be transferable. Lead and zinc mining along the Viburnum Trend Subdistrict of southeastern Missouri has occurred for more than 40 years. Additional potentially exploitable deposits have been discovered 30 miles to the south, within the Mark Twain National Forest. It is anticipated that the observation of current (2008) geohydrologic conditions in the Viburnum Trend can provide insight to land managers that will help reasonably anticipate the potential mining effects should additional mining occur in the exploration area. The purpose of this report is to present a compilation of previously unpublished information that was collected as part of a larger multidisciplinary study of lead mining issues in southeastern Missouri. The report resulted from the application of a multidisciplinary approach to investigate current hydrologic and biologic conditions in streams of the Viburnum Trend and the exploration area in the Mark Twain National Forest.

  6. Land Application of Wastes: An Educational Program. Non-Crop and Forest Systems - Module 13, Objectives, and Script.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Clarkson, W. W.; And Others

    This module discusses the characteristics of alternate sites and management schemes and attempts to evaluate the efficiency of each alternative in terms of waste treatment. Three types of non-crop land application are discussed: (1) forest lands; (2) park and recreational application; and (3) land reclamation in surface or strip mined areas. (BB)

  7. Macroinvertebrate assemblages in agricultural, mining, and urban tropical streams: implications for conservation and management.

    PubMed

    Mwedzi, Tongayi; Bere, Taurai; Mangadze, Tinotenda

    2016-06-01

    The study evaluated the response of macroinvertebrate assemblages to changes in water quality in different land-use settings in Manyame catchment, Zimbabwe. Four land-use categories were identified: forested commercial farming, communal farming, Great Dyke mining (GDM) and urban areas. Macroinvertebrate community structure and physicochemical variables data were collected in two seasons from 41 sites following standard methods. Although not environmentally threatening, urban and GDM areas were characterised by higher conductivity, total dissolved solids, salinity, magnesium and hardness. Chlorides, total phosphates, total nitrogen, calcium, potassium and sodium were significantly highest in urban sites whilst dissolved oxygen (DO) was significantly higher in the forested commercial faming and GDM sites. Macroinvertebrate communities followed the observed changes in water quality. Macroinvertebrates in urban sites indicated severe pollution (e.g. Chironomidae) whilst those in forested commercial farming sites and GDM sites indicated relatively clean water (e.g. Notonemouridae). Forested watersheds together with good farm management practices are important in mitigating impacts of urbanisation and agriculture. Strategies that reduce oxygen-depleting substances must be devised to protect the health of Zimbabwean streams. The study affirms the wider applicability of the South African Scoring System in different land uses.

  8. 36 CFR 228.15 - Operations within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ...) The United States mining laws shall extend to each National Forest Wilderness for the period specified...) Holders of unpatented mining claims validly established on any National Forest Wilderness prior to... by the United States mining laws as then applicable to the National Forest land involved. Persons...

  9. 36 CFR 228.15 - Operations within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ...) The United States mining laws shall extend to each National Forest Wilderness for the period specified...) Holders of unpatented mining claims validly established on any National Forest Wilderness prior to... by the United States mining laws as then applicable to the National Forest land involved. Persons...

  10. 36 CFR 228.15 - Operations within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ...) The United States mining laws shall extend to each National Forest Wilderness for the period specified...) Holders of unpatented mining claims validly established on any National Forest Wilderness prior to... by the United States mining laws as then applicable to the National Forest land involved. Persons...

  11. Hydrogeochemical Investigations of Historic Mining Districts, Central Western Slope of Colorado, Including Influence on Surface-Water Quality

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Nash, J. Thomas

    2002-01-01

    This report describes reconnaissance hydrogeochemical investigations of 22 mining districts on the Western Slope of Colorado in the Gunnison and Uncompahgre National Forests and adjacent public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management. Sources and fates of contaminants from historic mines, mine waste, and mill tailings are interpreted from chemical analyses for 190 samples of surface waters; 185 samples of mined rocks, mill tailings, and altered rocks; and passive leach analyses of 116 samples of those mineralized materials. Short reaches of several headwater streams show relatively low level effects of historic mining; the headwaters of the Uncompahgre River are highly contaminated by mines and unmined altered rocks in the Red Mountain district. There is encouraging evidence that natural processes attenuate mine-related contamination in most districts.

  12. Status and potential of terrestrial carbon sequestration in West Virginia

    Treesearch

    Benktesh D. Sharma; Jingxin Wang

    2011-01-01

    Terrestrial ecosystem management offers cost-effective ways to enhance carbon (C) sequestration. This study utilized C stock and C sequestration in forest and agricultural lands, abandoned mine lands, and harvested wood products to estimate the net current annual C sequestration in West Virginia. Several management options within these components were simulated using a...

  13. Ranch A Consolidation and Management Improvement Act

    THOMAS, 113th Congress

    Rep. Lummis, Cynthia M. [R-WY-At Large

    2013-04-23

    Senate - 07/30/2014 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. (All Actions) Tracker: This bill has the status Passed HouseHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

  14. 77 FR 39675 - Wallowa-Whitman National Forest, Baker County, OR; North Fork Burnt River Mining

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-07-05

    ...-Whitman National Forest, Baker County, OR; North Fork Burnt River Mining AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA... North Fork Burnt River Mining Record of Decision will replace and supercede the 2004 North Fork Burnt...

  15. Restoring Sustainable Forests on Appalachian Mined Lands for Wood Products, Renewable Energy, Carbon Sequestration, and Other Ecosystem Services

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Burger, James A

    2005-07-20

    The overall purpose of this project is to evaluate the biological and economic feasibility of restoring high-quality forests on mined land, and to measure carbon sequestration and wood production benefits that would be achieved from forest restoration procedures. We are currently estimating the acreage of lands in Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, and Pennsylvania mined under SMCRA and reclaimed to non-forested post-mining land uses that are not currently under active management, and therefore can be considered as available for carbon sequestration. To determine actual sequestration under different forest management scenarios, a field study was installed as a 3 x 3 factorial in a random complete block design with three replications at each of three locations, one each in Ohio, West Virginia, and Virginia. The treatments included three forest types (white pine, hybrid poplar, mixed hardwood) and three silvicultural regimes (competition control, competition control plus tillage, competition control plus tillage plus fertilization). Each individual treatment plot is 0.5 acres. Each block of nine plots is 4.5 acres, and the complete installation at each site is 13.5 acres. During the reporting period we determined that by grinding the soil samples to a finer particle size of less than 250 μm (sieve No. 60), the effect of mine soil coal particle size on the extent to which these particles will be oxidized during the thermal treatment of the carbon partitioning procedure will be eliminated, thus making the procedure more accurate and precise. In the second phase of the carbon sequestration project, we focused our attention on determining the sample size required for carbon accounting on grassland mined fields in order to achieve a desired accuracy and precision of the final soil organic carbon (SOC) estimate. A mine land site quality classification scheme was developed and some field-testing of the methods of implementation was completed. The classification model has been validated for softwoods (white pine) on several reclaimed mine sites in the southern Appalachian coal region. The classification model is a viable method for classifying post-SMCRA abandoned mined lands into productivity classes for white pine. A thinning study was established as a random complete block design to evaluate the response to thinning of a 26-year-old white pine stand growing on a reclaimed surface mine in southwest Virginia. Stand parameters were projected to age 30 using a stand table projection. Site index of the stand was found to be 32.3 m at base age 50 years. Thinning rapidly increased the diameter growth of the residual trees to 0.84 cm yr{sup -1} compared to 0.58 cm yr{sup -1} for the unthinned treatment; however, at age 26, there was no difference in volume or value per hectare. At age 30, the unthinned treatment had a volume of 457.1 m{sup 3} ha{sup -1} but was only worthmore » $$8807 ha{sup -1}, while the thinned treatment was projected to have 465.8 m{sup 3} ha{sup -1}, which was worth $$11265 ha{sup -1} due to a larger percentage of the volume being in sawtimber size classes.« less

  16. Mining drives extensive deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon.

    PubMed

    Sonter, Laura J; Herrera, Diego; Barrett, Damian J; Galford, Gillian L; Moran, Chris J; Soares-Filho, Britaldo S

    2017-10-18

    Mining poses significant and potentially underestimated risks to tropical forests worldwide. In Brazil's Amazon, mining drives deforestation far beyond operational lease boundaries, yet the full extent of these impacts is unknown and thus neglected in environmental licensing. Here we quantify mining-induced deforestation and investigate the aspects of mining operations, which most likely contribute. We find mining significantly increased Amazon forest loss up to 70 km beyond mining lease boundaries, causing 11,670 km 2 of deforestation between 2005 and 2015. This extent represents 9% of all Amazon forest loss during this time and 12 times more deforestation than occurred within mining leases alone. Pathways leading to such impacts include mining infrastructure establishment, urban expansion to support a growing workforce, and development of mineral commodity supply chains. Mining-induced deforestation is not unique to Brazil; to mitigate adverse impacts of mining and conserve tropical forests globally, environmental assessments and licensing must considered both on- and off-lease sources of deforestation.

  17. Accelerated losses of protected forests from gold mining in the Peruvian Amazon

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Asner, Gregory P.; Tupayachi, Raul

    2016-09-01

    Gold mining in Amazonia involves forest removal, soil excavation, and the use of liquid mercury, which together pose a major threat to biodiversity, water quality, forest carbon stocks, and human health. Within the global biodiversity hotspot of Madre de Dios, Peru, gold mining has continued despite numerous 2012 government decrees and enforcement actions against it. Mining is now also thought to have entered federally protected areas, but the rates of miner encroachment are unknown. Here, we utilize high-resolution remote sensing to assess annual changes in gold mining extent from 1999 to 2016 throughout the Madre de Dios region, including the high-diversity Tambopata National Reserve and buffer zone. Regionally, gold mining-related losses of forest averaged 4437 ha yr-1. A temporary downward inflection in the annual growth rate of mining-related forest loss following 2012 government action was followed by a near doubling of the deforestation rate from mining in 2013-2014. The total estimated area of gold mining throughout the region increased about 40% between 2012 and 2016, including in the Tambopata National Reserve. Our results reveal an urgent need for more socio-environmental effort and law enforcement action to combat illegal gold mining in the Peruvian Amazon.

  18. Enhancement of Terrestrial Carbon Sinks through the Reclamation of Abandoned Mined Lands

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gary Kronrad

    2004-10-31

    This project will determine the optimal forest management method to employ for each of the major commercial tree species so that profitability of timber production only or the combination of timber production and carbon sequestration is maximized. The goal of this project is to achieve DOE's long-term cost goal of sequestering carbon at $10 or less per ton. Because the potential of a forest ecosystem to sequester carbon depends on the species, site quality and management regimes utilized, this project will determine how to optimize carbon sequestration by determining how to optimally manage each species, given a range of sitemore » qualities and economic variables. This project also will determine the effects of a carbon credit market on the method and profitability of forest management, the cost of sequestering carbon, and the amount of carbon that can be sequestered. Information from this project will be used to produce user-friendly manuals which will contain economic and biological data for each of the species. These manuals will inform landowners and forest managers how to manage forests for timber and/or carbon credits, how to maximize financial returns, how much money can be earned, and how much carbon can be stored. Manuals will be disseminated through state and federal agricultural extension services and the forest service of each state, and will be published in forest landowner magazines.« less

  19. Enhancement of Terrestrial Carbon Sinks through the Reclamation of Abandoned Mined Lands

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gary Kronrad

    2006-01-31

    This project will determine the optimal forest management method to employ for each of the major commercial tree species so that profitability of timber production only or the combination of timber production and carbon sequestration is maximized. The goal of this project is to achieve DOE's long-term cost goal of sequestering carbon at $10 or less per ton. Because the potential of a forest ecosystem to sequester carbon depends on the species, site quality and management regimes utilized, this project will determine how to optimize carbon sequestration by determining how to optimally manage each species, given a range of sitemore » qualities and economic variables. This project also will determine the effects of a carbon credit market on the method and profitability of forest management, the cost of sequestering carbon, and the amount of carbon that can be sequestered. Information from this project will be used to produce user-friendly manuals which will contain economic and biological data for each of the species. These manuals will inform landowners and forest managers how to manage forests for timber and/or carbon credits, how to maximize financial returns, how much money can be earned, and how much carbon can be stored. Manuals will be disseminated through state and federal agricultural extension services and the forest service of each state, and will be published in forest landowner magazines.« less

  20. Enhancement of Terrestrial Carbon Sinks through the Reclamation of Abandoned Mined Lands

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gary Kronrad

    2005-04-30

    This project will determine the optimal forest management method to employ for each of the major commercial tree species so that profitability of timber production only or the combination of timber production and carbon sequestration is maximized. The goal of this project is to achieve DOE's long-term cost goal of sequestering carbon at $10 or less per ton. Because the potential of a forest ecosystem to sequester carbon depends on the species, site quality and management regimes utilized, this project will determine how to optimize carbon sequestration by determining how to optimally manage each species, given a range of sitemore » qualities and economic variables. This project also will determine the effects of a carbon credit market on the method and profitability of forest management, the cost of sequestering carbon, and the amount of carbon that can be sequestered. Information from this project will be used to produce user-friendly manuals which will contain economic and biological data for each of the species. These manuals will inform landowners and forest managers how to manage forests for timber and/or carbon credits, how to maximize financial returns, how much money can be earned, and how much carbon can be stored. Manuals will be disseminated through state and federal agricultural extension services and the forest service of each state, and will be published in forest landowner magazines.« less

  1. Enhancement of Terrestrial Carbon Sinks throught the Reclamation of Abandoned Mined Lands

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gary Kronrad

    2006-06-30

    This project will determine the optimal forest management method to employ for each of the major commercial tree species so that profitability of timber production only or the combination of timber production and carbon sequestration is maximized. The goal of this project is to achieve DOE's long-term cost goal of sequestering carbon at $10 or less per ton. Because the potential of a forest ecosystem to sequester carbon depends on the species, site quality and management regimes utilized, this project will determine how to optimize carbon sequestration by determining how to optimally manage each species, given a range of sitemore » qualities and economic variables. This project also will determine the effects of a carbon credit market on the method and profitability of forest management, the cost of sequestering carbon, and the amount of carbon that can be sequestered. Information from this project will be used to produce user-friendly manuals which will contain economic and biological data for each of the species. These manuals will inform landowners and forest managers how to manage forests for timber and/or carbon credits, how to maximize financial returns, how much money can be earned, and how much carbon can be stored. Manuals will be disseminated through state and federal agricultural extension services and the forest service of each state, and will be published in forest landowner magazines.« less

  2. Visual resources of the New Jersey Pine Barrens: integrating visual resources into the planning process

    Treesearch

    John W. Sinton

    1979-01-01

    The first purpose of this study was to deter-mine the visual quality of New Jersey Pine Barrens forests according to residents of the area. The goal of the study was to determine how to manage Pine Barrens forests to obtain high visual quality within the framework of residents' preferences, available by the Federal Omnibus Parks Acts of 1978 and proposed New...

  3. Natural forest expansion on reclaimed coal mines in Northern Spain: the role of native shrubs as suitable microsites.

    PubMed

    Alday, Josu G; Zaldívar, Pilar; Torroba-Balmori, Paloma; Fernández-Santos, Belén; Martínez-Ruiz, Carolina

    2016-07-01

    The characterization of suitable microsites for tree seedling establishment and growth is one of the most important tasks to achieve the restoration of native forest using natural processes in disturbed sites. For that, we assessed the natural Quercus petraea forest expansion in a 20-year-old reclaimed open-cast mine under sub-Mediterranean climate in northern Spain, monitoring seedling survival, growth, and recruitment during 5 years in three contrasting environments (undisturbed forest, mine edge, and mine center). Seedling density and proportion of dead branches decreased greatly from undisturbed forest towards the center of the mine. There was a positive effect of shrubs on Q. petraea seedling establishment in both mine environments, which increase as the environment undergoes more stress (from the mine edge to the center of the mine), and it was produced by different shrub structural features in each mine environment. Seedling survival reduction through time in three environments did not lead to a density reduction because there was a yearly recruitment of new seedlings. Seedling survival, annual growth, and height through time were greater in mine sites than in the undisturbed forest. The successful colonization patterns and positive neighbor effect of shrubs on natural seedlings establishment found in this study during the first years support the use of shrubs as ecosystem engineers to increase heterogeneity in micro-environmental conditions on reclaimed mine sites, which improves late-successional Quercus species establishment.

  4. 36 CFR 292.47 - Mining activities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Mining activities. 292.47 Section 292.47 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE NATIONAL RECREATION AREAS Hells Canyon National Recreation Area-Federal Lands § 292.47 Mining activities. (a) Other...

  5. 36 CFR 292.47 - Mining activities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Mining activities. 292.47 Section 292.47 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE NATIONAL RECREATION AREAS Hells Canyon National Recreation Area-Federal Lands § 292.47 Mining activities. (a) Other...

  6. 36 CFR 292.47 - Mining activities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Mining activities. 292.47 Section 292.47 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE NATIONAL RECREATION AREAS Hells Canyon National Recreation Area-Federal Lands § 292.47 Mining activities. (a) Other...

  7. 36 CFR 292.47 - Mining activities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Mining activities. 292.47 Section 292.47 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE NATIONAL RECREATION AREAS Hells Canyon National Recreation Area-Federal Lands § 292.47 Mining activities. (a) Other...

  8. Mapping of the dilemma of mining against forest and conservation in the Lom and Djérem Division, Cameroon

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tchindjang, Mesmin; Voundi, Eric; Mbevo Fendoung, Philippes; Haman, Unusa; Saha, Frédéric; Casimir Njombissie Petcheu, Igor

    2018-05-01

    Mining practices in Cameroon began since the colonial period. The artisanal mining sector before independence contributed to 11-20 % of GDP. From 2000, the rich potential of the Cameroonian subsoil attract many foreign investors with over 600 research and mining permits already granted during the last decade. But, Cameroonian forests also have a long history from the colonial period to the pre-sent. However, mining activities in forest environments are governed by two different legal frameworks, including mining code i.e. Law No. 001 of 16 April 2001 organizing the mining industry and Law No. 94-01 of 20 January 1994 governing forests, wildlife and fisheries. Therefore, in the absence of detailed studies of these laws, there are conflicts of interests, rights and obligations that overlap, requiring research needs and taking appropriate decisions. The objective of this research in the Lom and Djérem division is to study, apart from the proliferation of mining li-censes and actors, the dilemma as well as the impact of the extension of mining activities on the degradation of forest cover. Using geospatial tools through multi-temporal and multisensor satellite images (Landsat from 1976 to 2015, IKONOS, GEOEYE, Google Earth) coupled with field investigations; we mapped the dynamic of different forms of land use (mining permits, FMU and protected areas of permanent forest estate) and highlighted paradoxically the conflict of land use. We came to the conclusion that the rhythm of issuing mining permits and authorizations in this forestall zone is so fast that one can wonder whether we still find a patch of forest within 50 years.

  9. 36 CFR 223.9 - Free use to owners of certain mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... mining claims. 223.9 Section 223.9 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE SALE AND DISPOSAL OF NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM TIMBER, SPECIAL FOREST PRODUCTS, AND FOREST BOTANICAL... be granted, free of charge, timber from the nearest National Forest land which is ready for...

  10. 36 CFR 223.9 - Free use to owners of certain mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... mining claims. 223.9 Section 223.9 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE SALE AND DISPOSAL OF NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM TIMBER, SPECIAL FOREST PRODUCTS, AND FOREST BOTANICAL... be granted, free of charge, timber from the nearest National Forest land which is ready for...

  11. 36 CFR 223.9 - Free use to owners of certain mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... mining claims. 223.9 Section 223.9 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE SALE AND DISPOSAL OF NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM TIMBER, SPECIAL FOREST PRODUCTS, AND FOREST BOTANICAL... be granted, free of charge, timber from the nearest National Forest land which is ready for...

  12. 36 CFR 223.9 - Free use to owners of certain mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... mining claims. 223.9 Section 223.9 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE SALE AND DISPOSAL OF NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM TIMBER, SPECIAL FOREST PRODUCTS, AND FOREST BOTANICAL... be granted, free of charge, timber from the nearest National Forest land which is ready for...

  13. Remote analysis of anthropogenic effect on boreal forests using nonlinear multidimensional models

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shchemel, Anton; Ivanova, Yuliya; Larko, Alexander

    Nowadays anthropogenic stress of mining and refining oil and gas is becoming significant prob-lem in Eastern Siberia. The task of revealing effect of that industry is not trivial because of complicated access to the sites of mining. Due to that, severe problem of supplying detection of oil and gas complex effect on forest ecosystems arises. That estimation should allow revealing the sites of any negative changes in forest communities in proper time. The intellectual system of analyzing remote sensing data of different resolution and different spectral characteristics with sophisticated nonlinear models is dedicated to solve the problem. The work considers re-mote detection and estimation of forest degradation using analysis of free remote sensing data without total field observations of oil and gas mining territory. To analyze a state of vegetation the following remote sensing data were used as input parameters for our models: albedo, surface temperature and data of about thirty spectral bands in visible and infrared region. The data of MODIS satellite from the year 2000 was used. Chosen data allowed producing complex estima-tion of parameters linked with the quality (set of species, physiological state) and the quantity of vegetation. To verify obtained estimation each index was calculated for a territory in which oil and gas mining is provided along with the same calculations for a sample "clear" territory. Monthly data for vegetation period and annual mean values were analyzed. The work revealed some trends of annual data probably linked with intensification of anthropogenic effect on the ecosystems. The models we managed to build are easy to apply for using by fair personnel of emergency control and oversight institutions. It was found to be helpful to use exactly the full set of values obtained from the satellite for multilateral estimation of anthropogenic effect on forest ecosystems of objects of the oil mining industry for producing generalized estimation indices by the developed models.

  14. NASA Earth Resources Survey Symposium. Volume 1-A: Agriculture, environment

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1975-01-01

    A number of papers dealing with the practical application of imagery obtained from remote sensors on LANDSAT satellites, the Skylab Earth resources experiment package, and aircraft to problems in agriculture and the environment were presented. Some of the more important topics that were covered included: range management and resources, environmental monitoring and management, crop growth and inventory, land management, multispectral band scanners, forest management, mapping, marshlands, strip mining, water quality and pollution, ecology.

  15. Managing artisanal and small-scale mining in forest areas: perspectives from a poststructural political ecology.

    PubMed

    Hirons, Mark

    2011-01-01

    Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) is an activity intimately associated with social deprivation and environmental degradation, including deforestation. This paper examines ASM and deforestation using a broadly poststructural political ecology framework. Hegemonic discourses are shown to consistently influence policy direction, particularly in emerging approaches such as Corporate Social Responsibility and the Forest Stewardship Council. A review of alternative discourses reveals that the poststructural method is useful for critiquing the international policy arena but does not inform new approaches. Synthesis of the analysis leads to conclusions that echo a growing body of literature advocating for policies to become increasingly sensitive to local contexts, synergistic between actors at difference scales, and to be integrated across sectors.

  16. Reforestation to enhance Appalachian mined lands as habitat for terrestrial wildlife

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wood, Petra B.; Larkin, Jeff; Mizel, Jeremy; Zipper, Carl E.; Angel, Patrick

    2013-01-01

    Surface mining is widespread throughout the Appalachian coalfield, a region with extensive forests that are rich in wildlife. Game species for hunting, non-game wildlife species, and other organisms are important contributors to sustainable and productive ecosystems. Although small breaks in the forest canopy are important to wildlife diversity, most native Appalachian wildlife species require primarily forested habitats. This Forest Reclamation Advisory provides guidance on reforestation practices to provide high quality habitat for native forest wildlife on Appalachian coal mines.

  17. 76 FR 62758 - Wallowa-Whitman and Umatilla National Forests, Oregon Granite Creek Watershed Mining Plans

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-10-11

    ... Granite Creek Watershed Mining Plans AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of intent to prepare an... to authorize the approval of mining Plans of Operation in the Granite Creek Watershed Mining Plans... environmental analyses for proposed mining Plans in the portions of the Granite Creek Watershed under their...

  18. Some natural factors that govern the management of oaks

    Treesearch

    Sidney Weitzman; G. R., Jr. Trimble

    1957-01-01

    The oaks are the most important species group in the Appalachian hardwood forests. In West Virginia, oaks provide more than half of the lumber produced in the State. In addition, they provide a large portion of the mine timbers and specialty products.

  19. Terrestrial salamander abundance on reclaimed mountaintop removal mines

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wood, Petra Bohall; Williams, Jennifer M.

    2013-01-01

    Mountaintop removal mining, a large-scale disturbance affecting vegetation, soil structure, and topography, converts landscapes from mature forests to extensive grassland and shrubland habitats. We sampled salamanders using drift-fence arrays and coverboard transects on and near mountaintop removal mines in southern West Virginia, USA, during 2000–2002. We compared terrestrial salamander relative abundance and species richness of un-mined, intact forest with habitats on reclaimed mountaintop removal mines (reclaimed grassland, reclaimed shrubland, and fragmented forest). Salamanders within forests increased in relative abundance with increasing distance from reclaimed mine edge. Reclaimed grassland and shrubland habitats had lower relative abundance and species richness than forests. Characteristics of reclaimed habitats that likely contributed to lower salamander abundance included poor soils (dry, compacted, little organic matter, high rock content), reduced vertical structure of vegetation and little tree cover, and low litter and woody debris cover. Past research has shown that salamander populations reduced by clearcutting may rebound in 15–24 years. Time since disturbance was 7–28 years in reclaimed habitats on our study areas and salamander populations had not reached levels found in adjacent mature forests.

  20. Diversity and Impacts of Mining on the Non-Volant Small Mammal Communities of Two Vegetation Types in the Brazilian Amazon.

    PubMed

    Ardente, Natália Carneiro; Ferreguetti, Átilla Colombo; Gettinger, Donald; Leal, Pricila; Mendes-Oliveira, Ana Cristina; Martins-Hatano, Fernanda; Bergallo, Helena Godoy

    2016-01-01

    The Carajás National Forest contains some of the largest iron ore deposits in the world. The majority of the minerals are found below a plant community known as Savana Metalófila, or "Canga", which represents only 3% of the landscape within the Carajás National Forest (CNF). The aim of our study was to understand the diversity of community of non-volant small mammals in the two predominant vegetation types: Ombrophilous Forest and Canga, and to examine how mining impacts these communities. Sampling was conducted from January 2010 to August 2011 in 11 sampling sites divided by the total area of Canga and 12 sampling sites in the forest, totalizing 23 sites. Of these, 12 sites (Canga and Forest) were considered impacted areas located close to the mine (< 900 meters) and 11 sites (Canga and Forest), serving as controls, which were at least 7,000 meters from the mine. We recorded 28 species, 11 from the Order Didelphimorphia and 17 from the Order Rodentia. The two forest types shared 68.42% of the species found in the CNF. A gradient analysis (Non-metric multidimensional scaling) revealed that the first axis clearly separated the non-flying small mammal communities by vegetation type. Occupancy models showed that the detectability of species was affected by the distance from the mining activities. Of all the small mammals analyzed, 10 species were positively affected by the distance from mining in areas impacted (e.g. more likely to be detected farther from mining areas) and detectability was lower in impacted areas. However, three species were negatively affected by the distance from mining, with higher detectability in the impacted areas, and seven species showed no effect of their proximity to mining operations. To date, there are no studies in Brazil about the impact of mining on mammals or other vertebrates. This study reveals that the effect of mining may go beyond the forest destruction caused by the opening of the mining pits, but also may negatively affect sensitive wildlife species.

  1. Diversity and Impacts of Mining on the Non-Volant Small Mammal Communities of Two Vegetation Types in the Brazilian Amazon

    PubMed Central

    Ardente, Natália Carneiro; Ferreguetti, Átilla Colombo; Gettinger, Donald; Leal, Pricila; Mendes-Oliveira, Ana Cristina; Martins-Hatano, Fernanda; Bergallo, Helena Godoy

    2016-01-01

    The Carajás National Forest contains some of the largest iron ore deposits in the world. The majority of the minerals are found below a plant community known as Savana Metalófila, or “Canga”, which represents only 3% of the landscape within the Carajás National Forest (CNF). The aim of our study was to understand the diversity of community of non-volant small mammals in the two predominant vegetation types: Ombrophilous Forest and Canga, and to examine how mining impacts these communities. Sampling was conducted from January 2010 to August 2011 in 11 sampling sites divided by the total area of Canga and 12 sampling sites in the forest, totalizing 23 sites. Of these, 12 sites (Canga and Forest) were considered impacted areas located close to the mine (<< 900 meters) and 11 sites (Canga and Forest), serving as controls, which were at least 7,000 meters from the mine. We recorded 28 species, 11 from the Order Didelphimorphia and 17 from the Order Rodentia. The two forest types shared 68.42% of the species found in the CNF. A gradient analysis (Non-metric multidimensional scaling) revealed that the first axis clearly separated the non-flying small mammal communities by vegetation type. Occupancy models showed that the detectability of species was affected by the distance from the mining activities. Of all the small mammals analyzed, 10 species were positively affected by the distance from mining in areas impacted (e.g. more likely to be detected farther from mining areas) and detectability was lower in impacted areas. However, three species were negatively affected by the distance from mining, with higher detectability in the impacted areas, and seven species showed no effect of their proximity to mining operations. To date, there are no studies in Brazil about the impact of mining on mammals or other vertebrates. This study reveals that the effect of mining may go beyond the forest destruction caused by the opening of the mining pits, but also may negatively affect sensitive wildlife species. PMID:27893798

  2. Soil management of copper mine tailing soils--sludge amendment and tree vegetation could improve biological soil quality.

    PubMed

    Asensio, Verónica; Covelo, Emma F; Kandeler, Ellen

    2013-07-01

    Mine soils at the depleted copper mine in Touro (Northwest Spain) are physico-chemically degraded and polluted by chromium and copper. To increase the quality of these soils, some areas at this mine have been vegetated with eucalyptus or pines, amended with sludges, or received both treatments. Four sites were selected at the Touro mine tailing in order to evaluate the effect of these different reclamation treatments on the biological soil quality: (1) Control (untreated), (2) Forest (vegetated), (3) Sludge (amended with sludges) and (4) Forest+Sludge (vegetated and amended). The new approach of the present work is that we evaluated the effect of planting trees or/and amending with sludges on the biological soil quality of mine sites polluted by metals under field conditions. The addition of sludges to mine sites recovered the biological quality of the soil, while vegetating with trees did not increase microbial biomass and function to the level of unpolluted sites. Moreover, amending with sludges increased the efficiency of the soil's microbial community to metabolize C and N, which was indicated by the decrease of the specific enzyme activities and the increase in the ratio Cmic:Nmic (shift towards predominance of fungi instead of bacteria). However, the high Cu and Cr concentrations still have negative influence on the microorganisms in all the treated soils. For the future remediation of mine soils, we recommend periodically adding sludge and planting native legume species. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. A technical framework for implementing aquatic ecosystem loading limits (TMDLs) to reduce selenium pollution from phosphate mining wastes on Caribou National Forest, Idaho

    Treesearch

    A. Dennis Lemly

    2001-01-01

    Beginning in 1996, selenium associated with phosphate mining on Caribou National Forest (CNF) was implicated as the cause of death to horses and sheep grazing on private land adjacent to the national forest. In response to these concerns, the Forest Service began a monitoring study to determine selenium concentrations in and around the mine sites. By 1998, the study...

  4. Responses of terrestrial herpetofauna to persistent, novel ecosystems resulting from mountaintop removal mining

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Williams, Jennifer M.; Brown, Donald J.; Wood, Petra B.

    2017-01-01

    Mountaintop removal mining is a large-scale surface mining technique that removes entire floral and faunal communities, along with soil horizons located above coal seams. In West Virginia, the majority of this mining occurs on forested mountaintops. However, after mining ceases the land is typically reclaimed to grasslands and shrublands, resulting in novel ecosystems. In this study, we examined responses of herpetofauna to these novel ecosystems 10–28 y postreclamation. We quantified differences in species-specific habitat associations, (sub)order-level abundances, and habitat characteristics in four habitat types: reclaimed grassland, reclaimed shrubland, forest fragments in mined areas, and nonmined intact forest. Habitat type accounted for 33.2% of the variation in species-specific captures. With few exceptions, forest specialists were associated with intact forest and fragmented forest sites, while habitat generalists were either associated with grassland and shrubland sites or were distributed among all habitat types. At the (sub)order level, salamander (Order Urodela) captures were highest at fragmented and intact forest sites, frog and toad (Order Anura) captures were lowest at intact forest sites, and snake (Suborder Serpentes) captures were highest at shrubland sites. Habitat type was a strong predictor for estimated total abundance of urodeles, but not for anurans or snakes. Tree stem densities in grasslands differed from the other three habitat types, and large trees (>38 cm diameter at breast height) were only present at forest sites. Overstory vegetation cover was greater in forested than in reclaimed habitat types. Ground cover in reclaimed grasslands was distinct from forest treatments with generally less woody debris and litter cover and more vegetative cover. It is important to consider the distributions of habitat specialists of conservation concern when delineating potential mountaintop mine sites, as these sites will likely contain unsuitable habitat for forest specialists for decades or centuries when reclaimed to grassland or shrubland.

  5. Stand characteristics and productivity potential of Indiana surface mines reclaimed under SMCRA

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Groninger, J.W.; Fillmore, S.D.; Rathfon, R.A.

    The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) addresses a wide range of environmental concerns. However, its impacts on forest stand development and productive potential have only recently been investigated. We surveyed the vegetation and forest productivity on 22 surface mine sites throughout the coal-bearing region of Indiana that were reclaimed to forest cover under the provisions of SMCRA 7-14 years prior to sampling. Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) and green ash (Fraxinus pennsylvanica) were the most widely occurring tree species. Tall fescue and goldenrod were the most widely occurring nonarborescent species. Median site index (base age 50 formore » black oak) was 30 ft. Although satisfying forest cover stocking requirements for bond release, these reclaimed surface mines almost always displayed a level of productivity far below those of native forests typical of this region. Reclamation techniques differing from those used on these study sites are needed to restore forest productivity to surface-mined lands while still complying with SMCRA.« less

  6. 78 FR 48672 - Environmental Impacts Statements;

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-08-09

    ... Bend Vegetation Management Project, Review Period Ends: 09/19/2013, Contact: Beth Peer 541-383- 4769... Supplement, USFS, ID, Salmon-Challis National Forest Travel Planning and OHV Designation Project, Comment... Mine Project, Comment Period Ends: 09/23/2013, Contact: Shiva Achet 575-234-5924 EIS No. 20130235...

  7. 36 CFR 223.9 - Free use to owners of certain mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... mining claims. 223.9 Section 223.9 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF... of certain mining claims. Free use will be granted to an owner of a mining claim located subsequent to July 23, 1955, or of a mining claim which is otherwise subject to Section 4 of the Act of July 23...

  8. Water-quality, bed-sediment, and biological data, for streams in the upper Prickly Pear Creek watershed, Montana, 2001

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Klein, Terry L.; Thamke, Joanna N.; Harper, David D.; Farag, Aïda M.; Nimick, David A.; Fey, David L.

    2003-01-01

    The upper Prickly Pear Creek watershed encompasses the upstream 15 miles of Prickly Pear Creek, south of Helena, Montana (fig. 1). The headwaters of Prickly Pear Creek and its tributaries (Beavertown Creek, Clancy Creek, Dutchman Creek, Golconda Creek, Lump Gulch, Spring Creek, and Warm Springs Creek) are primarily in the Helena National Forest, whereas the central part of the watershed primarily is within either Bureau of Land Management (BLM) or privately owned property. Three mining districts are present in the upper Prickly Pear Creek watershed: Alhambra, Clancy, and Colorado. Numerous prospects, adits, tailings piles, mills, dredge piles, and mines (mostly inactive) are located throughout the watershed. These districts contain polymetallic (Ag, Au, Cu, Pb, Zn) vein deposits and precious-metal (Au-Ag) vein and disseminated deposits that were exploited beginning in the 1860’s. Placer Au deposits in the major streams were extensively mined in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.As part of a cooperative effort with Federal land management agencies, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is currently using an integrated approach to investigate two mining impacted watersheds in the western United States (the Animas River in Colorado and the Boulder River in Montana). These studies provide the USDA Forest Service and BLM scientific data for implementing informed land-management decisions regarding cleanup of abandoned mine lands within each watershed. A similar integrated-science approach will be used to characterize the upper Prickly Pear Creek watershed with respect to water and streambed sediment chemistry, aquatic biota, and geologic framework. This integrated database presents data that will be used to identify important pathways of metals movement and biological impacts, thereby guiding resource management decisions of land-managers in several publications that are in preparation. Watershed-level characterization in terms of water quality, streambed sediment chemistry, and fish health will facilitate determinations of whether removal of contaminated materials or other cleanup activities are necessary, planning of short- and long-term restoration efforts, and development of a monitoring plan to document cleanup effectiveness.

  9. 30 CFR 761.13 - Procedures for compatibility findings for surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. 761.13 Section 761.13 Mineral... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. (a) If you intend to rely upon the... national forest, you must request that we obtain the Secretarial findings required by § 761.11(b). (b) You...

  10. 30 CFR 761.13 - Procedures for compatibility findings for surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. 761.13 Section 761.13 Mineral... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. (a) If you intend to rely upon the... national forest, you must request that we obtain the Secretarial findings required by § 761.11(b). (b) You...

  11. 30 CFR 761.13 - Procedures for compatibility findings for surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. 761.13 Section 761.13 Mineral... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. (a) If you intend to rely upon the... national forest, you must request that we obtain the Secretarial findings required by § 761.11(b). (b) You...

  12. 30 CFR 761.13 - Procedures for compatibility findings for surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. 761.13 Section 761.13 Mineral... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. (a) If you intend to rely upon the... national forest, you must request that we obtain the Secretarial findings required by § 761.11(b). (b) You...

  13. 30 CFR 761.13 - Procedures for compatibility findings for surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. 761.13 Section 761.13 Mineral... surface coal mining operations on Federal lands in national forests. (a) If you intend to rely upon the... national forest, you must request that we obtain the Secretarial findings required by § 761.11(b). (b) You...

  14. Evaluating relationships between natural resource management, land use changes, and flooding in the Appalachian region

    Treesearch

    Nicolas P. Zegre; Samuel J. Lamont

    2013-01-01

    Th e Appalachian Region has a long history of natural resource management and recurrent history of frequent and large-scale floods. Land use activities such as urbanization, mining, forest harvesting, and agriculture can have a noticeable effect on the volume, magnitude, timing, and frequency of floods. Determining the effects of land use on flooding is difficult for...

  15. Empirical Mining of Large Data Sets Already Helps to Solve Practical Ecological Problems; A Panoply of Working Examples (Invited)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hargrove, W. W.; Hoffman, F. M.; Kumar, J.; Spruce, J.; Norman, S. P.

    2013-12-01

    Here we present diverse examples where empirical mining and statistical analysis of large data sets have already been shown to be useful for a wide variety of practical decision-making problems within the realm of large-scale ecology. Because a full understanding and appreciation of particular ecological phenomena are possible only after hypothesis-directed research regarding the existence and nature of that process, some ecologists may feel that purely empirical data harvesting may represent a less-than-satisfactory approach. Restricting ourselves exclusively to process-driven approaches, however, may actually slow progress, particularly for more complex or subtle ecological processes. We may not be able to afford the delays caused by such directed approaches. Rather than attempting to formulate and ask every relevant question correctly, empirical methods allow trends, relationships and associations to emerge freely from the data themselves, unencumbered by a priori theories, ideas and prejudices that have been imposed upon them. Although they cannot directly demonstrate causality, empirical methods can be extremely efficient at uncovering strong correlations with intermediate "linking" variables. In practice, these correlative structures and linking variables, once identified, may provide sufficient predictive power to be useful themselves. Such correlation "shadows" of causation can be harnessed by, e.g., Bayesian Belief Nets, which bias ecological management decisions, made with incomplete information, toward favorable outcomes. Empirical data-harvesting also generates a myriad of testable hypotheses regarding processes, some of which may even be correct. Quantitative statistical regionalizations based on quantitative multivariate similarity have lended insights into carbon eddy-flux direction and magnitude, wildfire biophysical conditions, phenological ecoregions useful for vegetation type mapping and monitoring, forest disease risk maps (e.g., sudden oak death), global aquatic ecoregion risk maps for aquatic invasives, and forest vertical structure ecoregions (e.g., using extensive LiDAR data sets). Multivariate Spatio-Temporal Clustering, which quantitatively places alternative future conditions on a common footing with present conditions, allows prediction of present and future shifts in tree species ranges, given alternative climatic change forecasts. ForWarn, a forest disturbance detection and monitoring system mining 12 years of national 8-day MODIS phenology data, has been operating since 2010, producing national maps every 8 days showing many kinds of potential forest disturbances. Forest resource managers can view disturbance maps via a web-based viewer, and alerts are issued when particular forest disturbances are seen. Regression-based decadal trend analysis showing long-term forest thrive and decline areas, and individual-based, brute-force supercomputing to map potential movement corridors and migration routes across landscapes will also be discussed. As significant ecological changes occur with increasing rapidity, such empirical data-mining approaches may be the most efficient means to help land managers find the best, most-actionable policies and decision strategies.

  16. 36 CFR 6.7 - Mining wastes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Mining wastes. 6.7 Section 6.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL SITES IN UNITS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 6.7 Mining wastes. (a) Solid waste from mining...

  17. 36 CFR 6.7 - Mining wastes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Mining wastes. 6.7 Section 6.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL SITES IN UNITS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 6.7 Mining wastes. (a) Solid waste from mining...

  18. 36 CFR 6.7 - Mining wastes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Mining wastes. 6.7 Section 6.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL SITES IN UNITS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 6.7 Mining wastes. (a) Solid waste from mining...

  19. 36 CFR 6.7 - Mining wastes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Mining wastes. 6.7 Section 6.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL SITES IN UNITS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 6.7 Mining wastes. (a) Solid waste from mining...

  20. 76 FR 13600 - Payette National Forest, Idaho, Golden Hand #3 and #4 Lode Mining Claims, Plan of Operations

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-03-14

    .... 3 and No. 4 Lode Mining Claims Proposed Plan of Operations. The project included mining operations on the lode claims along with associated activities such as road maintenance and construction. The... Mining Claims, Plan of Operations AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of withdrawal. SUMMARY...

  1. Characteristics of labile organic carbon fractions in reclaimed mine soils: Evidence from three reclaimed forests in the Pingshuo opencast coal mine, China.

    PubMed

    Yuan, Ye; Zhao, Zhongqiu; Li, Xuezhen; Wang, Yangyang; Bai, Zhongke

    2018-02-01

    The reclamation of discarded spoils has the potential to stimulate carbon (C) sequestration in reclaimed mine soils (RMSs). Nevertheless, to date the temporal dynamics of labile organic C fractions have not been sufficiently elucidated in RMSs. In this study, soil organic carbon (SOC) and labile organic C fractions, including microbial biomass organic C (MBC), easily oxidizable organic C (EOC) and dissolved organic C (DOC), were determined in Robinia pseudoacacia monoculture forests (reclamation periods of 0, 8, 10, 13, 15, 18 and 30years), Pinus tabuliformis forests (reclamation periods of 0, 10, 19, 23 and 25years) and Ulmus pumila forests (reclamation periods of 0, 18, 20 and 22years) situated on RMSs in the Pingshuo opencast coal mine, China. Changes in labile organic C fractions within the soil profiles (0-100cm) were also identified at the 18- or 19-year plots under the three monoculture forests. Our results showed that, SOC and labile organic C fractions, together with soil microbial quotient (SMQ) and C management index (CMI), increased with time since reclamation, indicating that the quality of RMSs improved over time after initial reclamation under the three forest types. R. pseudoacacia significantly increased the accretion of SOC and EOC in the early stage of reclamation while P. tabuliformis accelerated the accumulation of the MBC fraction. Results for U. pumila indicated that this species had a better ability to store C in RMSs 10years or more after reclamation. SOC and labile organic C fractions both had S-shaped distributions within the soil profiles (0-100cm), with the 0-20cm layer recording the highest values (P<0.05). Labile organic C fractions were closely associated and correlated with soil physicochemical properties; our results also showed that nitrogen played an important role in the development of labile organic C fractions. Overall, reclamation accelerated the accretion of both SOC and labile organic C fractions, results of which varied among the reclaimed forests. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Science for watershed decisions on abandoned mine lands; review of preliminary results, Denver, Colorado, February 4-5, 1998

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Nimick, David A.; Von Guerard, Paul

    1998-01-01

    From the Preface: There are thousands of abandoned or inactive mines on or adjacent to public lands administered by the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, and National Park Service. Mine wastes from many of these abandoned mines adversely affect resources on public lands. In 1995, an interdepartmental work group within the Federal government developed a strategy to address remediation of the many abandoned mines on public lands. This strategy is based on using a watershed approach to address the abandoned mine lands (AML) problem. The USGS, working closely with the Federal land-management agencies (FLMAs), is key for the success of this watershed approach. In support of this watershed approach, the USGS developed an AML Initiative with pilot studies in the Boulder River in Montana and the Animas River in Colorado. The goal of these studies is to design and implement a reliable strategy that will supply the scientific information to the FLMAs so that land managers can develop efficient and cost-effective remediation of AML. The symposium 'Science for Watershed Decisions on Abandoned Mine Lands: Review of Preliminary Results' held in Denver, Colorado, on February 4-5, 1998, provided the FLMAs a first look at the techniques, data, and interpretations being generated by the USGS pilot studies. This multidisciplined effort already is proving very valuable to land managers in making science-based AML cleanup decisions and will continue to be of increasing value as additional and more complete information is obtained. Ongoing interaction between scientists and land managers is essential to insure the efficient continuation and success of AML cleanup efforts.

  3. 43 CFR 3823.3 - Mineral patents within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.3 Mineral patents within National Forest Wilderness. (a) Each patent issued under the U.S. mining... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Mineral patents within National Forest...

  4. 43 CFR 3823.3 - Mineral patents within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.3 Mineral patents within National Forest Wilderness. (a) Each patent issued under the U.S. mining... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Mineral patents within National Forest...

  5. 36 CFR 292.62 - Valid existing rights.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... segments. The rights associated with all mining claims on National Forest System lands within the SRNRA in... mining claims on National Forest System lands in that portion of the SRNRA not covered by paragraph (a)(1... Section 292.62 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE NATIONAL...

  6. 36 CFR 292.62 - Valid existing rights.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... segments. The rights associated with all mining claims on National Forest System lands within the SRNRA in... mining claims on National Forest System lands in that portion of the SRNRA not covered by paragraph (a)(1... Section 292.62 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE NATIONAL...

  7. 36 CFR 292.62 - Valid existing rights.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... segments. The rights associated with all mining claims on National Forest System lands within the SRNRA in... mining claims on National Forest System lands in that portion of the SRNRA not covered by paragraph (a)(1... Section 292.62 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE NATIONAL...

  8. 36 CFR 292.62 - Valid existing rights.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... segments. The rights associated with all mining claims on National Forest System lands within the SRNRA in... mining claims on National Forest System lands in that portion of the SRNRA not covered by paragraph (a)(1... Section 292.62 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE NATIONAL...

  9. 43 CFR 3823.3 - Mineral patents within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.3 Mineral patents within National Forest Wilderness. (a) Each patent issued under the U.S. mining... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Mineral patents within National Forest...

  10. 43 CFR 3823.3 - Mineral patents within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.3 Mineral patents within National Forest Wilderness. (a) Each patent issued under the U.S. mining... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Mineral patents within National Forest...

  11. 77 FR 21526 - Eastern Washington Cascades Provincial Advisory Committee and the Yakima Provincial Advisory...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-04-10

    ... Parks office, 270 9th Street NE., East Wenatchee, WA has been replaced with an open public meeting... Stewardship Challenge, Yakima River Basin Integrated Water Resource Management Plan, Holden Mine Remediation..., Okanogan- Wenatchee National Forest, 215 Melody Lane, Wenatchee, Washington 98801, phone 509-664-9200...

  12. The effect of Appalachian mountaintop mining on interior forest

    Treesearch

    J.D. Wickham; Kurt H. Riitters; T.G. Wade; M. Coan; C. Homer

    2007-01-01

    Southern Appalachian forests are predominantly interior because they are spatially extensive with little disturbance imposed by other uses of the land. Appalachian mountaintop mining increased substantially during the 1990s, posing a threat to the interior character of the forest. We used spatial convolution to identify interior forest at multiple scales on circa 1992...

  13. Chapter 3: Selecting materials for mine soil construction when establishing forests on Appalachian mined lands

    Treesearch

    Jeff Skousen; Carl Zipper; Jim Burger; Christopher Barton; Patrick. Angel

    2017-01-01

    The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA), a method for reclaiming coal-mined land to forest (Chapter 2, this volume), is based on research, knowledge, and experience of forest soil scientists and reclamation practitioners. Step 1 of the FRA is to create a suitable rooting medium for good tree growth that is no less than 4 feet deep and consists of topsoil, weathered...

  14. THE EFFECT OF APPALACHIAN MOUNTAINTOP MINING ON INTERIOR FOREST

    EPA Science Inventory

    Southern Appalachian forests are predominantly interior because they are spatially extensive with little disturbance imposed by other uses of the land. Appalachian mountaintop mining increased substantially during the 1990s, posing a threat to the interior character of the forest...

  15. 75 FR 53340 - Request for Determination of Valid Existing Rights Within the Daniel Boone National Forest, Kentucky

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-08-31

    ...), prohibits surface coal mining operations on Federal lands within the boundaries of any national forest, with... Determination of Valid Existing Rights Within the Daniel Boone National Forest, Kentucky AGENCY: Office of... mining operations on approximately 175 acres of land owned by the U.S. Forest Service within the Daniel...

  16. Chapter 8: Mine reclamation practices to enhance forest development through natural succession

    Treesearch

    J. Groninger; J. Skousen; P. Angel; C. Barton; J. Burger; C. Zipper

    2017-01-01

    "Natural succession" is a term used to describe natural changes in plant community composition over time. In the forested Appalachian region, disturbances from storms, fire, logging, or mining can disrupt or destroy established forests. Natural processes that lead to restoration of the forest vegetation following such a disturbance usually begin quickly and...

  17. A Comparison between Decision Tree and Random Forest in Determining the Risk Factors Associated with Type 2 Diabetes.

    PubMed

    Esmaily, Habibollah; Tayefi, Maryam; Doosti, Hassan; Ghayour-Mobarhan, Majid; Nezami, Hossein; Amirabadizadeh, Alireza

    2018-04-24

    We aimed to identify the associated risk factors of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) using data mining approach, decision tree and random forest techniques using the Mashhad Stroke and Heart Atherosclerotic Disorders (MASHAD) Study program. A cross-sectional study. The MASHAD study started in 2010 and will continue until 2020. Two data mining tools, namely decision trees, and random forests, are used for predicting T2DM when some other characteristics are observed on 9528 subjects recruited from MASHAD database. This paper makes a comparison between these two models in terms of accuracy, sensitivity, specificity and the area under ROC curve. The prevalence rate of T2DM was 14% among these subjects. The decision tree model has 64.9% accuracy, 64.5% sensitivity, 66.8% specificity, and area under the ROC curve measuring 68.6%, while the random forest model has 71.1% accuracy, 71.3% sensitivity, 69.9% specificity, and area under the ROC curve measuring 77.3% respectively. The random forest model, when used with demographic, clinical, and anthropometric and biochemical measurements, can provide a simple tool to identify associated risk factors for type 2 diabetes. Such identification can substantially use for managing the health policy to reduce the number of subjects with T2DM .

  18. Impact of potential phosphate mining on the hydrology of Osceola National Forest, Florida

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Miller, James A.; Hughes, G.H.; Hull, R.W.; Vecchioli, John; Seaber, P.R.

    1978-01-01

    Potentially exploitable phosphate deposits underlie part of Osceola National Forest, Fla. Hydrologic conditions in the forest are comparable with those in nearby Hamilton County, where phosphate mining and processing have been ongoing since 1965. Given similarity of operations, hydroloigc effects of mining in the forest are predicted. Flow of stream receiving phosphate industry effluent would increase somewhat during mining, but stream quality would not be greatly affected. Local changes in the configuration of the water table and the quality of water in the surficial aquifer will occur. Lowering of the potentiometric surface of the Floridan aquifer because of proposed pumpage would be less than five feet at nearby communities. Flordian aquifer water quality would be appreciably changed only if industrial effluent were discharged into streams which recharge the Flordian through sinkholes. The most significant hydrologic effects would occur at the time of active mining: long-term effects would be less significant. (Woodard-USGS)

  19. The USGS Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative: Protecting and restoring the environment near abandoned mine lands

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    ,

    1999-01-01

    The Abandoned Mine Lands (AML) Initiative is part of a larger strategy of the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to clean up Federal lands contaminated by abandoned mines.Thousands of abandond hard-rock metal mines (such as gold, copper, lead, and zinc) have left a dual legacy across the Western United States. They reflect the historic development of the west, yet at the same time represent a possible threat to human health and local ecosystems.Abandoned Mine Lands (AML) are areas adjacent to or affected by abandoned mines. AML's often contain unmined mineral deposits, mine dumps (the ore and rock removed to get to the ore deposits), and tailings (the material left over from the ore processing) that contaminate the surrounding watershed and ecosystem. For example, streams near AML's can contain metals and (or) be so acidic that fish and aquatic insects cannot live in them.Many of these abandoned hard-rock mines are located on or adjacent to public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, and U.S. Forest Service. These federal land management agencies and the USGS are committed to mitigating the adverse effects that AML's can have on water quality and stream habitats.The USGS AML Initiative began in 1997 and will continue through 2001 in two pilot watersheds - the Boulder River basin in southwestern Montana and the upper Animas River basin in southwestern Colorado. The USGS is providing a wide range of scientific expertise to help land managers minimize and, where possible, eliminate the adverse environmental effects of AML's. USGS ecologists, geologists, water quality experts, hydrologists, geochemists, and mapping and digital data collection experts are collaborating to provide the scientific knowledge needed for an effective cleanup of AML's.

  20. 36 CFR 5.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. 5.14 Section 5.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE OPERATIONS § 5.14 Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing...

  1. 36 CFR 5.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. 5.14 Section 5.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE OPERATIONS § 5.14 Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing...

  2. 43 CFR 3823.4 - Withdrawal from operation of the mining laws.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823... valid rights then existing, the minerals in lands within National Forest Wilderness are withdrawn from... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Withdrawal from operation of the mining...

  3. 43 CFR 3823.4 - Withdrawal from operation of the mining laws.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823... valid rights then existing, the minerals in lands within National Forest Wilderness are withdrawn from... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Withdrawal from operation of the mining...

  4. 36 CFR 5.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. 5.14 Section 5.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE OPERATIONS § 5.14 Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing...

  5. 43 CFR 3823.4 - Withdrawal from operation of the mining laws.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823... valid rights then existing, the minerals in lands within National Forest Wilderness are withdrawn from... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Withdrawal from operation of the mining...

  6. 43 CFR 3823.4 - Withdrawal from operation of the mining laws.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823... valid rights then existing, the minerals in lands within National Forest Wilderness are withdrawn from... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Withdrawal from operation of the mining...

  7. 36 CFR 5.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. 5.14 Section 5.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE OPERATIONS § 5.14 Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing...

  8. American elm in mine land reforestation

    Treesearch

    M.B. Adams; P. Angel; C. Barton; J. Slavicek

    2015-01-01

    Reforestation of mined land in the Appalachians realizes many important benefits and provides important ecosystem services. Because much of the reclaimed mine lands in Appalachia were previously in forest, reclaiming these drastically disturbed areas to forests is desirable, feasible and cost-effective. The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) provides a five-step...

  9. 36 CFR 292.22 - Land category assignments.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... the following four land categories: (i) Farm/forest/grazing land. (ii) Mining land. (iii) Residential.... Lands assigned to the Commercial, Residential, or Mining category may be reclassified as farm/forest... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Land category assignments...

  10. 36 CFR 292.22 - Land category assignments.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... the following four land categories: (i) Farm/forest/grazing land. (ii) Mining land. (iii) Residential.... Lands assigned to the Commercial, Residential, or Mining category may be reclassified as farm/forest... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Land category assignments...

  11. 36 CFR 292.22 - Land category assignments.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... the following four land categories: (i) Farm/forest/grazing land. (ii) Mining land. (iii) Residential.... Lands assigned to the Commercial, Residential, or Mining category may be reclassified as farm/forest... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Land category assignments...

  12. 36 CFR 292.22 - Land category assignments.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... the following four land categories: (i) Farm/forest/grazing land. (ii) Mining land. (iii) Residential.... Lands assigned to the Commercial, Residential, or Mining category may be reclassified as farm/forest... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Land category assignments...

  13. Historic Mining and Agriculture as Indicators of Occurrence and Abundance of Widespread Invasive Plant Species

    PubMed Central

    Calinger, Kellen; Calhoon, Elisabeth; Chang, Hsiao-chi; Whitacre, James; Wenzel, John; Comita, Liza; Queenborough, Simon

    2015-01-01

    Anthropogenic disturbances often change ecological communities and provide opportunities for non-native species invasion. Understanding the impacts of disturbances on species invasion is therefore crucial for invasive species management. We used generalized linear mixed effects models to explore the influence of land-use history and distance to roads on the occurrence and abundance of two invasive plant species (Rosa multiflora and Berberis thunbergii) in a 900-ha deciduous forest in the eastern U.S.A., the Powdermill Nature Reserve. Although much of the reserve has been continuously forested since at least 1939, aerial photos revealed a variety of land-uses since then including agriculture, mining, logging, and development. By 2008, both R. multiflora and B. thunbergii were widespread throughout the reserve (occurring in 24% and 13% of 4417 10-m diameter regularly-placed vegetation plots, respectively) with occurrence and abundance of each varying significantly with land-use history. Rosa multiflora was more likely to occur in historically farmed, mined, logged or developed plots than in plots that remained forested, (log odds of 1.8 to 3.0); Berberis thunbergii was more likely to occur in plots with agricultural, mining, or logging history than in plots without disturbance (log odds of 1.4 to 2.1). Mining, logging, and agriculture increased the probability that R. multiflora had >10% cover while only past agriculture was related to cover of B. thunbergii. Proximity to roads was positively correlated with the occurrence of R. multiflora (a 0.26 increase in the log odds for every 1-m closer) but not B. thunbergii, and roads had no impact on the abundance of either species. Our results indicated that a wide variety of disturbances may aid the introduction of invasive species into new habitats, while high-impact disturbances such as agriculture and mining increase the likelihood of high abundance post-introduction. PMID:26046534

  14. The overlooked terrestrial impacts of mountaintop mining

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wickham, James; Wood, Petra Bohall; Nicholson, Matthew C.; Jenkins, William; Druckenbrod, Daniel; Suter, Glenn W.; Strager, Michael P.; Mazzarella, Christine; Galloway, Walter; Amos, John

    2013-01-01

    Ecological research on mountaintop mining has been focused on aquatic impacts because the overburden (i.e., the mountaintop) is disposed of in nearby valleys, which leads to a wide range of water-quality impacts on streams. There are also numerous impacts on the terrestrial environment from mountaintop mining that have been largely overlooked, even though they are no less wide ranging, severe, and multifaceted. We review the impacts of mountaintop mining on the terrestrial environment by exploring six broad themes: (1) the loss of topographic complexity, (2) forest loss and fragmentation, (3) forest succession and soil loss, (4) forest loss and carbon sequestration, (5) biodiversity, and (6) human health and well-being.

  15. Effect of mine discharge on the pattern of riverine habitat use of elephants Elephas maximus and other mammals in Singhbhum forests, Bihar, India

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Singh, R.K.; Chowdhury, S.

    The aim of this paper is to access the influence of water quality both on the occurrence of, and utilization by, elephants (Elephas maximus) in a riverine habitat. Mining operations and other anthropogenic changes to natural river systems have caused degradation of the ecosystem for elephants. A decline in their numbers has been seen throughout the Singhbhum Forests, India due to fragmentation and loss of habitat. The need to preserve and restore the habitat of the elephant is accepted, but until the factors that influence their distribution are known and understood, suitable management plans cannot be implemented. The study areamore » was the catchment of the river Koina where waste discharge from an iron oremine and processing plant impact upon water quality. The study period from April 1995 to March 1996 looked at sections of the river where unregulated mine discharge was made, and where regulation through tailing ponds controlled total suspended solids (TSS) output from the mine waste water to the river system. Various physico-chemical parameters recorded at seven sampling stations were quantified. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) segregated the key parameters in determining the discharge levels of both regulated and unregulated discharge at various sites.« less

  16. Development of industrial minerals in Colorado

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Arbogast, Belinda F.; Knepper, Daniel H.; Langer, William H.; Cappa, James A.; Keller, John W.; Widmann, Beth L.; Ellefsen, Karl J.; Klein, Terry L.; Lucius, Jeffrey E.; Dersch, John S.

    2011-01-01

    Technology and engineering have helped make mining safer and cleaner for both humans and the environment. Inevitably, mineral development entails costs as well as benefits. Developing a mine is an environmental, engineering, and planning challenge that must conform to many Federal, State, and local regulations. Community collaboration, creative design, and best management practices of sustainability and biodiversity can be positive indicators for the mining industry. A better understanding of aesthetics, culture, economics, geology, climate, vegetation and wildlife, topography, historical significance, and regional land planning is important in resolving land-use issues and managing mineral resources wisely. Ultimately, the consuming public makes choices about product use (including water, food, highways, housing, and thousands of other items) that influence operations of the mineral industry. Land planners, resource managers, earth scientists, designers, and public groups have a responsibility to consider sound scientific information, society's needs, and community appeals in making smart decisions concerning resource use and how complex landscapes should change. An effort to provide comprehensive geosciences data for land management agencies in central Colorado was undertaken in 2003 by scientists of the U.S. Geological Survey and the Colorado Geological Survey. This effort, the Central Colorado Assessment Project, addressed a variety of land-use issues: an understanding of the availability of industrial and metallic rocks and minerals, the geochemical and environmental effects of historic mining activity on surface water and groundwater, and the geologic controls on the availability and quality of groundwater. The USDA Forest Service and other land management agencies have the opportunity to contribute to the sustainable management of natural aggregate and other mineral resources through the identification and selective development of mineral resources and the reclamation of mines on lands that they administer. The information in this Circular will help them carry out that task.

  17. Charcoal from a prehistoric copper mine in the Austrian Alps: dendrochronological and dendrological data, demand for wood and forest utilisation.

    PubMed

    Pichler, Thomas; Nicolussi, Kurt; Goldenberg, Gert; Hanke, Klaus; Kovács, Kristóf; Thurner, Andrea

    2013-02-01

    During prehistory fire-setting was the most appropriate technique for exploiting ore deposits. Charcoal fragments found in the course of archaeological excavations in a small mine called Mauk E in the area of Schwaz/Brixlegg (Tyrol, Austria) are argued to be evidence for the use of this technology. Dendrochronological analyses of the charcoal samples yielded calendar dates for the mining activities showing that the exploitation of the Mauk E mine lasted approximately one decade in the late 8th century BC. Dendrological studies show that the miners utilised stem wood of spruce and fir from forests with high stand density for fire-setting and that the exploitation of the Mauk E mine had only a limited impact on the local forests.

  18. Wildlife species composition in various forest types on Sebuku Island, South Kalimantan

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kusmana, C.; Manshur, A.; Rusdian, O.; Putro, H. R.; Hakim, F.; Ermyanyla, M.

    2017-01-01

    Sebuku is one of the small islands in South Kalimantan Provincehaving various forest types with high potential economic in mining sector. Based on it’s business permit, the island has been divided up into several mining concessions. So that biological diversity studies in this island is an interesting in order to serve biological baseline data if someday this island to be extractedfor mining. This research was conducted on 28th November to 5th December 2015 aims to explore wildlife species inhabit mangrove forest, beach forest, and lowland forest usinga rectangle transect (40 x 1000 meter) in each forest type. The results show there are 90 wildlife species identified in Sebuku Island. The beach forest has the highest wildlife species richness (36 species), while the area having the highest protected wildlife species isthe lowland forest. Mangrove forests generally have a lower wildlife species richness. Nevertheless, in Sebuku Island, can be found mangrove forest that have a quite high wildlife species richness (28 species, 50% protected). It is due to silt sedimentation in the estuary area, so that this area become feeding ground for shore and migratory birds.

  19. 75 FR 41886 - Public Land Order No. 7744; Withdrawal of National Forest System Land for Inyan Kara Area; WY

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-07-19

    ... National Forest System land other than the mining laws (30 U.S.C. Ch. 2). 3. This withdrawal will expire 20... Order No. 7744; Withdrawal of National Forest System Land for Inyan Kara Area; WY AGENCY: Bureau of Land... Forest System land from location and entry under the United States mining laws for a period of 20 years...

  20. Tree Species Composition and Harvest Intensity Affect Herbivore Density and Leaf Damage on Beech, Fagus sylvatica, in Different Landscape Contexts

    PubMed Central

    Mangels, Jule; Blüthgen, Nico; Frank, Kevin; Grassein, Fabrice; Hilpert, Andrea; Mody, Karsten

    2015-01-01

    Most forests are exposed to anthropogenic management activities that affect tree species composition and natural ecosystem processes. Changes in ecosystem processes such as herbivory depend on management intensity, and on regional environmental conditions and species pools. Whereas influences of specific forest management measures have already been addressed for different herbivore taxa on a local scale, studies considering effects of different aspects of forest management across different regions are rare. We assessed the influence of tree species composition and intensity of harvesting activities on arthropod herbivores and herbivore-related damage to beech trees, Fagus sylvatica, in 48 forest plots in three regions of Germany. We found that herbivore abundance and damage to beech trees differed between regions and that – despite the regional differences - density of tree-associated arthropod taxa and herbivore damage were consistently affected by tree species composition and harvest intensity. Specifically, overall herbivore damage to beech trees increased with increasing dominance of beech trees – suggesting the action of associational resistance processes – and decreased with harvest intensity. The density of leaf chewers and mines was positively related to leaf damage, and several arthropod groups responded to beech dominance and harvest intensity. The distribution of damage patterns was consistent with a vertical shift of herbivores to higher crown layers during the season and with higher beech dominance. By linking quantitative data on arthropod herbivore abundance and herbivory with tree species composition and harvesting activity in a wide variety of beech forests, our study helps to better understand the influence of forest management on interactions between a naturally dominant deciduous forest tree and arthropod herbivores. PMID:25938417

  1. Effects of prescribed fire and post-fire rainfall on mercury mobilization and subsequent contamination assessment in a legacy mine site in Victoria, Australia.

    PubMed

    Abraham, Joji; Dowling, Kim; Florentine, Singarayer

    2018-01-01

    Prescribed fire conducted in fire-prone areas is a cost-effective choice for forest management, but it also affects many of the physicochemical and bio-geological properties of the forest soil, in a similar manner to wild fires. The aim of this study is to investigate the nature of the mercury mobilization after a prescribed fire and the subsequent temporal changes in concentration. A prescribed fire was conducted in a legacy mine site in Central Victoria, Australia, in late August 2015 and soil sample collection and analyses were carried out two days before and two days after the fire, followed by collection at the end of each season and after an intense rainfall event in September 2016. Results revealed the occurrence of mercury volatilization (8.3-97%) during the fire, and the mercury concentration displayed a significant difference (p < 0.05) before and immediately after the fire. Integrated assessment with number of pollution indices has shown that the study site is extremely contaminated with mercury during all the sampling events, and this poses a serious ecological risk due to the health impacts of mercury on human and ecosystems. In times of climate fluctuation with concomitant increase in forest fire (including prescribed fire), and subsequent precipitation and runoff, the potential for an increased amount of mercury being mobilized is of heighted significance. Therefore, it is recommended that prescribed fire should be cautiously considered as a forest management strategy in any mercury affected landscapes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. AmeriFlux US-GBT GLEES Brooklyn Tower

    DOE Data Explorer

    Massman, Bill [USDA Forest Service

    2017-01-01

    This is the AmeriFlux version of the carbon flux data for the site US-GBT GLEES Brooklyn Tower. Site Description - The Glacier Lakes Ecosystem Experiments Site (GLEES) site is located on land owned by the U.S. government and managed by US Forest Service as part of the Medicine Bow National Forest. Many of the trees in the immediate vicinity of the site are older than 400 years, inter-dispersed among trees much younger in age. This widespread age distribution is most likely a derivation of one of two scenarios: 1) A widespread stand replacement about 400 years ago followed by a slow replacement; 2) Intermittent random disturbances over the past 400 years (Bradford et al. 2008). A decade long spruce beetle outbreak that peaked in 2008 resulted in the mortality of 85% of the forested basal area. There are a few private land holdings in the area, with scattered uncorked mining claims. Following the establishment of the National Forest, mining was banned and grazing was closed in the early 1990's in the upper portion of the GLEES site. Recreation in the winter, when snow can remain in patches into the summer months, snow mobiling and cross country skiing are popular. During the limited summer, hiking, camping and fishing are common activities. The site is accessible by vehicle only during the summer on Forest Road FDR 317, and in the winter, the tower is only reachable via snowmobile.

  3. AmeriFlux US-GLE GLEES

    DOE Data Explorer

    Massman, Bill [USDA Forest Service

    2016-01-01

    This is the AmeriFlux version of the carbon flux data for the site US-GLE GLEES. Site Description - The Glacier Lakes Ecosystem Experiments Site (GLEES) site is located on land owned by the U.S. government and managed by US Forest Service as part of the Medicine Bow National Forest. Many of the trees in the immediate vicinity of the site are older than 400 years, inter-dispersed among trees much younger in age. This widespread age distribution is most likely a derivation of one of two scenarios: 1) A widespread stand replacement about 400 years ago followed by a slow replacement; 2) Intermittent random disturbances over the past 400 years (Bradford et al. 2008). A decade long spruce beetle outbreak that peaked in 2008 resulted in the mortality of 85% of the forested basal area. There are a few private land holdings in the area, with scattered uncorked mining claims. Following the establishment of the National Forest, mining was banned and grazing was closed in the early 1990's in the upper portion of the GLEES site. Recreation in the winter, when snow can remain in patches into the summer months, snow mobiling and cross country skiing are popular. During the limited summer, hiking, camping and fishing are common activities. The site is accessible by vehicle only during the summer on Forest Road FDR 317, and in the winter, the tower is only reachable via snowmobile.

  4. Spatial Conflict of Mining Land in Tolitoli District -Province of Central Sulawesi

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Suwarno, Y.; Windiastuti, R.

    2018-05-01

    Spatial planning is supposed to be applied in the use of space, so there will be no overlapping space utilization. In fact, there are still overlapping uses of land, between the area of mining and plantation, as well as with forest areas. The purpose of this study was to find out the conflicts that occured due to overlapping permits given to mining and plantation companies, and also to forest status. The method used was by overlaying the maps of Mining Business Permit with that of Plantation Business Permit, and also with Forest Area Map. In Tolitoli District there were 23 mining business permit holders with 7 types of mining commodities, covering total areaof 81,503.54 Hectare. In addition, there were 5 companies holding plantation business permits, mostly on palm oil, and only 2 companies with rubber and sengon wood business commodities, with a total area of 80,005.35 Hectare. From the result of spatial analysis, it was found that there was an overlapping area of 22,869.70 Hectare, while the area of 118,072.93 Hectare did not overlap. The Mining Business Permit overlapped with the Plantation Business Permit covering an area of 18,853.32 Hectare, and 4,301.77 Hectare were located in Forest Protected Area and Nature Reserve.

  5. Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus) abundance and habitat in a reclaimed mine landscape

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Balcerzak, M.J.; Wood, P.B.

    2003-01-01

    Fragmentation of the landscape by large-scale mining may affect Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus) populations by reducing the amount of forested habitat available in a landscape and by creating fragmented forest parches surrounded by reclaimed mine lands. We examined habitat characteristics and relative abundance of Red-shouldered Hawks in reclaimed mine landscapes within four treatments: early-successional grassland habitat, mid-successional shrub/pole habitat, late-successional fragmented forest habitat, and late-successional intact forest habitat. We quantified microhabitat characteristics within an 11.3-m-radius plot centered on 156 vegetation plots throughout the four treatments. We surveyed 48 stations on and adjacent to three mines for Red-shouldered Hawks using standardized broadcast call techniques during February 2000-January 2001 and measured landscape characteristics within 1000-m buffer zones centered on each station from digitized aerial photographs. Mean abundance of Red-shouldered Hawks was significantly higher in the intact forest (x?? = 0.07 detections/ point, SE = 0.03) than the grassland (x?? = 0.01, SE = 0.01) treatment, but did not differ from the fragmented forest (x?? = 0.03, SE = 0.01) or shrub/pole (x?? = 0.03, SE = 0.01) treatments. Most microhabitat characteristics in both fragmented and intact forest differed from shrub/pole and grasslands. Amount of wetland was the most important characteristic determining presence of Red-shouldered Hawks in a forest-dominated landscape. More wetlands in the landscape may provide abundant amphibians and reptiles, which are important in the diet of Red-shouldered Hawks. ?? 2003 The Raptor Research Foundation, Inc.

  6. Chapter 4: Low compaction grading to enhance reforestation success on coal surface mines

    Treesearch

    R. Sweigard; J. Burger; C. Zipper; J. Skousen; C. Barton; P. Angel

    2017-01-01

    This Forest Reclamation Advisory describes final-grading techniques for reclaiming coal surface mines to forest postmining land uses. Final grading that leaves a loose soil and a rough surface increases survival of planted seedlings and forest productivity. Such practices are often less costly than traditional "smooth grading" while meeting the requirements...

  7. Restoration of tropical moist forest on bauxite mined lands in the Brazilian Amazon

    Treesearch

    John A Parrotta; Oliver H. Knowles

    1999-01-01

    We evaluated forest structure and composition in 9- to 13-year-old stands established on a bauxite-mined site at Trombetas (Pará), Brazil, using four different reforestation techniques following initial site preparation and topsoil replacement. These techniques included reliance on natural forest regeneration, mixed commercial species plantings of mostly exotic timber...

  8. Deforestation trend in North Sumatra over 1990-2015

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Basyuni, M.; Sulistiyono, N.; Wati, R.; Hayati, R.

    2018-02-01

    Deforestation and forest degradation have been previously reported to contributing greenhouse gas emission, the primary driver of global warming. The present paper studies deforestation and reforestation trend in North Sumatra, Indonesia using land-use/land-cover change from 1990-2015. The land-use consists of three classes derived from forest land (primary and secondary dry land forest, primary and secondary swamp forest, primary and secondary mangrove forest). Non-Forest (shrub, oil palm plantation, forest plantation, settlement, barren land, swamp shrub, dry land farming, mixed dry land farming, paddy field, aquaculture, airport, transmigration, and mining), and water body (water and swamp). Results showed that from 33 regencies/city in North Sumatra, among them, 25 districts deforested, which was the highest deforestation rate in Labuhanbatu and South Labuhanbatu (2,238.08 and 1,652.55 ha/year, respectively), only one area reforested, and seven districts showed no deforestation or reforestation. During 25 years observed, the forest has been deforested 22.92%, while nonforest has been increased 11.33% of land-use. The significant increasing loss of North Sumatran forest implies conservation efforts and developing sustainable forest management.

  9. Case study: Prioritization strategies for reforestation of minelands to benefit Cerulean Warblers

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    McDermott, Molly E.; Shumar, Matthew B.; Wood, Petra Bohall

    2013-01-01

    The central Appalachian landscape is being heavily altered by surface coal mining. The practice of Mountaintop Removal/Valley Fill (MTRVF) mining has transformed large areas of mature forest to non-forest and created much forest edge, affecting habitat quality for mature forest wildlife. The Appalachian Regional Reforestation Initiative is working to restore mined areas to native hardwood forest conditions, and strategies are needed to prioritize restoration efforts for wildlife. We present mineland reforestation guidelines for the imperiled Cerulean Warbler, considered a useful umbrella species, in its breeding range. In 2009, we surveyed forest predicted to have Cerulean Warblers near mined areas in the MTRVF region of West Virginia and Kentucky. We visited 36 transect routes and completed songbird surveys on 151 points along these routes. Cerulean Warblers were present at points with fewer large-scale canopy disturbances and more mature oak-hickory forest. We tested the accuracy of a predictive map for this species and demonstrated that it can be useful to guide reforestation efforts. We then developed a map of hot spot locations that can be used to determine potential habitat suitability. Restoration efforts would have greatest benefit for Cerulean Warblers and other mature forest birds if concentrated near a relative-abundance hot spot, on north- and east-facing ridgetops surrounded by mature deciduous forest, and prioritized to reduce edges and connect isolated forest patches. Our multi-scale approach for prioritizing restoration efforts using an umbrella species may be applied to restore habitat impacted by a variety of landscape disturbances.

  10. LiDAR Applications in Resource Geology and Benefits for Land Management

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mikulovsky, R. P.; De La Fuente, J. A.

    2013-12-01

    The US Forest Service (US Department of Agriculture) manages a broad range of geologic resources and hazards on National Forests and Grass Lands throughout the United States. Resources include rock and earth materials, groundwater, caves and paleontological resources, minerals, energy resources, and unique geologic areas. Hazards include landslides, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and naturally hazardous materials (e.g., asbestos, radon). Forest Service Geologists who address these issues are Resource Geologists. They have been exploring LiDAR as a revolutionary tool to efficiently manage all of these hazards and resources. However, most LiDAR applications for management have focused on timber and fuels management, rather than landforms. This study shows the applications and preliminary results of using LiDAR for managing geologic resources and hazards on public lands. Applications shown include calculating sediment budgets, mapping and monitoring landslides, mapping and characterizing borrow pits or mines, determining landslide potential, mapping faults, and characterizing groundwater dependent ecosystems. LiDAR can be used to model potential locations of groundwater dependent ecosystems with threatened or endangered plant species such as Howellia aquatilis. This difficult to locate species typically exists on the Mendocino National Forest within sag ponds on landslide benches. LiDAR metrics of known sites are used to model potential habitat. Thus LiDAR can link the disciplines of geology, hydrology, botany, archaeology and others for enhanced land management. As LiDAR acquisition costs decrease and it becomes more accessible, land management organizations will find a wealth of applications with potential far-reaching benefits for managing geologic resources and hazards.

  11. Controlled burn and immediate mobilization of potentially toxic elements in soil, from a legacy mine site in Central Victoria, Australia.

    PubMed

    Abraham, Joji; Dowling, Kim; Florentine, Singarayer

    2018-03-01

    Conducting controlled burns in fire prone areas is an efficient and economic method for forest management, and provides relief from the incidence of high severity wild fires and the consequent damage to human property and ecosystems. However, similar to wild fires, controlled burns also affect many of the physical and biogeochemical properties of the forest soil and may facilitate remobilization of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) sequestered in vegetation and soil organic matter. The objective of the current study is to investigate the mobilization of PTEs, in Central Victorian forest soils in Australia after a controlled burn. Surface soil samples were collected two days before and after the controlled burn to determine the concentration of PTEs and to examine the physicochemical properties. Results show that As, Cd, Mn, Ni and Zn concentrations increased 1.1, 1.6, 1.7, 1.1 and 1.9 times respectively in the post-burn environment, whereas the concentrations of Hg, Cr and Pb decreased to 0.7, 0.9 and 0.9 times respectively, highlighting considerable PTE mobility during and after a controlled burn. Whilst these results do not identify very strong correlations between physicochemical properties of soil and PTEs in the pre- and post-burn environments, PTEs themselves demonstrated very strong and significant correlations. The mobilization of As, Hg and other toxic elements raise potential health concerns as the number of controlled burns are projected to increase in response to climate change. Due to this increased level of PTE release and remobilization, the use of any kinds of controlled burn must be carefully considered before being used as a forest management strategy in mining-affected landscapes which include areas with high PTE concentrations. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  12. A global review of past land use, climate, and active vs. passive restoration effects on forest recovery

    PubMed Central

    Meli, Paula; Holl, Karen D.; Rey Benayas, José María; Jones, Holly P.; Jones, Peter C.; Montoya, Daniel; Moreno Mateos, David

    2017-01-01

    Global forest restoration targets have been set, yet policy makers and land managers lack guiding principles on how to invest limited resources to achieve them. We conducted a meta-analysis of 166 studies in naturally regenerating and actively restored forests worldwide to answer: (1) To what extent do floral and faunal abundance and diversity and biogeochemical functions recover? (2) Does recovery vary as a function of past land use, time since restoration, forest region, or precipitation? (3) Does active restoration result in more complete or faster recovery than passive restoration? Overall, forests showed a high level of recovery, but the time to recovery depended on the metric type measured, past land use, and region. Abundance recovered quickly and completely, whereas diversity recovered slower in tropical than in temperate forests. Biogeochemical functions recovered more slowly after agriculture than after logging or mining. Formerly logged sites were mostly passively restored and generally recovered quickly. Mined sites were nearly always actively restored using a combination of planting and either soil amendments or recontouring topography, which resulted in rapid recovery of the metrics evaluated. Actively restoring former agricultural land, primarily by planting trees, did not result in consistently faster or more complete recovery than passively restored sites. Our results suggest that simply ending the land use is sufficient for forests to recover in many cases, but more studies are needed that directly compare the value added of active versus passive restoration strategies in the same system. Investments in active restoration should be evaluated relative to the past land use, the natural resilience of the system, and the specific objectives of each project. PMID:28158256

  13. A global review of past land use, climate, and active vs. passive restoration effects on forest recovery.

    PubMed

    Meli, Paula; Holl, Karen D; Rey Benayas, José María; Jones, Holly P; Jones, Peter C; Montoya, Daniel; Moreno Mateos, David

    2017-01-01

    Global forest restoration targets have been set, yet policy makers and land managers lack guiding principles on how to invest limited resources to achieve them. We conducted a meta-analysis of 166 studies in naturally regenerating and actively restored forests worldwide to answer: (1) To what extent do floral and faunal abundance and diversity and biogeochemical functions recover? (2) Does recovery vary as a function of past land use, time since restoration, forest region, or precipitation? (3) Does active restoration result in more complete or faster recovery than passive restoration? Overall, forests showed a high level of recovery, but the time to recovery depended on the metric type measured, past land use, and region. Abundance recovered quickly and completely, whereas diversity recovered slower in tropical than in temperate forests. Biogeochemical functions recovered more slowly after agriculture than after logging or mining. Formerly logged sites were mostly passively restored and generally recovered quickly. Mined sites were nearly always actively restored using a combination of planting and either soil amendments or recontouring topography, which resulted in rapid recovery of the metrics evaluated. Actively restoring former agricultural land, primarily by planting trees, did not result in consistently faster or more complete recovery than passively restored sites. Our results suggest that simply ending the land use is sufficient for forests to recover in many cases, but more studies are needed that directly compare the value added of active versus passive restoration strategies in the same system. Investments in active restoration should be evaluated relative to the past land use, the natural resilience of the system, and the specific objectives of each project.

  14. 36 CFR 5.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Prospecting, mining, and... OF THE INTERIOR COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE OPERATIONS § 5.14 Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. Prospecting, mining, and the location of mining claims under the general mining laws and leasing under the...

  15. Conservation Beyond Park Boundaries: The Impact of Buffer Zones on Deforestation and Mining Concessions in the Peruvian Amazon.

    PubMed

    Weisse, Mikaela J; Naughton-Treves, Lisa C

    2016-08-01

    Many researchers have tested whether protected areas save tropical forest, but generally focus on parks and reserves, management units that have internationally recognized standing and clear objectives. Buffer zones have received considerably less attention because of their ambiguous rules and often informal status. Although buffer zones are frequently dismissed as ineffective, they warrant attention given the need for landscape-level approaches to conservation and their prevalence around the world-in Peru, buffer zones cover >10 % of the country. This study examines the effectiveness of buffer zones in the Peruvian Amazon to (a) prevent deforestation and (b) limit the extent of mining concessions. We employ covariate matching to determine the impact of 13 buffer zones on deforestation and mining concessions from 2007 to 2012. Despite variation between sites, these 13 buffer zones have prevented ~320 km(2) of forest loss within their borders during the study period and ~1739 km(2) of mining concessions, an outcome associated with the special approval process for granting formal concessions in these areas. However, a closer look at the buffer zone around the Tambopata National Reserve reveals the difficulties of controlling illegal and informal activities. According to interviews with NGO employees, government officials, and community leaders, enforcement of conservation is limited by uncertain institutional responsibilities, inadequate budgets, and corruption, although formal and community-based efforts to block illicit mining are on the rise. Landscape-level conservation not only requires clear legal protocol for addressing large-scale, formal extractive activities, but there must also be strategies and coordination to combat illegal activities.

  16. Conservation Beyond Park Boundaries: The Impact of Buffer Zones on Deforestation and Mining Concessions in the Peruvian Amazon

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Weisse, Mikaela J.; Naughton-Treves, Lisa C.

    2016-08-01

    Many researchers have tested whether protected areas save tropical forest, but generally focus on parks and reserves, management units that have internationally recognized standing and clear objectives. Buffer zones have received considerably less attention because of their ambiguous rules and often informal status. Although buffer zones are frequently dismissed as ineffective, they warrant attention given the need for landscape-level approaches to conservation and their prevalence around the world—in Peru, buffer zones cover >10 % of the country. This study examines the effectiveness of buffer zones in the Peruvian Amazon to (a) prevent deforestation and (b) limit the extent of mining concessions. We employ covariate matching to determine the impact of 13 buffer zones on deforestation and mining concessions from 2007 to 2012. Despite variation between sites, these 13 buffer zones have prevented ~320 km2 of forest loss within their borders during the study period and ~1739 km2 of mining concessions, an outcome associated with the special approval process for granting formal concessions in these areas. However, a closer look at the buffer zone around the Tambopata National Reserve reveals the difficulties of controlling illegal and informal activities. According to interviews with NGO employees, government officials, and community leaders, enforcement of conservation is limited by uncertain institutional responsibilities, inadequate budgets, and corruption, although formal and community-based efforts to block illicit mining are on the rise. Landscape-level conservation not only requires clear legal protocol for addressing large-scale, formal extractive activities, but there must also be strategies and coordination to combat illegal activities.

  17. Capturing coupled riparian and coastal disturbance from industrial mining using cloud-resilient satellite time series analysis.

    PubMed

    Alonzo, Michael; Van Den Hoek, Jamon; Ahmed, Nabil

    2016-10-11

    The socio-ecological impacts of large scale resource extraction are frequently underreported in underdeveloped regions. The open-pit Grasberg mine in Papua, Indonesia, is one of the world's largest copper and gold extraction operations. Grasberg mine tailings are discharged into the lowland Ajkwa River deposition area (ADA) leading to forest inundation and degradation of water bodies critical to indigenous peoples. The extent of the changes and temporal linkages with mining activities are difficult to establish given restricted access to the region and persistent cloud cover. Here, we introduce remote sensing methods to "peer through" atmospheric contamination using a dense Landsat time series to simultaneously quantify forest loss and increases in estuarial suspended particulate matter (SPM) concentration. We identified 138 km 2 of forest loss between 1987 and 2014, an area >42 times larger than the mine itself. Between 1987 and 1998, the rate of disturbance was highly correlated (Pearson's r = 0.96) with mining activity. Following mine expansion and levee construction along the ADA in the mid-1990s, we recorded significantly (p < 0.05) higher SPM in the Ajkwa Estuary compared to neighboring estuaries. This research provides a means to quantify multiple modes of ecological damage from mine waste disposal or other disturbance events.

  18. Capturing coupled riparian and coastal disturbance from industrial mining using cloud-resilient satellite time series analysis

    PubMed Central

    Alonzo, Michael; Van Den Hoek, Jamon; Ahmed, Nabil

    2016-01-01

    The socio-ecological impacts of large scale resource extraction are frequently underreported in underdeveloped regions. The open-pit Grasberg mine in Papua, Indonesia, is one of the world’s largest copper and gold extraction operations. Grasberg mine tailings are discharged into the lowland Ajkwa River deposition area (ADA) leading to forest inundation and degradation of water bodies critical to indigenous peoples. The extent of the changes and temporal linkages with mining activities are difficult to establish given restricted access to the region and persistent cloud cover. Here, we introduce remote sensing methods to “peer through” atmospheric contamination using a dense Landsat time series to simultaneously quantify forest loss and increases in estuarial suspended particulate matter (SPM) concentration. We identified 138 km2 of forest loss between 1987 and 2014, an area >42 times larger than the mine itself. Between 1987 and 1998, the rate of disturbance was highly correlated (Pearson’s r = 0.96) with mining activity. Following mine expansion and levee construction along the ADA in the mid-1990s, we recorded significantly (p < 0.05) higher SPM in the Ajkwa Estuary compared to neighboring estuaries. This research provides a means to quantify multiple modes of ecological damage from mine waste disposal or other disturbance events. PMID:27725748

  19. Capturing coupled riparian and coastal disturbance from industrial mining using cloud-resilient satellite time series analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Alonzo, Michael; van den Hoek, Jamon; Ahmed, Nabil

    2016-10-01

    The socio-ecological impacts of large scale resource extraction are frequently underreported in underdeveloped regions. The open-pit Grasberg mine in Papua, Indonesia, is one of the world’s largest copper and gold extraction operations. Grasberg mine tailings are discharged into the lowland Ajkwa River deposition area (ADA) leading to forest inundation and degradation of water bodies critical to indigenous peoples. The extent of the changes and temporal linkages with mining activities are difficult to establish given restricted access to the region and persistent cloud cover. Here, we introduce remote sensing methods to “peer through” atmospheric contamination using a dense Landsat time series to simultaneously quantify forest loss and increases in estuarial suspended particulate matter (SPM) concentration. We identified 138 km2 of forest loss between 1987 and 2014, an area >42 times larger than the mine itself. Between 1987 and 1998, the rate of disturbance was highly correlated (Pearson’s r = 0.96) with mining activity. Following mine expansion and levee construction along the ADA in the mid-1990s, we recorded significantly (p < 0.05) higher SPM in the Ajkwa Estuary compared to neighboring estuaries. This research provides a means to quantify multiple modes of ecological damage from mine waste disposal or other disturbance events.

  20. Modeling N Cycling during Succession after Forest Disturbance: an Analysis of N Mining and Retention Hypothesis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhou, Z.; Ollinger, S. V.; Ouimette, A.; Lovett, G. M.; Fuss, C. B.; Goodale, C. L.

    2017-12-01

    Dissolved inorganic nitrogen losses at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF), New Hampshire, USA, have declined in recent decades, a pattern that counters expectations based on prevailing theory. An unbalanced ecosystem nitrogen (N) budget implies there is a missing component for N sink. Hypotheses to explain this discrepancy include increasing rates of denitrification and accumulation of N in mineral soil pools following N mining by plants. Here, we conducted a modeling analysis fused with field measurements of N cycling, specifically examining the hypothesis relevant to N mining and retention in mineral soils. We included simplified representations of both mechanisms, N mining and retention, in a revised ecosystem process model, PnET-SOM, to evaluate the dynamics of N cycling during succession after forest disturbance at the HBEF. The predicted N mining during the early succession was regulated by a metric representing a potential demand of extra soil N for large wood growth. The accumulation of nitrate in mineral soil pools was a function of the net aboveground biomass accumulation and soil N availability and parameterized based on field 15N tracer incubation data. The predicted patterns of forest N dynamics were consistent with observations. The addition of the new algorithms also improved the predicted DIN export in stream water with an R squared of 0.35 (P<0.01) aganist observations. Predicted mining processes had an average rate of 7.4 kgNha-1yr-1 and Predicted rates of N retention processes were 5.2 kgNha-1yr-1, both of which were in line with estimates only based on field data. The predicted trend of low DIN export could continue for another 70 years to pay back the mined N in mineral soils. Predicted ecosystem N balance showed that N gas loss could account for 14-46% of the total N deposition, the soil mining about 103% during the early succession, and soil retention about 35% at the current forest stage at the HBEF.

  1. Yesterday's forest, tomorrow's savannah? Legacies in the man-made hills of Appalachia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ross, M. R. V.; Nippgen, F.; McGlynn, B. L.; Bernhardt, E. S.

    2017-12-01

    Mountaintop removal coal mines have converted more than 6,000 km2 of the steep forested valleys of Central Appalachian into a landscape of rolling hills covered by shrubby grasslands. These landscapes were created as a byproduct of extracting shallow coal seams from beneath hundreds of meters of overlying bedrock. Once broken apart by explosives, this excess rock overburden is deposited into valley fills and incorporated into reconstructed ridges. The landscapes left behind after mining are flattened and overlies highly fractured fill material that can be 100-fold deeper than natural soil. This fractured bedrock material can store 2-10 years worth of average precipitation, where any stored water is in contact with a reactive mix of unweathered carbonate bedrock and pyrite rich coal and shale residues. As a result, mountaintop mined watersheds have novel hydrologic and biogeochemical regimes with increases in baseflow and extremely rapid weathering that increases salinity by 10-25-fold. To date, little research has characterized the longevity of these impacts. We employed a combination of remote sensing and hydrologic watershed monitoring approaches to examine the long-term and linked changes in vegetation, hydrology, and water quality in a post-mine landscapes that were constructed between 1990 and 2016. We find that forest recovery on mountaintop mines progresses at half the rate of forest regrowth following clearcutting with persistent low canopy-height sections, consistent more with grasslands than forests. These vegetative changes are associated with decreases in runoff ratios as mines age and water moves through flatter, vegetated landscapes. However, vegetation change appears to be uncoupled from biogeochemical processes, with saline mine drainage persisting for decades, even as vegetation regrows. Our work suggests that time-since-mining of a watershed does not predict downstream water quality, while total valley fill volume remains a strong predictor of mean salinity and total weathering rates. This research highlights the importance of understanding how deep changes to a landscape alters the basic hydrology and biogeochemistry over years to decades.

  2. Text mining approach to predict hospital admissions using early medical records from the emergency department.

    PubMed

    Lucini, Filipe R; S Fogliatto, Flavio; C da Silveira, Giovani J; L Neyeloff, Jeruza; Anzanello, Michel J; de S Kuchenbecker, Ricardo; D Schaan, Beatriz

    2017-04-01

    Emergency department (ED) overcrowding is a serious issue for hospitals. Early information on short-term inward bed demand from patients receiving care at the ED may reduce the overcrowding problem, and optimize the use of hospital resources. In this study, we use text mining methods to process data from early ED patient records using the SOAP framework, and predict future hospitalizations and discharges. We try different approaches for pre-processing of text records and to predict hospitalization. Sets-of-words are obtained via binary representation, term frequency, and term frequency-inverse document frequency. Unigrams, bigrams and trigrams are tested for feature formation. Feature selection is based on χ 2 and F-score metrics. In the prediction module, eight text mining methods are tested: Decision Tree, Random Forest, Extremely Randomized Tree, AdaBoost, Logistic Regression, Multinomial Naïve Bayes, Support Vector Machine (Kernel linear) and Nu-Support Vector Machine (Kernel linear). Prediction performance is evaluated by F1-scores. Precision and Recall values are also informed for all text mining methods tested. Nu-Support Vector Machine was the text mining method with the best overall performance. Its average F1-score in predicting hospitalization was 77.70%, with a standard deviation (SD) of 0.66%. The method could be used to manage daily routines in EDs such as capacity planning and resource allocation. Text mining could provide valuable information and facilitate decision-making by inward bed management teams. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. Effectively Engaging in Tribal Consultation to protect Traditional Cultural Properties while navigating the 1872 Mining Law - Tonto National Forest, Western Apache Tribes, & Resolution Copper Mine

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nez, N.

    2017-12-01

    By effectively engaging in government-to-government consultation the Tonto National Forest is able to consider oral histories and tribal cultural knowledge in decision making. These conversations often have the potential to lead to the protection and preservation of public lands. Discussed here is one example of successful tribal consultation and how it let to the protection of Traditional Cultural Properties (TCPs). One hour east of Phoenix, Arizona on the Tonto National Forest, Resolution Copper Mine, is working to access a rich copper vein more than 7,000 feet deep. As part of the mining plan of operation they are investigating viable locations to store the earth removed from the mine site. One proposed storage location required hydrologic and geotechnical studies to determine viability. This constituted a significant amount of ground disturbance in an area that is of known importance to local Indian tribes. To ensure proper consideration of tribal concerns, the Forest engaged nine local tribes in government-government consultation. Consultation resulted in the identification of five springs in the project area considered (TCPs) by the Western Apache tribes. Due to the presence of identified TCPs, the Forest asked tribes to assist in the development of mitigation measures to minimize effects of this project on the TCPs identified. The goal of this partnership was to find a way for the Mine to still be able to gather data, while protecting TCPs. During field visits and consultations, a wide range of concerns were shared which were recorded and considered by Tonto National Forest. The Forest developed a proposed mitigation approach to protect springs, which would prevent (not permit) the installation of water monitoring wells, geotechnical borings or trench excavations within 1,200 feet of perennial springs in the project area. As an added mitigation measure, a cultural resources specialist would be on-site during all ground-disturbing activities. Diligent work on behalf of the tribes and the forest resulted in finding mutually acceptable means to allow this project work to commence while respecting the cultural values of the tribes.

  4. Urban forest topographical mapping using UAV LIDAR

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Putut Ash Shidiq, Iqbal; Wibowo, Adi; Kusratmoko, Eko; Indratmoko, Satria; Ardhianto, Ronni; Prasetyo Nugroho, Budi

    2017-12-01

    Topographical data is highly needed by many parties, such as government institution, mining companies and agricultural sectors. It is not just about the precision, the acquisition time and data processing are also carefully considered. In relation with forest management, a high accuracy topographic map is necessary for planning, close monitoring and evaluating forest changes. One of the solution to quickly and precisely mapped topography is using remote sensing system. In this study, we test high-resolution data using Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) collected from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to map topography and differentiate vegetation classes based on height in urban forest area of University of Indonesia (UI). The semi-automatic and manual classifications were applied to divide point clouds into two main classes, namely ground and vegetation. There were 15,806,380 point clouds obtained during the post-process, in which 2.39% of it were detected as ground.

  5. 36 CFR 13.1904 - Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark (KNHL).

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Kennecott Mines National Historic Landmark (KNHL). 13.1904 Section 13.1904 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM UNITS IN ALASKA Special Regulations-Wrangell-St. Elias...

  6. Restoring tropical forests on bauxite mined lands: lessons from the Brazilian Amazon

    Treesearch

    John A. Parrotta; Oliver H. Knowles

    2001-01-01

    Restoring self-sustaining tropical forest ecosystems on surface mined sites is a formidable challenge that requires the integration of proven reclamation techniques and reforestation strategies appropriate to specific site conditions, including landscape biodiversity patterns. Restorationists working in most tropical settings are usually hampered by lack of basic...

  7. Why Save a Can?

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Gutierrez, Melida; Johnson, Cheryl

    2009-01-01

    This activity ties together the recycling of aluminum and the protection of rain forests. Students use critical thinking to study the effects of open pit mining of bauxite in rain forests and then draw their own conclusions about how to minimize the impact of bauxite mining and boost recycling efforts within their communities. Drawing conclusions…

  8. 36 CFR 6.7 - Mining wastes.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Mining wastes. 6.7 Section 6... DISPOSAL SITES IN UNITS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 6.7 Mining wastes. (a) Solid waste from mining includes but is not limited to mining overburden, mining byproducts, solid waste from the extraction...

  9. Changing ideas in forestry: A comparison of concepts in Swedish and American forestry journals during the early twentieth and twenty-first centuries.

    PubMed

    Mårald, Erland; Langston, Nancy; Sténs, Anna; Moen, Jon

    2016-02-01

    By combining digital humanities text-mining tools and a qualitative approach, we examine changing concepts in forestry journals in Sweden and the United States (US) in the early twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. Our first hypothesis is that foresters at the beginning of the twentieth century were more concerned with production and less concerned with ecology than foresters at the beginning of the twenty-first century. Our second hypothesis is that US foresters in the early twentieth century were less concerned with local site conditions than Swedish foresters. We find that early foresters in both countries had broader-and often ecologically focused-concerns than hypothesized. Ecological concerns in the forestry literature have increased, but in the Nordic countries, production concerns have increased as well. In both regions and both time periods, timber management is closely connected to concerns about governance and state power, but the forms that governance takes have changed.

  10. Elevated rates of gold mining in the Amazon revealed through high-resolution monitoring.

    PubMed

    Asner, Gregory P; Llactayo, William; Tupayachi, Raul; Luna, Ernesto Ráez

    2013-11-12

    Gold mining has rapidly increased in western Amazonia, but the rates and ecological impacts of mining remain poorly known and potentially underestimated. We combined field surveys, airborne mapping, and high-resolution satellite imaging to assess road- and river-based gold mining in the Madre de Dios region of the Peruvian Amazon from 1999 to 2012. In this period, the geographic extent of gold mining increased 400%. The average annual rate of forest loss as a result of gold mining tripled in 2008 following the global economic recession, closely associated with increased gold prices. Small clandestine operations now comprise more than half of all gold mining activities throughout the region. These rates of gold mining are far higher than previous estimates that were based on traditional satellite mapping techniques. Our results prove that gold mining is growing more rapidly than previously thought, and that high-resolution monitoring approaches are required to accurately quantify human impacts on tropical forests.

  11. Elevated rates of gold mining in the Amazon revealed through high-resolution monitoring

    PubMed Central

    Asner, Gregory P.; Llactayo, William; Tupayachi, Raul; Luna, Ernesto Ráez

    2013-01-01

    Gold mining has rapidly increased in western Amazonia, but the rates and ecological impacts of mining remain poorly known and potentially underestimated. We combined field surveys, airborne mapping, and high-resolution satellite imaging to assess road- and river-based gold mining in the Madre de Dios region of the Peruvian Amazon from 1999 to 2012. In this period, the geographic extent of gold mining increased 400%. The average annual rate of forest loss as a result of gold mining tripled in 2008 following the global economic recession, closely associated with increased gold prices. Small clandestine operations now comprise more than half of all gold mining activities throughout the region. These rates of gold mining are far higher than previous estimates that were based on traditional satellite mapping techniques. Our results prove that gold mining is growing more rapidly than previously thought, and that high-resolution monitoring approaches are required to accurately quantify human impacts on tropical forests. PMID:24167281

  12. 36 CFR 1005.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... mineral leasing. 1005.14 Section 1005.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property PRESIDIO TRUST COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE OPERATIONS § 1005.14 Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. Prospecting, mining, and the location of mining claims under the general mining laws and leasing under the mineral leasing laws are...

  13. 36 CFR 1005.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... mineral leasing. 1005.14 Section 1005.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property PRESIDIO TRUST COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE OPERATIONS § 1005.14 Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. Prospecting, mining, and the location of mining claims under the general mining laws and leasing under the mineral leasing laws are...

  14. 36 CFR 1005.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... mineral leasing. 1005.14 Section 1005.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property PRESIDIO TRUST COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE OPERATIONS § 1005.14 Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. Prospecting, mining, and the location of mining claims under the general mining laws and leasing under the mineral leasing laws are...

  15. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kilpatrick, Laura E.; Cotter, Ed

    The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Legacy Management is responsible for administering the DOE Uranium Leasing Program (ULP) and its 31 uranium lease tracts located in the Uravan Mineral Belt of southwestern Colorado (see Figure 1). In addition to administering the ULP for the last six decades, DOE has also undertaken the significant task of reclaiming a large number of abandoned uranium (legacy) mine sites and associated features located throughout the Uravan Mineral Belt. In 1995, DOE initiated a 3-year reconnaissance program to locate and delineate (through extensive on-the-ground mapping) the legacy mine sites and associated features containedmore » within the historically defined boundaries of its uranium lease tracts. During that same time frame, DOE recognized the lack of regulations pertaining to the reclamation of legacy mine sites and contacted the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) concerning the reclamation of legacy mine sites. In November 1995, The BLM Colorado State Office formally issued the United States Department of the Interior, Colorado Bureau of Land Management, Closure/Reclamation Guidelines, Abandoned Uranium Mine Sites as a supplement to its Solid Minerals Reclamation Handbook (H-3042-1). Over the next five-and-one-half years, DOE reclaimed the 161 legacy mine sites that had been identified on DOE withdrawn lands. By the late 1990's, the various BLM field offices in southwestern Colorado began to recognize DOE's experience and expertise in reclaiming legacy mine sites. During the ensuing 8 years, BLM funded DOE (through a series of task orders) to perform reclamation activities at 182 BLM mine sites. To date, DOE has reclaimed 372 separate and distinct legacy mine sites. During this process, DOE has learned many lessons and is willing to share those lessons with others in the reclamation industry because there are still many legacy mine sites not yet reclaimed. DOE currently administers 31 lease tracts (11,017 ha) that collectively contain over 220 legacy (abandoned) uranium mine sites. This contrasts to the millions of hectares administered by the BLM, the U.S. Forest Service, and other federal, tribal, and state agencies that contain thousands of such sites. DOE believes that the processes it has used provide a practical and cost-effective approach to abandoned uranium mine-site reclamation. Although the Federal Acquisition Regulations preclude DOE from competing with private industry, DOE is available to assist other governmental and tribal agencies in their reclamation efforts. (authors)« less

  16. 30 CFR 933.761 - Areas designated unsuitable for surface coal mining by Act of Congress.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ..., forest, recreation area, or places; (f)(1) Where the proposed surface coal mining operation may adversely... mining by Act of Congress. 933.761 Section 933.761 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR PROGRAMS FOR THE CONDUCT OF SURFACE MINING OPERATIONS...

  17. 30 CFR 933.761 - Areas designated unsuitable for surface coal mining by Act of Congress.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ..., forest, recreation area, or places; (f)(1) Where the proposed surface coal mining operation may adversely... mining by Act of Congress. 933.761 Section 933.761 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR PROGRAMS FOR THE CONDUCT OF SURFACE MINING OPERATIONS...

  18. 30 CFR 933.761 - Areas designated unsuitable for surface coal mining by Act of Congress.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ..., forest, recreation area, or places; (f)(1) Where the proposed surface coal mining operation may adversely... mining by Act of Congress. 933.761 Section 933.761 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR PROGRAMS FOR THE CONDUCT OF SURFACE MINING OPERATIONS...

  19. 30 CFR 933.761 - Areas designated unsuitable for surface coal mining by Act of Congress.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ..., forest, recreation area, or places; (f)(1) Where the proposed surface coal mining operation may adversely... mining by Act of Congress. 933.761 Section 933.761 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR PROGRAMS FOR THE CONDUCT OF SURFACE MINING OPERATIONS...

  20. 36 CFR § 1005.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... mineral leasing. § 1005.14 Section § 1005.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property PRESIDIO TRUST COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE OPERATIONS § 1005.14 Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. Prospecting, mining, and the location of mining claims under the general mining laws and leasing under the mineral leasing...

  1. SOURCE WATER CONTROL WITHIN THE MARY MURPHY MINE

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Mary Murphy mine is located in Chaffee County, Colorado, approximately 12 miles southwest from Buena Vista in the San Isabel National Forest.. The mine drains water from multiple portals into Chalk Creek; this mine water contains elevated levels of zinc and cadmium which exce...

  2. Deforestation and reforestation analysis from land-use changes in North Sumatran Mangroves, 1990-2015

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Basyuni, M.; Sulistiyono, N.

    2018-02-01

    Mangrove forest plays a critical role in the context of climate change in tropical and subtropical regions. The present study analyzed the deforestation and reforestation from land-use and land-cover changes from 1990, 2000, 2009 and 2015 in North Sumatran mangrove forest, Indonesia. The land-use/land-cover consists of thirteen classes namely, primary mangrove forest, secondary mangrove forest, shrub, swamp shrub, swamp, settlement, paddy field, oil palm plantation, aquaculture, dry land farming, mixed dry land farming, mining, and barren land. Results showed that primary mangrove forests significantly decreased 61.21% from 1990 to 2015, mostly deforestation was derived from 1990 to 2000 to be secondary mangrove forest and swamp shrub. During 25 years observed, no reforestation was noted in the primary mangrove forest. Similarly, secondary mangrove forest had been degraded from 56,128.75 ha in 1990 to only 35,768.48 ha in 2015. Drivers of deforestation found in secondary mangrove forests were aquaculture (43.32%), barren land (32.56%), swamp shrub (10.88%), and oil palm plantation (5.17%). On the other hand, reforested activity was occurred only 701.83 ha from 1990 to 2015, while the nonforest use has been increased. These data are likely to contribute towards coastal management planning, conservation, and rehabilitation of degraded mangrove forests.

  3. Chapter 11: Reforestation to enhance Appalachian mined lands as habitat for terrestrial wildlife

    Treesearch

    Petra Wood; Jeff Larkin; Jeremy Mizel; Carl Zipper; Patrick Angel

    2017-01-01

    Surface mining is widespread throughout the Appalachian coalfields, a region with extensive forests that are rich in wildlife. Game species for hunting, nongame wildlife species, and other organisms are important contributors to sustainable and productive ecosystems. Although small breaks in the forest canopy are important to wildlife diversity, most native Appalachian...

  4. Chapter 10: Establishing native trees on legacy surface mines

    Treesearch

    J.A. Burger; C.E. Zipper; P.N. Angel; N. Hall; J.G. Skousen; C.D. Barton; S. Eggerud

    2017-01-01

    More than 1 million acres have been surface mined for coal in the Appalachian region. Today, much of this land is unmanaged, unproductive, and covered with nonnative plants. Establishing productive forests on such lands will aid restoration of ecosystem services provided by forests—services such as watershed protection, water quality enhancement, carbon storage, and...

  5. The environmental costs of mountaintop mining valley fill operations for aquatic ecosystems of the Central Appalachians.

    PubMed

    Bernhardt, Emily S; Palmer, Margaret A

    2011-03-01

    Southern Appalachian forests are recognized as a biodiversity hot spot of global significance, particularly for endemic aquatic salamanders and mussels. The dominant driver of land-cover and land-use change in this region is surface mining, with an ever-increasing proportion occurring as mountaintop mining with valley fill operations (MTVF). In MTVF, seams of coal are exposed using explosives, and the resulting noncoal overburden is pushed into adjacent valleys to facilitate coal extraction. To date, MTVF throughout the Appalachians have converted 1.1 million hectares of forest to surface mines and buried more than 2,000 km of stream channel beneath mining overburden. The impacts of these lost forests and buried streams are propagated throughout the river networks of the region as the resulting sediment and chemical pollutants are transmitted downstream. There is, to date, no evidence to suggest that the extensive chemical and hydrologic alterations of streams by MTVF can be offset or reversed by currently required reclamation and mitigation practices. © 2011 New York Academy of Sciences.

  6. Land Reclamation in Brazilian Amazônia: A chronosequence study of floristic development in the national forest of Jamiri-RO mined areas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fengler, Felipe; Ribeiro, Admilson; Longo, Regina; Merides, Marcela; Soares, Herlon; Melo, Wanderley

    2017-04-01

    Although reclamation techniques for forest ecosystems recovery have been developed over the past decades, there is still a great difficulty in the establishment on environment assessment, especially when compared to the non-disturbed ecosystems. This work evaluated the results and limitations on cassiterite-mined areas in reclamation, at Brazilian Amazônia. Floristic variables from 29 plots located on 15-year-old native species reforestation sites and two plots from preserved open/closed canopy forests were analyzed in a chronosequece way (2010-2015). Regeneration density, species richness, average girth, and average height were evaluated every year, by means of cluster analysis (Euclidian distance, Ward method) and submitted to multiscale bootstrap resampling (a=5%). It was conduced the regression analysis for each identified group in 2015 in order to verify differences between the chronosequece development. The results showed the existence of two main groups in 2010, one witch all mined plots were allocated and other with open/closed canopy plots. After 2011 some mined areas became allocated in the open/closed canopy plots group. From 2013 and on open/closed canopy plots appeared shuffled in the formed groups, indicating the reclamation sites conditions became similar to natural areas. Finally, in 2015 three main groups were formed. The regression analysis showed that group three had a higher trend of development for regeneration density, with higher angular coefficient and higher values. For species richness all the groups had a similar trend, with values lower than open/closed canopy forest. In average girth higher trends were observed in group one and all values were near to open canopy forest in 2015. Average height showed better trends and higher values in group two. It was concluded that all mined sites had a forest recovery process. However, different responses to reclamation process were observed due to the differences in the degraded soils characteristics. Keywords: Recovery, Restoration, Forest, Chronosequece, Cassiterite.

  7. Responses of Terrestrial Herpetofauna to Persistent, Novel Ecosystems Resulting from Mountaintop Removal Mining

    Treesearch

    Jennifer M. Williams; Donald J. Brown; Petra B. Wood

    2017-01-01

    Mountaintop removal mining is a large-scale surface mining technique that removes entire floral and faunal communities, along with soil horizons located above coal seams. In West Virginia, the majority of this mining occurs on forested mountaintops. However, after mining ceases the land is typically reclaimed to grasslands and shrublands, resulting in novel ecosystems...

  8. 75 FR 71668 - Cibota National Forest, Mount Taylor Ranger District, NM, Roca Honda Mine

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-11-24

    ... develop and conduct underground uranium mining operations on their mining claims on and near Jesus Mesa in... open to mineral entry under the General Mining Law of 1872. Section 16 is State of New Mexico land... statement (EIS) to assess the development of a uranium mining operation on the Mount Taylor Ranger District...

  9. Vegetation dynamics in Bishrampur collieries of northern Chhattisgarh, India: eco-restoration and management perspectives.

    PubMed

    Kumar, A; Jhariya, M K; Yadav, D K; Banerjee, A

    2017-08-01

    Phytosociological study in and around reclaimed coal mine site is an essential requirement for judging restoration impact on a disturbed site. Various studies have been aimed towards assessing the impact of different restoration practices on coal mine wastelands. Plantation scheme in a scientific way is the most suitable approach in this context. During the present investigation, an effort have been made to assess the vegetation dynamics through structure, composition, diversity, and forest floor biomass analysis in and around Bishrampur collieries, Sarguja division, northern Chhattisgarh, India. We have tried to develop strategies for eco-restoration and habitat management of the concerned study sites. Four sites were randomly selected in different directions of the study area. We classified the vegetation community of the study sites into various strata on the basis of height. Two hundred forty quadrats were laid down in various directions of the study area to quantify vegetation under different strata. During our investigation, we found eight different tree species representing four families in the different study sites. The density of the various tree species ranged between 40 and 160 individuals ha -1 . The density of sapling, seedling, shrub, and herb ranged between 740 and 1620; 2000 and 6000; 1200 and 2000; and 484,000 and 612,000 individuals ha -1 , respectively, in different directions. The diversity indices of the tree reflected highest Shannon index value of 1.91. Simpsons index ranged between 0.28 and 0.50, species richness ranged between 0.27 and 0.61, equitability up to 1.44, and Beta diversity ranged between 2.00 and 4.00. Total forest floor biomass ranged between 4.20 and 5.65 t/ha among the study sites. Highest forest floor biomass occurred in the south direction and lowest at east direction. Total forest floor biomass declined by 6.19% in west, 13.10% in north, and 25.66% in east direction, respectively. The mining activities resulted significant damage to natural vegetation and its dynamics. The study indicated that Acacia mangium, Cassia siamea, and Dalbergia sissoo can be recommended for effective eco-restoration of the concerned sites due to cosmopolitan distribution, high regeneration potential, as well as existence in the form of various girth classes with stable population structure.

  10. 36 CFR 292.47 - Mining activities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Mining activities. 292.47... RECREATION AREAS Hells Canyon National Recreation Area-Federal Lands § 292.47 Mining activities. (a) Other Lands. The standards and guidelines of this section apply to mining activities in the Other Lands...

  11. Using organic amendments to restore soil physical and chemical properties of a mine site in northeastern Oregon, USA

    Treesearch

    D. S. Page-Dumroese; M. R. Ott; D. G. Strawn; J. M. Tirocke

    2018-01-01

    New cost-effective strategies are needed to reclaim soils disturbed from mining activity on National Forests. In addition, disposal of waste wood from local timber harvest operations or biosolids from waste water treatment plants can be expensive. Therefore, using organic byproducts for soil reclamation activities on National Forests may provide an opportunity to...

  12. 77 FR 2317 - Notice of Availability of Record of Decision for the Northern Arizona Proposed Withdrawal

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-01-17

    ... Plan for the Arizona Strip Field Office and Forest plans for the Kaibab National Forest would be... Internet at http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/mining/timeout/rod.html . FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT... General Mining Law 1,006,545 acres of Federal land and interests in land in the vicinity of the Grand...

  13. Modeling forest ecosystem changes resulting from surface coal mining in West Virginia

    Treesearch

    John Brown; Andrew J. Lister; Mary Ann Fajvan; Bonnie Ruefenacht; Christine Mazzarella

    2012-01-01

    The objective of this project is to assess the effects of surface coal mining on forest ecosystem disturbance and restoration in the Coal River Subbasin in southern West Virginia. Our approach is to develop disturbance impact models for this subbasin that will serve as a case study for testing the feasibility of integrating currently available GIS data layers, remote...

  14. Geospatiotemporal data mining in an early warning system for forest threats in the United States

    Treesearch

    F.M. Hoffman; R.T. Mills; J. Kumar; S.S. Vulli; W.W. Hargrove

    2010-01-01

    We investigate the potential of geospatiotemporal data mining of multi-year land surface phenology data (250 m Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) values derived from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) in this study) for the conterminous United States as part of an early warning system to identify threats to forest ecosystems. Cluster...

  15. Cluster Analysis-Based Approaches for Geospatiotemporal Data Mining of Massive Data Sets for Identification of Forest Threats

    Treesearch

    Richard Trans Mills; Forrest M Hoffman; Jitendra Kumar; William W. Hargrove

    2011-01-01

    We investigate methods for geospatiotemporal data mining of multi-year land surface phenology data (250 m2 Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) values derived from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) in this study) for the conterminous United States (CONUS) as part of an early warning system for detecting threats to forest ecosystems. The...

  16. [Comparison of soil fertility among open-pit mine reclaimed lands in Antaibao regenerated with different vegetation types].

    PubMed

    Wang, Xiang; Li, Jin-chuan; Yue, Jian-ying; Zhou, Xiao-mei; Guo, Chun-yan; Lu, Ning; Wang, Yu-hong; Yang, Sheng-quan

    2013-09-01

    Re-vegetation is mainly applied into regeneration in opencast mine to improve the soil quality. It is very important to choose feasible vegetation types for soil restoration. In this study, three typical forest restoration types were studied at Antaibao mine, namely, Medicago sativa, mixed forests Pinus taebelaefolius-Robinia pseudoacacia-Caragana korshinskii and Elaeagnus angustifolia-Robinia pseudoacacia-Caragana korshinskii-Hipophae rhamnoides, to determine the nutrient contents and enzyme activities in different soil layers. The results showed that re-vegetation markedly increased soil nutrient contents and the enzyme activities during the restoration process. The nutrient content of soil in the P. taebelaefolius-R. pseudoacacia-C. korshinskii mixed forest field was significantly higher than those in other plots. It was found that the soil of the P. taebelaefolius-R. pseudoacacia-C. korshinskii mixed forest had the highest integrated fertility index values. In conclusion, the restoration effects of the P. zaebelaefolius-R. pseudoacacia-C. Korshinskii mixed forest was better than that of E. angustifolia-R. pseudoacacia-C. korshinskii-H. rhamnoides, while M. sativa grassland had the least effect.

  17. Use of morphometric soil aggregates parameters to evaluate the reclamation process in mined areas located at amazon forest - Brazil

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ribeiro, A. I.; Fengler, F. H.; Longo, R. M.; Mello, G. F.; Damame, D. B.; Crowley, D. E.

    2015-12-01

    Brazil has a high mineral potential that have been explored over the years. A large fraction of these mineral resources are located in Amazon region, which is known for its large biodiversity and world climate importance. As the policies that control the Amazon preservation are relatively new, several mining activities have been exploring the Amazon territory, promoting a large process of degradation. Once the mining activities have a high potential of environmental changes the government created polices to restrain the mining in Amazon forests and obligate mining companies to reclaim theirs minded areas. However, the measurement of reclamation development still is a challenging task for the Professionals involved. The volume and complexity of the variables, allied to the difficulty in identifying the reclamation of ecosystem functionalities are still lack to ensure the reclamation success. In this sense this work aims to investigate the representativeness of morphometric soil aggregates parameters in the understanding of reclamation development. The study area is located in the National Forest of Jamari, State of Rondônia. In the past mining companies explored the region producing eight closed mines that are now in reclamation process. The soil aggregates morphometric measurements: geometric mean diameter (GMD), aggregate circularity index, and aggregate roundness, were choose based in its obtaining facility, and their association to biological activity. To achieve the proposed objective the aggregates of eight sites in reclamation, from different closed mines, where chosen and compared to Amazon forest and open mine soil aggregates. The results were analyzed to one way ANOVA to identifying differences between areas in reclamation, natural ecosystem, and open mine. It was obtained differences for GMD and circularity index. However, only the circularity index allowed to identifying differences between the reclamation sites. The results allowed concluding: (1) Morphometric aggregates measurements can represent the reclamation process in Amazon territory; (2) To validate the results more areas in reclamation process in different ecosystems must be investigated; (3) Roundness didn't represented any differences.Key words: circularity index, ecosystem, geometric mean diameter.

  18. Boron in tree-ring as an indicator of forest disturbances in the Lower Athabasca Oil Sands region, Northeastern Alberta, Canada

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bégin, Christian; Savard, Martine M.; Marion, Joëlle; Thiffault, Évelyne; Pinno, Brad

    2016-04-01

    Industrial activities related to oil sands (OS) extraction in northeastern Alberta (Canada) have generated, since 1967, important quantities of NOx and SO2 emissions that can lead to several negative effects on forest ecosystems including the potential for soil acidification. In addition, mining processes, tailing pond treatments and heavy transport (haul roads) in mining areas are considered important sources of air contaminants that have the potential to impair forest health by affecting the nutrient balance and physiology of trees. In this study, we analysed micronutrients (B, Fe, Zn, Na, Cu) and macronutrients (Ca, Mg, Mn, K) in the tree-ring series of jack pine (Pinus banksiana) and spruce (Picea glauca and Picea mariana) trees growing at different distances from the heart of mining operations (two sites for each species). Based on tree-ring records, our aims were to provide a historical perspective on the nutritional status of forest ecosystems and to identify temporal changes in tree-ring chemistry that can be attributed to OS activities. One of the key findings of this research is the direct and immediate response of boron (B) in woody tissues of all studied species to mining operations. During the pre-mining period (prior to 1967) [B] variations in tree-rings of the three species covary with other elements such as Na and Fe and are likely controlled by environmental factors, namely climatic conditions. After 1970, [B] increases and strongly departs from trends of other elements. In jack pine trees (54 km NNE of the centre of industrial operations) the increasing trend is abrupt with mean [B] increasing from 11.7 mg/kg during the pre-industrial period to 14.3 mg/kg during mining period. In spruce trees at the proximal site (14 km NE), [B] increases gradually and nicely reproduces the historical pattern of industrial emissions with mean pre-mining [B] of 29.5 mg/kg increasing to 92.1 mg/kg during the mining period. At the four spruce sites, the increasing rate of B decrease with distance and no specific trend in [B] was found at the distal site (135 km E). Finally, a significant negative correlation was found between [B] and tree growth within the mining area suggesting a potential negative role of anthropogenic emissions on forest productivity. Mining and associated industrial activities in the Alberta OS region are known to have the potential of releasing substantial quantities of B in the environment. Even if B specific emissions remain poorly documented in the area, the high [B] in top organic soil horizons at all sites confirm the atmospheric source for B. Rarely investigated in dendrogeochemical studies, B in the tree-rings, along with other associated nutrients, appears to be an excellent biogeochemical indicator of disturbances in nutritional status of forests in the vicinity of Alberta OS mining activities.

  19. 76 FR 9359 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal and Opportunity for Public Meeting; Idaho

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-02-17

    ... National Forest System land in the Idaho Panhandle National Forest from mining to protect the Settler's... requests should be sent to the Forest Supervisor, Idaho Panhandle National Forest, 3815 Schreiber Way... filed an application to withdraw the following described National Forest lands from location and entry...

  20. Quantitative assessment of future development of cooper/silver resources in the Kootenai National Forest, Idaho/Montana: Part I-Estimation of the copper and silver endowments

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Spanski, G.T.

    1992-01-01

    Faced with an ever-increasing diversity of demand for the use of public lands, managers and planners are turning more often to a multiple-use approach to meet those demands. This approach requires the uses to be mutually compatible and to utilize the more valuable attributes or resource values of the land. Therefore, it is imperative that planners be provided with all available information on attribute and resource values in a timely fashion and in a format that facilitates a comparative evaluation. The Kootenai National Forest administration enlisted the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Bureau of Mines to perform a quantitative assessment of future copper/silver production potential within the forest from sediment-hosted copper deposits in the Revett Formation that are similar to those being mined at the Troy Mine near Spar Lake. The U.S. Geological Survey employed a quantitative assessment technique that compared the favorable host terrane in the Kootenai area with worldwide examples of known sediment-hosted copper deposits. The assessment produced probabilistic estimates of the number of undiscovered deposits that may be present in the area and of the copper and silver endowment that might be contained in them. Results of the assessment suggest that the copper/silver deposit potential is highest in the southwestern one-third of the forest. In this area there is an estimated 50 percent probability of at least 50 additional deposits occurring mostly within approximately 260,000 acres where the Revett Formation is thought to be present in the subsurface at depths of less than 1,500 meters. A Monte Carlo type simulation using data on the grade and tonnage characteristics of other known silver-rich, sediment-hosted copper deposits predicts a 50 percent probability that these undiscovered deposits will contain at least 19 million tonnes of copper and 100,000 tonnes of silver. Combined with endowments estimated for identified, but not thoroughly explored deposits, and deposits that might also occur in the remaining area of the forest, the endowment potential increases to 23 million tonnes of copper and 190,000 tonnes of silver. ?? 1992 Oxford University Press.

  1. Model for detection and assessment of abiotic stress caused by uranium mining in European Black Pine landscapes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Filchev, Lachezar; Roumenina, Eugenia

    2013-10-01

    The article presents the results obtained from a study for detection and assessment of abiotic stress through pollution with heavy metals, metalloids, and natural radionuclides in European Black Pine (Pinus nigra L.) forests caused by uranium mining using ground-based biogeochemical, biophysical, and field spectrometry data. The forests are located on a territory subject to underground and open uranium mining. An operational model of the study is proposed. The areas subject to technogeochemical load are outlined based on the aggregate pollution index Zc. Laboratory and field spectrometry data were used to detect the signals of abiotic stress at pixel level. The methods used for determination of stressed and unstressed black pine forests are: four vegetation indices (TCARI, MCARI, MTVI 2, and PRI 1) for stress detection, and the position, depth, asymmetry, and shift of the red-edge. Based on the "blue shift" and the depth and position of the red-edge, registered by the laboratory analysis and field spectral reflectance, it is established that coniferous forests subject to abiotic stress show an increase in total chlorophyll content and carotene. It has been found that the vegetation indices MTVI 2 and PRI 1, as well as the combination of vegetation indices and pigments may be used as a direct indicator of abiotic stress in coniferous forests caused by uranium mining.

  2. A science-based, watershed strategy to support effective remediation of abandoned mine lands

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Buxton, Herbert T.; Nimick, David A.; Von Guerard, Paul; Church, Stan E.; Frazier, Ann G.; Gray, John R.; Lipin, Bruce R.; Marsh, Sherman P.; Woodward, Daniel F.; Kimball, Briant A.; Finger, Susan E.; Ischinger, Lee S.; Fordham, John C.; Power, Martha S.; Bunch, Christine M.; Jones, John W.

    1997-01-01

    A U.S. Geological Survey Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative will develop a strategy for gathering and communicating the scientific information needed to formulate effective and cost-efficient remediation of abandoned mine lands. A watershed approach will identify, characterize, and remediate contaminated sites that have the most profound effect on water and ecosystem quality within a watershed. The Initiative will be conducted during 1997 through 2001 in two pilot watersheds, the Upper Animas River watershed in Colorado and the Boulder River watershed in Montana. Initiative efforts are being coordinated with the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, and other stakeholders which are using the resulting scientific information to design and implement remediation activities. The Initiative has the following eight objective-oriented components: estimate background (pre-mining) conditions; define baseline (current) conditions; identify target sites (major contaminant sources); characterize target sites and processes affecting contaminant dispersal; characterize ecosystem health and controlling processes at target sites; develop remediation goals and monitoring network; provide an integrated, quality-assured and accessible data network; and document lessons learned for future applications of the watershed approach.

  3. Causes and consequences of a tropical forest gold rush in the Guiana Shield, South America.

    PubMed

    Hammond, David S; Gond, Valéry; de Thoisy, Benoit; Forget, Pierre-Michel; DeDijn, Bart P E

    2007-12-01

    Statistical and spatial analyses of both historical time series and remotely sensed data show a link between the spatial distribution and growth of gold production across the Guiana Shield in northeast Amazonia. Results indicate that an exponential rise in production across an expanding area is primarily a delayed response to the 1971-1978 market flotation of international gold prices. The subsequent 10-fold (2-fold) average nominal (real) price increase has provided a compelling economic incentive to mass exploitation of lower-grade gold deposits. The ground-based and remotely sensed distributions of mining activity are strongly attached to these deposits that dominate the region's gold geology. The presence of these gold-bearing formations in conservation and sustainable timber zones has sparked social conflict and environmental degradation across the region. Left unmanaged, more than a quarter-million square-kilometer area of tropical forest zoned for protection and sustainable management could ultimately be compromised by the price-driven boom in gold mining through poorly integrated resource use planning, lack of reclamation effort, and control of illegal operations. Serious public health issues propagated through the unregulated mining environment further erode the financial benefits achieved through gold extraction. This study demonstrates in part how international economic policies successfully stabilizing more conspicuous centers of the global economy can have unintended but profound environmental and social impacts on remote commodity frontiers.

  4. View north from within mining cut; portal of Fowler Lode ...

    Library of Congress Historic Buildings Survey, Historic Engineering Record, Historic Landscapes Survey

    View north from within mining cut; portal of Fowler Lode Adit (6'-long range pole for scale) - Steamboat Mine, Southeast slope of Steamboat Mountain, west of the junction of Forest Service Roads 1000300 and 1000365, Jacksonville, Jackson County, OR

  5. Chemical and Physical Soil Restoration in Mining Areas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Teresinha Gonçalves Bizuti, Denise; de Marchi Soares, Thaís; Roberti Alves de Almeida, Danilo; Sartorio, Simone Daniela; Casagrande, José Carlos; Santin Brancalion, Pedro Henrique

    2017-04-01

    The current trend of ecological restoration is to address the recovery of degraded areas by ecosystemic way, overcoming the rehabilitation process. In this sense, the topsoil and other complementary techniques in mining areas plays an important role in soil recovery. The aim of this study was to contextualize the soil improvement, with the use of topsoil through chemical and physical attributes, relative to secondary succession areas in restoration, as well as in reference ecosystems (natural forest). Eighteen areas were evaluated, six in forest restoration process, six native forests and six just mining areas. The areas were sampled in the depths of 0-5, 5-10, 10-20, 20-40 and 40-60 cm. Chemical indicators measured were parameters of soil fertility and texture, macroporosity, microporosity, density and total porosity as physical parameters. The forest restoration using topsoil was effective in triggering a process of soil recovery, promoting, in seven years, chemical and physical characteristics similar to those of the reference ecosystem.

  6. Geochemical position of Pb, Zn and Cd in soils near the Olkusz mine/smelter, South Poland: effects of land use, type of contamination and distance from pollution source.

    PubMed

    Chrastný, Vladislav; Vaněk, Aleš; Teper, Leslaw; Cabala, Jerzy; Procházka, Jan; Pechar, Libor; Drahota, Petr; Penížek, Vít; Komárek, Michael; Novák, Martin

    2012-04-01

    The soils adjacent to an area of historical mining, ore processing and smelting activities reflects the historical background and a mixing of recent contamination sources. The main anthropogenic sources of metals can be connected with historical and recent mine wastes, direct atmospheric deposition from mining and smelting processes and dust particles originating from open tailings ponds. Contaminated agriculture and forest soil samples with mining and smelting related pollutants were collected at different distances from the source of emission in the Pb-Zn-Ag mining area near Olkusz, Upper Silesia to (a) compare the chemical speciation of metals in agriculture and forest soils situated at the same distance from the point source of pollution (paired sampling design), (b) to evaluate the relationship between the distance from the polluter and the retention of the metals in the soil, (c) to describe mineralogy transformation of anthropogenic soil particles in the soils, and (d) to assess the effect of deposited fly ash vs. dumped mining/smelting waste on the mobility and bioavailability of metals in the soil. Forest soils are much more affected with smelting processes than agriculture soils. However, agriculture soils suffer from the downward metal migration more than the forest soils. The maximum concentrations of Pb, Zn, and Cd were detected in a forest soil profile near the smelter and reached about 25 g kg(- 1), 20 g kg(- 1) and 200 mg kg(- 1) for Pb, Zn and Cd, respectively. The metal pollutants from smelting processes are less stable under slightly alkaline soil pH then acidic due to the metal carbonates precipitation. Metal mobility ranges in the studied forest soils are as follows: Pb > Zn ≈ Cd for relatively circum-neutral soil pH (near the smelter), Cd > Zn > Pb for acidic soils (further from the smelter). Under relatively comparable pH conditions, the main soil properties influencing metal migration are total organic carbon and cation exchange capacity. The mobilization of Pb, Zn and Cd in soils depends on the persistence of the metal-containing particles in the atmosphere; the longer the time, the more abundant the stable forms. The dumped mining/smelting waste is less risk of easily mobilizable metal forms, however, downward metal migration especially due to the periodical leaching of the waste was observed.

  7. Development of floristic diversity in 10-year-old restoration forests on a bauxite mined site in Amazonia.

    Treesearch

    J. A. Parrotta; O. H. Knowles; J.M. Wunderle Jr.

    1997-01-01

    Patterns of plant and animal diversity were studied in a 10-year-old native species reforestation area at a bauxite-mined site at porto Trombetas in western Para State, Brazil. Understorey and overstorey floristic composition and structure, understorey light conditions, forest floor development and soil properties were evaluated in a total of 38 78.5-m2

  8. 43 CFR 3811.2-4 - Lands in national forests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... Lands Subject to Location and Purchase § 3811.2-4 Lands in national forests. For mining claims in national forests, see § 3811.1. ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Lands in national forests. 3811.2-4...

  9. 43 CFR 3811.2-4 - Lands in national forests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... Lands Subject to Location and Purchase § 3811.2-4 Lands in national forests. For mining claims in national forests, see § 3811.1. ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Lands in national forests. 3811.2-4...

  10. 43 CFR 3811.2-4 - Lands in national forests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... Lands Subject to Location and Purchase § 3811.2-4 Lands in national forests. For mining claims in national forests, see § 3811.1. ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Lands in national forests. 3811.2-4...

  11. 43 CFR 3811.2-4 - Lands in national forests.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... Lands Subject to Location and Purchase § 3811.2-4 Lands in national forests. For mining claims in national forests, see § 3811.1. ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Lands in national forests. 3811.2-4...

  12. Landscape monitoring of post-industrial areas using LiDAR and GIS technology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wężyk, Piotr; Szostak, Marta; Krzaklewski, Wojciech; Pająk, Marek; Pierzchalski, Marcin; Szwed, Piotr; Hawryło, Paweł; Ratajczak, Michał

    2015-06-01

    The quarrying industry is changing the local landscape, forming deep open pits and spoil heaps in close proximity to them, especially lignite mines. The impact can include toxic soil material (low pH, heavy metals, oxidations etc.) which is the basis for further reclamation and afforestation. Forests that stand on spoil heaps have very different growth conditions because of the relief (slope, aspect, wind and rainfall shadows, supply of solar energy, etc.) and type of soil that is deposited. Airborne laser scanning (ALS) technology deliver point clouds (XYZ) and derivatives as raster height models (DTM, DSM, nDSM=CHM) which allow the reception of selected 2D and 3D forest parameters (e.g. height, base of the crown, cover, density, volume, biomass, etc). The automation of ALS point cloud processing and integrating the results into GIS helps forest managers to take appropriate decisions on silvicultural treatments in areas with failed plantations (toxic soil, droughts on south-facing slopes; landslides, etc.) or as regular maintenance. The ISOK country-wide project ongoing in Poland will soon deliver ALS point cloud data which can be successfully used for the monitoring and management of many thousands of hectares of destroyed post-industrial areas which according to the law, have to be afforested and transferred back to the State Forest.

  13. Preliminary evaluation of magnitude and frequency of floods in selected small drainage basins in Ohio

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Kolva, J.R.

    1985-01-01

    A previous study of flood magitudes and frequencies in Ohio concluded that existing regionalized flood equations may not be adequate for estimating peak flows in small basins that are heavily forested, surface mined, or located in northwestern Ohio. In order to provide a large data base for improving estimation of flood peaks in these basins, 30 crest-stage gages were installed in 1977, in cooperation with the Ohio Department of Transportation, to provide a 10-year record of flood data The study area consists of two distinct parts: Northwestern Ohio, which contains 8 sites, and southern and eastern Ohio, which contains 22 sites in small forested or surface-mined drainage basins. Basin characteristics were determined for all 30 sites for 1978 conditions. Annual peaks were recorded or estimated for all 30 sites for water years 1978-82; an additional year of peak discharges was available at four sites. The 2-year (Q2) and 5-year (Q5) flood peaks were determined from these annual peaks.Q2 and Q5 values also were calculated using published regionalized regression equations for Ohio. The ratios of the observed to predicted 2-year (R2) and 5-year (R5) values were then calculated. This study found that observed flood peaks aree lower than estimated peaks by a significant amount in surface-mined basins. The average ratios of observed to predicted R2 values are 0.51 for basins with more than 40 percent surface-minded land, and 0.68 for sites with any surface-mined land. The average R5 value is 0.55 for sites with more than 40 percent surface-minded land, and 0.61 for sites with any surface-mined land. Estimated flood peaks from forested basins agree with the observed values fairly well. R2 values average 0.87 for sites with 20 percent or more forested land, but no surface-mined land, and R5 values average 0.96. If all sites with more than 20 percent forested land and some surface-mined land are considered, R2 the values average 0.86, and the R5 values average 0.82.

  14. Understanding patterns of vegetation structure and distribution across Great Smoky Mountains National Park using LiDAR and meteorology data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kumar, J.; Hargrove, W. W.; Norman, S. P.; Hoffman, F. M.

    2017-12-01

    Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP) in Tennessee is a biodiversity hotspot and home to a large number of plant, animal and bird species. Driven by gradients of climate (ex. temperature, precipitation regimes), topography (ex. elevation, slope, aspect), geology (ex. soil types, textures, depth), hydrology (ex. drainage, moisture availability) etc. GSMNP offers a diverse composition and distribution of vegetation which in turn supports an array of wildlife. Understanding the vegetation canopy structure is critical to understand, monitor and manage the complex forest ecosystems like the Great Smoky Mountain National Park (GSMNP). Vegetation canopies not only help understand the vegetation, but are also a critically important habitat characteristics of many threatened and endangered animal and bird species that GSMNP is home to. Using airborne Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) we characterize the three-dimensional structure of the vegetation. LiDAR based analysis gives detailed insight in the canopy structure (overstory and understory) and its spatial variability within and across forest types. Vegetation structure and spatial distribution show strong correlation with climate, topographic, and edaphic variables and our multivariate analysis not just mines rich and large LiDAR data but presents ecological insights and data for vegetation within the park that can be useful to forest managers in their management and conservation efforts.

  15. 43 CFR 3823.2 - Mineral locations within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.2 Mineral locations within National Forest Wilderness. (a) Until midnight, December 31, 1983, the... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Mineral locations within National Forest...

  16. 43 CFR 3823.2 - Mineral locations within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.2 Mineral locations within National Forest Wilderness. (a) Until midnight, December 31, 1983, the... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Mineral locations within National Forest...

  17. 43 CFR 3823.2 - Mineral locations within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.2 Mineral locations within National Forest Wilderness. (a) Until midnight, December 31, 1983, the... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Mineral locations within National Forest...

  18. 43 CFR 3823.2 - Mineral locations within National Forest Wilderness.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... MINING LAWS Prospecting, Mineral Locations, and Mineral Patents Within National Forest Wilderness § 3823.2 Mineral locations within National Forest Wilderness. (a) Until midnight, December 31, 1983, the... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Mineral locations within National Forest...

  19. Study of terrestrial carbon cycling as impacted by mountaintop coal mining in the Southern Appalachian forest region using carbon elemental and isotopic data and remote sensing of land cover change

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fox, J. F.; Campbell, J. E.; Martin, D.

    2008-12-01

    The need to quantify the impact of human disturbance upon carbon flux and storage has been recently highlighted in order to more accurately budget carbon. One understudied but critical area of research is surface coal mining's impact on terrestrial carbon storage and sediment carbon transport processes-which has been identified as potentially important to understanding fluxes in global carbon budgeting. While national attention has focused on U.S. coal production to maintain a vibrant economy, scientists are concerned that increased coal production could have unforeseen environmental implications if the relationship between coal mining practices and the environment is not better understood. This issue is particularly important to the coal mining region of the Southern Appalachian forest region, which has been responsible for 23.3% of the coal produced in the United States over the past twenty years and seen approximately 300,000 ha of forested land disturbed by surface coal mining during that time period. Our presentation provides results that focus upon terrestrial carbon cycling as impacted by mountaintop coal mining in the Southern Appalachian forest region. In order to study carbon redistribution due to the mining disturbance, our methods make use of measurements of total organic carbon, total organic nitrogen, and carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes of soils and eroded sediments collected in the region as well as published data, consultation with experts and remote sensing of land cover change. It was found that disturbed terrestrial carbon, including soil C, non-soil or plant C, and geogenic C, is approximately 10% of the carbon emitted to the atmosphere during coal combusting and transportation and mining of coal. Quantification of the fate of terrestrial carbon in different pools is provided and discussed including the fate atmosphere during recovery of the terrestrial system; newly deposited coal fragments within the terrestrial soil reservoir; and carbon that is eroded to streams in mined watersheds with different levels of disturbance.

  20. 36 CFR 251.11 - Governing mining locations under the mining laws of the United States within that portion of the...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... of South Dakota, designated as the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve. 251.11 Section 251.11 Parks, Forests... Wildlife Preserve. (a) Whoever locates a mining claim within the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve must, within 10...

  1. 36 CFR 251.11 - Governing mining locations under the mining laws of the United States within that portion of the...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... of South Dakota, designated as the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve. 251.11 Section 251.11 Parks, Forests... Wildlife Preserve. (a) Whoever locates a mining claim within the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve must, within 10...

  2. 36 CFR 251.11 - Governing mining locations under the mining laws of the United States within that portion of the...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... of South Dakota, designated as the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve. 251.11 Section 251.11 Parks, Forests... Wildlife Preserve. (a) Whoever locates a mining claim within the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve must, within 10...

  3. 36 CFR 251.11 - Governing mining locations under the mining laws of the United States within that portion of the...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... of South Dakota, designated as the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve. 251.11 Section 251.11 Parks, Forests... Wildlife Preserve. (a) Whoever locates a mining claim within the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve must, within 10...

  4. 36 CFR 251.11 - Governing mining locations under the mining laws of the United States within that portion of the...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... of South Dakota, designated as the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve. 251.11 Section 251.11 Parks, Forests... Wildlife Preserve. (a) Whoever locates a mining claim within the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve must, within 10...

  5. 36 CFR 228.3 - Definitions.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Definitions. 228.3 Section 228.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property FOREST SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE MINERALS Locatable... States mining laws of May 10, 1872, as amended (30 U.S.C. 22 et seq.). (e) Authorized officer. The Forest...

  6. Evaluation of open source data mining software packages

    Treesearch

    Bonnie Ruefenacht; Greg Liknes; Andrew J. Lister; Haans Fisk; Dan Wendt

    2009-01-01

    Since 2001, the USDA Forest Service (USFS) has used classification and regression-tree technology to map USFS Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) biomass, forest type, forest type groups, and National Forest vegetation. This prior work used Cubist/See5 software for the analyses. The objective of this project, sponsored by the Remote Sensing Steering Committee (RSSC),...

  7. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Thompson, R.L.; Wade, G.L.; Straw, R.A.

    A descriptive study of the naturally invading and planted flora was conducted during 1984-1985 on a 14- and 21-year-old contour surface mine the 14.2 ha Log Mountain Demonstration Area (LMDA), in Bell County, Kentucky. Six habitats are designated from areas created from coal mining; the 1963 bench, 1970 bench, bench highwalls, mine outslopes, mine seeps, and coal haul-telephone microwave tower road. Twenty-four of 25 woody and herbaceous species (11 indigenous, 13 non-indigenous) have persisted from plantings by personnel of the Northeastern Forest Experiment Station, USDA Forest Service. We recommend 11 native and exotic woody and herbaceous species for planting onmore » coal surface-mined areas. An annotated list of vascular plants comprises 360 taxa (286 indigenous, 74 non-indigenous) in 224 genera from 82 families. Taxa consist of 1 Lycopodiophyta, 1 Equisetophyta, 8 Polypodiophyta, 7 Pinophyta, and 343 Magnoliophyta. The most species-rich families are the Asteraceae (64), Poaceae (39), Fabaceae (20), Cyperaceae (16), Rosaceae (13), and Lamiaceae (11). A total of 155 Bell County distribution records were documented. Three threatened Kentucky species (Gentiana decora, Liparis loeselii, Silene ovata) were present in refugial habitats created by surface mining. The high species richness has resulted from native and naturalized invading species from the environs, native and exotic planted species, and species from the remnant seed bank. Forest vegetation is a complex mosaic of natural and semi-natural plant communities on the unplanted and planted areas of LMDA.« less

  8. Do Forest Age and Soil Depth Affect Carbon and Nitrogen Adsorption in Mineral Horizons?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Spina, P. G.; Lovett, G. M.; Fuss, C. B.; Goodale, C. L.; Lang, A.; Fahey, T.

    2015-12-01

    Mineral soils retain large amounts of organic matter through sorption on the surfaces of mineral soils, the largest pools of carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) in the forests of the northeastern U.S. In addition to determining organic matter storage, adsorption and desorption processes are important controllers of runoff chemistry. We are studying adsorption dynamics of mineral soils collected from a chronosequence of hardwood forest sites in the White Mountains, NH to determine how soils vary in their DOM adsorption capacities as a function of effective C and N saturation. We hypothesize that forest age determines proximity to saturation because young forests may need to mine soil organic matter (SOM) in mineral soils to obtain nitrogen to meet growth demands, while the soils of older forests have had time to reaccumulate SOM, eventually reaching C and N saturation. Consequently, we expect adsorption capacities to first increase with forest age in young forests, as the trees mine C and N from mineral surfaces. They will then decrease with forest age in older forests as mining slows and C and N begin to re-accumulate. Batch experiments were conducted with mineral soil samples and dilutions of forest floor leachate. However, preliminary results from a mature forest site (about 100 years old), which we predicted to be a low point of C and N saturation from decades of mining, contradict expectations. Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) adsorption in its shallow mineral soil layers (0-3 cm below E or A horizons) are lower than younger sites ranging from 20 to about 40 years old. In addition to forest age, soil depths also affect N retention dynamics in forest soils. We hypothesized that deeper mineral soils might have greater adsorption capacities due to the fact that they are exposed to less DOC and DON leaching from organic layers and therefore less saturated. Results from the same mature forest site confirm this. Soils from 3-10 cm depth have more potential to adsorb DOC and DON than soils from 0-3 cm depth. For example, at 80 mg/L DOC, the >3-10 layer adsorbed 11.37 mg total N (TN)/g dry soil whereas the 0-3 layer adsorbed 2.13 mg TN/g dry soil. This project will also consider the effects of soil texture, soil C and N content, and Al and Fe oxide and hydroxide content.

  9. Soil Quality in Mining Areas Undergoing Ecological Restoration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dinarowski, Marcela; Casagrande, José Carlos; Bizuti, Denise T. G.; Silva, Luiz Gabriel; Soares, Marcio Roberto; Brancalion, Pedro H. S.

    2014-05-01

    Mining is one of the anthropogenic activities most impactful to natural resources, and can profoundly affect the resilience of ecosystems depending on the level of soil degradation. Ecological restoration has generated promising results even in situations of degradation as intense as those of mining. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of the soil in areas explored by the bauxite extraction undergoing restoration: recently mined, seven years, 20 years and native forest. The studied areas are located in the municipality of Poços de Caldas-MG, belonging to ALCOA Alumínio. The mined-out areas for seven and twenty years were uncompressed and received topsoil, liming and fertilization with nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Samples for chemical analyses of soil fertility were carried out at depths of 0-5, 5-10, 10-20, 20-40 and 40-60 cm. Soil quality was evaluated by pondered additive model. The parameters were considered organic matter (0.6) and bases saturation (0.4) for soil fertility function (0.6) and calcium (0.5) and aluminum saturation (0.5) for the function root development (0.4) - (the numbers in parentheses represent the weights attributed). Despite the high content, only the organic matter was not a parameter enough to classify the soil quality, once the native forest has very low base saturation (7%). The soil quality index(SQI) obtained allowed to classify the areas, being the first restored 20 years ago with SQI equal to 0.7 followed of the restored 7 years ago, native forest and newly mined with SQIs equal to 0.6, 04 and 0.3, respectively. The native tropical forests have low soil fertility, keeping by the cycling of nutrients. This demonstrates the need for the degraded areas, especially the mined, are uncompressed to allow storage of water and root development, in addition to the replacement of nutrients and soil acidity correction, especially high levels of aluminum saturation (66%) and low calcium (3 mmolcdm-3).

  10. Mine waste management legislation. Gold mining areas in Romania

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Maftei, Raluca-Mihaela; Filipciuc, Constantina; Tudor, Elena

    2014-05-01

    Problems in the post-mining regions of Eastern Europe range from degraded land and landscapes, huge insecure dumps, surface cracks, soil pollution, lowering groundwater table, deforestation, and damaged cultural potentials to socio economic problems like unemployment or population decline. There is no common prescription for tackling the development of post-mining regions after mine closure nor is there a common definition of good practices or policy in this field. Key words : waste management, legislation, EU Directive, post mining Rosia Montana is a common oh 16 villages; one of them is also called Rosia Montana, a traditional mining Community, located in the Apuseni Mountains in the North-Western Romania. Beneath part of the village area lays one of the largest gold and silver deposits in Europe. In the Rosia Montana area mining had begun ever since the height of the Roman Empire. While the modern approach to mining demands careful remediation of environmental impacts, historically disused mines in this region have been abandoned, leaving widespread environmental damage. General legislative framework Strict regulations and procedures govern modern mining activity, including mitigation of all environmental impacts. Precious metals exploitation is put under GO no. 190/2000 re-published in 2004. The institutional framework was established and organized based on specific regulations, being represented by the following bodies: • The Ministry of Economy and Commerce (MEC), a public institution which develops the Government policy in the mining area, also provides the management of the public property in the mineral resources area; • The National Agency for the development and implementation of the mining Regions Reconstruction Programs (NAD), responsible with promotion of social mitigation measures and actions; • The Office for Industry Privatization, within the Education Ministry, responsible with privatization of companies under the CEM; • The National Agency for Mineral Resources (NAMR) manages, on behalf of the state, the mineral resources. Waste management framework Nowadays, Romania, is trying to align its regulation concerning mining activity to the European legislation taking into consideration waste management and their impact on the environment. Therefore the European Waste Catalog (Commission Decision 2001/118/EC) has been updated and published in the form of HG 856/2002 Waste management inventory and approved wastes list, including dangerous wastes. The HG 349/2005 establishes the legal framework for waste storage activity as well as for the monitoring of the closing and post-closing existing deposits, taking into account the environment protection and the health of the general population. Based on Directive 2000/60/EC the Ministry of Waters Administration, Forests and Environment Protection from Romania issued the GO No 756/1997 (amended by GO 532/2002 and GO 1144/2002),"Regulations for environment pollution assessment" that contains alarm and intervention rates for soil pollution for contaminants such as metals, metalloids (Sb, Ag, As, Be, Bi, B, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mo, Ni, Pb, Se, Sn, TI, V, Zn) and cyanides. Also GO No 756/1997 was amended and updated by Law No 310/2004 and 112/2006 in witch technical instructions concerning general framework for the use of water sources in the human activities including mining industry, are approved. Chemical compounds contained in industrial waters are fully regulated by H. G. 352/2005 concerning the contents of waste water discharged. Directive 2006/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council relating to the management of waste from extractive industries and amending Directive 2004/35/EC is transposed into the national law of the Romanian Government under Decision No 856/2008. The 856/2008 Decision on the management of waste from extractive industries establishes "the legal framework concerning the guidelines, measures and procedures to prevent or reduce as far as possible any adverse effects on the environment, in particular water, air, soil, fauna, flora and landscape, and any health risks to the population, arising as a result of waste management in extractive industries". Based on the Commission decision 2009/339/EC concerning the waste management facilities - classification criteria - Romanian Government issued GO 2042/2010 witch states the procedures for approving the plan of waste management in extractive industries and its applications norms. Law No. 22/2001 fallows the regulations from the Espoo Convention on assessing the impact of mining on the environment sector in a cross-border context. This work is presented within the framework of SUSMIN project.

  11. 30 CFR 745.13 - Authority reserved by the Secretary.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... with surface coal mining operations on Federal lands within a national forest, as specified in § 761.11... Section 745.13 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE... surface coal mining under subchapter F of this chapter or terminate such designations; (b) Comply with the...

  12. 30 CFR 745.13 - Authority reserved by the Secretary.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... with surface coal mining operations on Federal lands within a national forest, as specified in § 761.11... Section 745.13 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE... surface coal mining under subchapter F of this chapter or terminate such designations; (b) Comply with the...

  13. 30 CFR 745.13 - Authority reserved by the Secretary.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... with surface coal mining operations on Federal lands within a national forest, as specified in § 761.11... Section 745.13 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE... surface coal mining under subchapter F of this chapter or terminate such designations; (b) Comply with the...

  14. 30 CFR 745.13 - Authority reserved by the Secretary.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... with surface coal mining operations on Federal lands within a national forest, as specified in § 761.11... Section 745.13 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE... surface coal mining under subchapter F of this chapter or terminate such designations; (b) Comply with the...

  15. 30 CFR 745.13 - Authority reserved by the Secretary.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... with surface coal mining operations on Federal lands within a national forest, as specified in § 761.11... Section 745.13 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE... surface coal mining under subchapter F of this chapter or terminate such designations; (b) Comply with the...

  16. 36 CFR 1005.14 - Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... location of mining claims under the general mining laws and leasing under the mineral leasing laws are prohibited in the area administered by the Presidio Trust except as authorized by law. ... mineral leasing. 1005.14 Section 1005.14 Parks, Forests, and Public Property PRESIDIO TRUST COMMERCIAL AND...

  17. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Burger, James A

    Concentrations of CO{sub 2} in the Earth’s atmosphere have increased dramatically in the past 100 years due to deforestation, land use change, and fossil fuel combustion. These humancaused, higher levels of CO{sub 2} may enhance the atmospheric greenhouse effect and may contribute to climate change. Many reclaimed coal-surface mine areas in the eastern U.S. are not in productive use. Reforestation of these lands could provide societal benefits, including sequestration of atmospheric carbon. The goal of this project was to determine the biological and economic feasibility of restoring high-quality forests on the tens of thousands of hectares of mined land andmore » to measure carbon sequestration and wood production benefits that would be achieved from large-scale application of forest restoration procedures. We developed a mine soil quality model that can be used to estimate the suitability of selected mined sites for carbon sequestration projects. Across the mine soil quality gradient, we tested survival and growth performance of three species assemblages under three levels of silvicultural. Hardwood species survived well in WV and VA, and survived better than the other species used in OH, while white pine had the poorest survival of all species at all sites. Survival was particularly good for the site-specific hardwoods planted at each site. Weed control plus tillage may be the optimum treatment for hardwoods and white pine, as any increased growth resulting from fertilization may not offset the decreased survival that accompanied fertilization. Grassland to forest conversion costs may be a major contributor to the lack of reforestation of previously reclaimed mine lands in the Appalachian coal-mining region. Otherwise profitable forestry opportunities may be precluded by these conversion costs, which for many combinations of factors (site class, forest type, timber prices, regeneration intensity, and interest rate) result in negative land expectation values. Improved technology and/or knowledge of reforestation practices in these situations may provide opportunities to reduce the costs of converting many of these sites as research continues into these practices. It also appears that in many cases substantial payments, non-revenue values, or carbon values are required to reach “profitability” under the present circumstances. It is unclear when, or in what form, markets will develop to support any of these add-on values to supplement commercial forestry revenues. However, as these markets do develop, they will only enhance the viability of forestry on reclaimed mined lands, although as we demonstrate in our analysis of carbon payments, the form of the revenue source may itself influence management, potentially mitigating some of the benefits of reforestation. For a representative mined-land resource base, reforestation of mined lands with mixed pine-hardwood species would result in an average estimated C accumulation in forms that can be harvested for use as wood products or are likely to remain in the soil C pool at ~250 Mg C ha{sup -1} over a 60 year period following reforestation. The “additionality” of this potential C sequestration was estimated considering data in scientific literature that defines C accumulation in mined-land grasslands over the long term. Given assumptions detailed in the text, these lands have the potential to sequester ~180 Mg C ha{sup -1}, a total of 53.5 x 10{sup 6} Mg C, over 60 years, an average of ~900,000 Mg C / yr, an amount equivalent to about 0.04% of projected US C emissions at the midpoint of a 60-year period (circa 2040) following assumed reforestation. Although potential sequestration quantities are not great relative to potential national needs should an energy-related C emissions offset requirement be developed at some future date, these lands are available and unused for other economically valued purposes and many possess soil and site properties that are well-suited to reforestation. Should such reforestation occur, it would also produce ancillary benefits by providing environmental services, such as enhanced watershed protection, and producing timber and renewable-fuel products.« less

  18. Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister) use of rock drainage channels on reclaimed mines in southern West Virginia

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Chamblin, H.D.; Wood, P.B.; Edwards, J.W.

    2004-01-01

    Allegheny woodrats (Neotoma magister) currently receive protected status throughout their range due to population declines. Threats associated with habitat fragmentation (e.g., introduced predators, disease, loss of connectivity among subpopulations and habitat loss) may explain why Allegheny woodrats are no longer found in many areas where they existed just 25 y ago. In southern West Virginia, surface coal mining is a major cause of forest fragmentation. Furthermore, mountaintop mining, the prevalent method in the region, results in a loss of rock outcrops and cliffs within forested areas, typical habitat of the Allegheny woodrat To determine the extent that Allegheny woodrats make use of reclaimed mine land, particularly rock drainages built during reclamation, we sampled 24 drainage channels on reclaimed surface mines in southern West Virginia, collected habitat data at each site and used logistic regression to identify habitat variables related to Allegheny woodrat presence. During 187 trap nights, 13 adult, 2 subadult and 8 juvenile Allegheny woodrats were captured at 13 of the 24 sites. Percent of rock as a groundcover and density of stems >15 cm diameter-at-breast-height (DBH) were related to Allegheny woodrat presence and were significantly greater at sites where Allegheny woodrats were present than absent. Sites where Allegheny woodrats were present differed substantially from other described habitats in West Virginia, though they may simulate boulder piles that occur naturally. Our findings suggest the need for additional research to examine the dynamics between Allegheny woodrat populations inhabiting rock outcrops in forests adjacent to mines and populations inhabiting constructed drainage channels on reclaimed mines. However, if Allegheny woodrats can use human-created habitat, our results will be useful to surface mine reclamation and to other mitigation efforts where rocky habitats are lost or disturbed.

  19. 75 FR 55346 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal and Opportunity for Public Meeting; South Dakota

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-09-10

    ... National Forest System land from mining to protect the recreational uses and improvements within this... Supervisor, Black Hills National Forest, 1019 North 5th Street, Custer, South Dakota 57730 or the BLM Montana... the following-described National Forest System land within the Black Hills National Forest from...

  20. 76 FR 35396 - Black Hills National Forest, Mystic Ranger District, South Dakota, Section 30 Limestone Mining...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-06-17

    ... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Black Hills National Forest, Mystic Ranger District... INFORMATION CONTACT: Dave Slepnikoff, Project Coordinator, Black Hills National Forest, Mystic Ranger District... regulations at 36 CFR 228 Subpart A. The Project is located between Rapid City and Black Hawk, South Dakota...

  1. Interim report on the scientific investigations in the Animas River watershed, Colorado to facilitate remediation decisions by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service, March 29, 2000 meeting, Denver, Colorado

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    ,

    2000-01-01

    INTRODUCTION The joint U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Department of Agriculture Abandoned Mine Lands Initiative (AMLI) was developed as a collaborative effort between the Federal land management agencies (FLMA, that is the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in 1996. The stated goal of the AML Initiative was to develop a strategy for gathering and communicating the scientific information needed to develop effective and cost-efficient remediation of abandoned mines within the framework of a watershed. Four primary objectives of the AMLI are to: 1. Provide the scientific information needed (in the short-term) by the FLMAs to make decisions related to the design and implementation of cleanup actions, 2. Develop a multi-disciplined, multi-division approach that integrates geologic, hydrologic, geochemical and ecological information into a knowledge base for sound decision making, 3. Transfer technologies developed within the scientific programs of the USGS to the field and demonstrate their suitability to solve real, practical problems, and 4. Establish working relationships among involved members of land management and regulatory agencies within the framework of a watershed approach to the cleanup of abandoned mines. Long-term process-based research, including development of analytical tools, is recognized as being critical to the long-term success in remediating watersheds impacted by historical mining activities (AML 5-year plan, http://amli.usgs.gov/amli). In a meeting of Federal agencies (U.S. Bureau of Land Management [BLM], U.S. Bureau of Reclamation [BOR], U.S. National Park Service [NPS], U.S. Forest Service [USFS], the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service [F&WS]), and State agencies (Colorado Division of Public Health and Environment, Colorado Division of Mines and Geology), several watersheds were examined within the state whose water quality was presumed to be impacted by historical mining activities. The Animas River watershed (fig. 1) was selected by the State and Federal agencies as one of two watersheds in the U.S. to be studied in detail by the USGS in the AML Initiative. Beginning in October 1997, each of the four Divisions of the USGS (Water Resources, Geologic, Biological Resources, and National Mapping) initiated a collaborative integrated science study of the watershed. Funds were provided from USGS base funding to each of the four Divisions in response to the priorities set by Congressional action and within the flexibility provided by the budgetary framework funding individual research programs. The AML Initiative provides for a five-year focused scientific effort in the two watersheds with final synthesis of the scientific results from each to be published in 2001. Publications are released on the AML web site on a regular basis (http://amli.usgs.gov/amli). On March 29, 2000, the USGS hosted a meeting for the BLM and USFS to discuss remediation options that were under consideration for the summer of 2000. The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of the scientific rational provided by the USGS to meet objective one above, and to summarize our preliminary interpretations of our data. Additional information from sites on private lands have been collected by the State of Colorado, EPA, and the ARSG. Unfortunately, these data have not been fully supplied to the USGS so our conclusions are based only upon our data. These interpretations provide science-based constraints on possible remediation options to be considered by the FLMA, the State, and local property owners in the Animas River watershed. The report is presented in outline format to facilitate discussion of remediation options at the March 29, 2000 meeting. Not all historical mining sites within the watershed are on public lands. This should not be construed to be a final report of the USGS

  2. 36 CFR 223.277 - Forest botanical products definition.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ..., pine straw, roots, sedges, seeds, shrubs, transplants, tree sap, and wildflowers. Forest botanical products are not animals, animal parts, Christmas trees, fence material, firewood, insects, mine props...

  3. Impact of epidermal leaf mining by the aspen leaf miner (Phyllocnistis populiella) on the growth, physiology, and leaf longevity of quaking aspen

    Treesearch

    Diane Wagner; Linda DeFoliart; Patricia Doak; Jenny Schneiderheinze

    2008-01-01

    We studied the effect of epidermal mining on aspen growth and physiology during an outbreak of Phyllocnistis populiella in the boreal forest of interior Alaska. Experimental reduction of leaf miner density across two sites and 3 years significantly increased annual apsen growth rates relative to naturally mined controls. Leaf mining damage was...

  4. The Forestry Reclamation Approach: guide to successful reforestation of mined lands

    Treesearch

    Mary Beth Adams

    2017-01-01

    Appalachian forests are among the most productive and diverse in the world. The land underlying them is also rich in coal, and surface mines operated on more than 2.4 million acres in the region from 1977, when the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act was passed, through 2015. Many efforts to reclaim mined lands most often resulted in the establishment of...

  5. Pyrolusite Process® to remove acid mine drainage contaminants from Kimble Creek in Ohio: A pilot study

    Treesearch

    Shiv Hiremath; Kirsten Lehtoma; Mike Nicklow; Gary Willison

    2013-01-01

    The Kimble Creek abandoned coal mine site, located on Wayne National Forest in southeastern Ohio, is among several abandoned coal mine sites that have been responsible for the acid mine drainage (AMD) polluting ground and surface water. Materials released by AMD include iron, aluminum, manganese, other hazardous substances, and acidity that are harmful to aquatic life...

  6. Northern bobwhite breeding season ecology on a reclaimed surface mine

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Brooke, Jarred M.; Tanner, Evan P.; Peters, David C.; Tanner, Ashley M.; Harper, Craig A.; Keyser, Patrick D.; Clark, Joseph D.; Morgan, John J.

    2017-01-01

    Surface coal mining and subsequent reclamation of surface mines have converted large forest areas into early successional vegetative communities in the eastern United States. This reclamation can provide a novel opportunity to conserve northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus). We evaluated the influence of habitat management activities on nest survival, nest-site selection, and brood resource selection on managed and unmanaged units of a reclaimed surface mine, Peabody Wildlife Management Area (Peabody), in west-central Kentucky, USA, from 2010 to 2013. We compared resource selection, using discrete-choice analysis, and nest survival, using the nest survival model in Program MARK, between managed and unmanaged units of Peabody at 2 spatial scales: the composition and configuration of vegetation types (i.e., macrohabitat) and vegetation characteristics at nest sites and brood locations (i.e., microhabitat). On managed sites, we also investigated resource selection relative to a number of different treatments (e.g., herbicide, disking, prescribed fire). We found no evidence that nest-site selection was influenced by macrohabitat variables, but bobwhite selected nest sites in areas with greater litter depth than was available at random sites. On managed units, bobwhite were more likely to nest where herbicide was applied to reduce sericea lespedeza (Lespedeza cuneata) compared with areas untreated with herbicide. Daily nest survival was not influenced by habitat characteristics or by habitat management but was influenced by nest age and the interaction of nest initiation date and nest age. Daily nest survival was greater for older nests occurring early in the breeding season (0.99, SE < 0.01) but was lower for older nests occurring later in the season (0.08, SE = 0.13). Brood resource selection was not influenced by macrohabitat or microhabitat variables we measured, but broods on managed units selected areas treated with herbicide to control sericea lespedeza and were located closer to firebreaks and disked native-warm season grass stands than would be expected at random. Our results suggest the vegetation at Peabody was sufficient without manipulation to support nesting and brood-rearing northern bobwhite at a low level, but habitat management practices improved vegetation for nesting and brood-rearing resource selection. Reproductive rates (e.g., nest survival and re-nesting rates) at Peabody were lower than reported in other studies, which may be related to nutritional deficiencies caused by the abundance of sericea lespedeza. On reclaimed mine lands dominated by sericea lespedeza, we suggest continuing practices such as disking and herbicide application that are targeted at reducing sericea lespedeza to improve the vegetation for nesting and brood-rearing bobwhite.

  7. Establishing Radiological Screening Levels for Defense-related Uranium Mine (DRUM) Sites on BLM Land Using a Recreational Future-use Scenario.

    PubMed

    Brown, Steven H; Edge, Russel; Elmer, John; McDonald, Michael

    2018-06-01

    Thousands of former uranium mining sites in the United States, primarily in the southwestern states of Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah, are being identified and evaluated to assess their potential for causing public and environmental impacts. The common radiological contaminant of concern that characterizes these sites is naturally occurring uranium ore and associated wastes that may have been left behind postmining. The majority of these sites were abandoned and in general, are referred to as abandoned uranium mines, regardless of the government authority currently managing the land or in some cases, assigned responsibility for the oversight of assessment and remediation. The U.S. Department of Energy has identified over 4,000 defense-related uranium mine sites from which uranium ore was purchased by the U.S. government for nuclear defense programs prior to 1970. U.S. Department of Energy has established a program to inventory and perform environmental screening on defense-related uranium mine sites. The focus of this paper is the approximately 2,400 defense-related uranium mine sites located on federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service. This paper presents the results of an analysis to develop radiological screening criteria for U.S. Department of Energy's defense-related uranium mine sites that can be used as input to the overall ranking of these sites for prioritization of additional assessment, reclamation, or remedial actions. For these sites managed by Bureau of Land Management, public access is typically limited to short-term use, primarily for recreational purposes. This is a broad category that can cover a range of possible activities, including camping, hiking, hunting, biking, all-terrain vehicle use, and horseback riding. The radiological screening levels were developed by calculating the radiological dose to future recreational users of defense-related uranium mine sites assuming a future camper spends two weeks per year at the site engaged in recreational activities. Although a number of possible exposure pathways were included in this analysis (inhalation and ingestion of dust and soil, radon and progeny inhalation, and gamma radiation exposure from the soil), it is desirable as a practical matter to determine what gamma exposure rate would ensure that the annual acceptable exposure as determined by the regulatory authority will not be exceeded in the future. Because these sites are generally remote and located in semiarid environments, traditional exposure scenarios often applied in these types of analyses (e.g., subsistent farmers and ranchers), including exposure pathways for the ingestion of locally grown food products and water, were not considered relevant to short-term recreational use.

  8. An evolving computational platform for biological mass spectrometry: workflows, statistics and data mining with MASSyPup64.

    PubMed

    Winkler, Robert

    2015-01-01

    In biological mass spectrometry, crude instrumental data need to be converted into meaningful theoretical models. Several data processing and data evaluation steps are required to come to the final results. These operations are often difficult to reproduce, because of too specific computing platforms. This effect, known as 'workflow decay', can be diminished by using a standardized informatic infrastructure. Thus, we compiled an integrated platform, which contains ready-to-use tools and workflows for mass spectrometry data analysis. Apart from general unit operations, such as peak picking and identification of proteins and metabolites, we put a strong emphasis on the statistical validation of results and Data Mining. MASSyPup64 includes e.g., the OpenMS/TOPPAS framework, the Trans-Proteomic-Pipeline programs, the ProteoWizard tools, X!Tandem, Comet and SpiderMass. The statistical computing language R is installed with packages for MS data analyses, such as XCMS/metaXCMS and MetabR. The R package Rattle provides a user-friendly access to multiple Data Mining methods. Further, we added the non-conventional spreadsheet program teapot for editing large data sets and a command line tool for transposing large matrices. Individual programs, console commands and modules can be integrated using the Workflow Management System (WMS) taverna. We explain the useful combination of the tools by practical examples: (1) A workflow for protein identification and validation, with subsequent Association Analysis of peptides, (2) Cluster analysis and Data Mining in targeted Metabolomics, and (3) Raw data processing, Data Mining and identification of metabolites in untargeted Metabolomics. Association Analyses reveal relationships between variables across different sample sets. We present its application for finding co-occurring peptides, which can be used for target proteomics, the discovery of alternative biomarkers and protein-protein interactions. Data Mining derived models displayed a higher robustness and accuracy for classifying sample groups in targeted Metabolomics than cluster analyses. Random Forest models do not only provide predictive models, which can be deployed for new data sets, but also the variable importance. We demonstrate that the later is especially useful for tracking down significant signals and affected pathways in untargeted Metabolomics. Thus, Random Forest modeling supports the unbiased search for relevant biological features in Metabolomics. Our results clearly manifest the importance of Data Mining methods to disclose non-obvious information in biological mass spectrometry . The application of a Workflow Management System and the integration of all required programs and data in a consistent platform makes the presented data analyses strategies reproducible for non-expert users. The simple remastering process and the Open Source licenses of MASSyPup64 (http://www.bioprocess.org/massypup/) enable the continuous improvement of the system.

  9. 36 CFR 223.277 - Forest botanical products definition.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ..., transplants, tree sap, and wildflowers. Forest botanical products are not animals, animal parts, Christmas trees, fence material, firewood, insects, mine props, minerals, posts and poles, rails, rocks, shingle...

  10. Stratigraphic section and selected semiquantitative chemistry, Meade Peak phosphatic shale member of Permian Phosphoria Formation, central part of Rasmussen Ridge, Caribou County, Idaho

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Grauch, R.I.; Tysdal, R.G.; Johnson, E.A.; Herring, J.R.; Desborough, G.A.

    2001-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has studied the Permian Phosphoria Formation in southeastern Idaho and the entire Western U.S. Phosphate Field throughout much of the twentieth century. In response to a request by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, a new series of resource, geological, and geoenvironmental studies was undertaken by the USGS in 1998. To accomplish these studies, the USGS has formed cooperative research relationships with two Federal agencies, the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service, tasked with land management and resource conservation on public lands; and with five private companies currently leasing or developing phosphate resources in southeastern Idaho. The companies are Agrium U.S. Inc. (Rasmussen Ridge mine) , Astaris LLC (Dry Valley mine), Rhodia Inc. (Wooley Valley mine, inactive), J.R. Simplot Company (Smoky Canyon mine), and Monsanto Co. (Enoch Valley mine). Some of the mineralogical research associated with this project is supported through a cooperative agreement with the Department of Geology and Geological Enginee ring, University of Idaho. Present studies consist of integrated, multidisciplinary research directed toward (1) resource and reserve estimations of phosphate in selected 7.5-minute quadrangles; (2) elemental residence, mineralogical and petrochemical characteristics; (3) mobilization and reaction pathways, transport, and fate of potentially toxic elements associated with the occurrence, development, and societal use of phosphate; (4) geophysical signatures; and (5) improving the understanding of deposit origin. Because raw data acquired during the project will require time to interpret, the data are released in open-file reports for prompt availability to other workers. Open-file reports associated with this series of studies are submitted to each of the Federal and industry cooperators for comment; however, the USGS is solely responsible for the data contained in the reports.

  11. Chapter 2: The forestry reclamation approach

    Treesearch

    Jim Burger; Don Graves; Patrick Angel; Vic Davis; Carl Zipper

    2017-01-01

    The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) is a method for reclaiming coal-mined land to forest under the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA). The FRA is based on knowledge gained from both scientific research and experience (Fig. 2-1). The FRA can achieve cost-effective regulatory compliance for mine operators while creating productive...

  12. Surface Soil Preparetion for Leguminous Plants Growing in Degraded Areas by Mining Located in Amazon Forest-Brazil

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Irio Ribeiro, Admilson; Hashimoto Fengler, Felipe; Araújo de Medeiros, Gerson; Márcia Longo, Regina; Frederici de Mello, Giovanna; José de Melo, Wanderley

    2015-04-01

    The revegetation of areas degraded by mining usually requires adequate mobilization of surface soil for the development of the species to be implemented. Unlike the traditional tillage, which has periodicity, the mobilization of degraded areas for revegetation can only occur at the beginning of the recovery stage. In this sense, the process of revegetation has as purpose the establishment of local native vegetation with least possible use of inputs and superficial tillage in order to catalyze the process of natural ecological succession, promoting the reintegration of areas and minimizing the negative impacts of mining activities in environmental. In this context, this work describes part of a study of land reclamation by tin exploitation in the Amazon ecosystem in the National Forest Jamari- Rondonia Brazil. So, studied the influence of surface soil mobilization in pit mine areas and tailings a view to the implementation of legumes. The results show that the surface has areas of mobilizing a significant effect on the growth of leguminous plants, areas for both mining and to tailings and pit mine areas.

  13. Data Mining and Privacy of Social Network Sites' Users: Implications of the Data Mining Problem.

    PubMed

    Al-Saggaf, Yeslam; Islam, Md Zahidul

    2015-08-01

    This paper explores the potential of data mining as a technique that could be used by malicious data miners to threaten the privacy of social network sites (SNS) users. It applies a data mining algorithm to a real dataset to provide empirically-based evidence of the ease with which characteristics about the SNS users can be discovered and used in a way that could invade their privacy. One major contribution of this article is the use of the decision forest data mining algorithm (SysFor) to the context of SNS, which does not only build a decision tree but rather a forest allowing the exploration of more logic rules from a dataset. One logic rule that SysFor built in this study, for example, revealed that anyone having a profile picture showing just the face or a picture showing a family is less likely to be lonely. Another contribution of this article is the discussion of the implications of the data mining problem for governments, businesses, developers and the SNS users themselves.

  14. The virtual analyst program: automated data mining, error analysis, and reporting

    Treesearch

    W. Keith Moser; Mark H. Hansen; Patrick Miles; Ronald E. McRoberts

    2007-01-01

    The Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service conducts ongoing comprehensive inventories of the forest resources of the United States. The Northern Region FIA (NFIA) program has three tasks: (1) core reporting function, which produces the annual and 5-year inventory reports; (2) forest health measurements; and (3)...

  15. 43 CFR 3420.4-3 - Consultation with Governors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... a National Forest would, if leased, be mined by surface mining methods, the Governor of the state in... of the Governor(s) if he determines that they provide for a reasonable balance between the national...

  16. 43 CFR 3420.4-3 - Consultation with Governors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... a National Forest would, if leased, be mined by surface mining methods, the Governor of the state in... of the Governor(s) if he determines that they provide for a reasonable balance between the national...

  17. 43 CFR 3420.4-3 - Consultation with Governors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... a National Forest would, if leased, be mined by surface mining methods, the Governor of the state in... of the Governor(s) if he determines that they provide for a reasonable balance between the national...

  18. 43 CFR 3420.4-3 - Consultation with Governors.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... a National Forest would, if leased, be mined by surface mining methods, the Governor of the state in... of the Governor(s) if he determines that they provide for a reasonable balance between the national...

  19. Alaska Department of Natural Resources

    Science.gov Websites

    Agriculture Forestry Geological and Geophysical Surveys Mining, Land and Water Division of Oil and Gas Parks Permitting Boards/Commissions Board of Agriculture Board of Forestry Community Forest Council Forest

  20. Development of a Unique Web2.0 Interface for Global Collaboration in Land Cover Change Research

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dunham, M.; Boriah, S.; Mithal, V.; Garg, A.; Steinbach, M.; Kumar, V.; Potter, C. S.; Klooster, S.; Castilla-Rubio, J.

    2010-12-01

    The ability to detect changes in forest cover is of critical importance for both economic and scientific reasons, e.g. using forests for economic carbon sink management and studying natural and anthropogenic impacts on ecosystems. The contribution of greenhouse gases from deforestation is one of the most uncertain elements of the global carbon cycle. In fact, changes in forests account for as much as 20% of the greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere, an amount second only to fossil fuel emissions. Thus, a key ingredient for effective forest management, whether for carbon trading or other purposes, is quantifiable knowledge about changes in forest cover. Rich amounts of data from remotely-sensed images are now becoming available for detecting changes in forests or more generally, land cover. However, in spite of the importance of this problem and the considerable advances made over the last few years in high-resolution satellite data acquisition, data mining, and online mapping tools and services, end users still lack practical tools to help them manage and transform this data into actionable knowledge of changes in forest ecosystems that can be used for decision making and policy planning purposes. We have developed innovations in a number of technical areas with the goal of providing actionable knowledge to end users: (i) identification of changes in global forest cover, (ii) characterization of those changes, (iii) discovery of relationships between the number, magnitude, and type of these changes with natural and anthropogenic variables, and (iv) a web-based platform that supports interactive visualization of disturbances and relationships. The focus of this abstract is on the interactive web-based platform. This key component of the project is a graphical user interface built on the Flash framework. The viewer is a groundbreaking, multi-purpose application used for everything from algorithm refinement and data analysis for the team to a demonstration platform for research partners. The team continues to develop the utility to allow for worldwide researcher and community contributions with the hopes of enhancing global understanding of environmental change.

  1. Design of material management system of mining group based on Hadoop

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xia, Zhiyuan; Tan, Zhuoying; Qi, Kuan; Li, Wen

    2018-01-01

    Under the background of persistent slowdown in mining market at present, improving the management level in mining group has become the key link to improve the economic benefit of the mine. According to the practical material management in mining group, three core components of Hadoop are applied: distributed file system HDFS, distributed computing framework Map/Reduce and distributed database HBase. Material management system of mining group based on Hadoop is constructed with the three core components of Hadoop and SSH framework technology. This system was found to strengthen collaboration between mining group and affiliated companies, and then the problems such as inefficient management, server pressure, hardware equipment performance deficiencies that exist in traditional mining material-management system are solved, and then mining group materials management is optimized, the cost of mining management is saved, the enterprise profit is increased.

  2. 76 FR 37826 - Public Land Order No. 7773; Emergency Withdrawal of Public and National Forest System Lands...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-06-28

    ...] Public Land Order No. 7773; Emergency Withdrawal of Public and National Forest System Lands, Coconino and... Forest System lands from location and entry under the 1872 Mining Law for a period of 6 months under the... described above aggregate approximately 1,010,776 acres public and National Forest System lands in Coconino...

  3. Tree planting - strip-mined area in Maryland

    Treesearch

    Fred L. Bagley

    1980-01-01

    This report is written to elucidate some of the problems encountered in the planting of trees on strip-mined areas in Maryland. When problems are recognized, normally a solution (or at least, an improvement) can be instituted to alleviate the problem. The methods cited herein are those of experienced foresters engaged in strip-mine planting during the past seventeen...

  4. Export of detritus and invertebrate from headwater streams: linking mountaintop removal and valley fill coal mining to downstream receiving waters

    EPA Science Inventory

    Mountaintop removal and valley fill (MTR/VF) coal mining has resulted in large scale alteration of the topography, reduced forest productivity, and burial of headwater streams in the U.S. Central Appalachians. Although MTR/VF coal mining has occurred for several decades and the ...

  5. A procedure for NEPA assessment of selenium hazards associated with mining

    Treesearch

    Dennis A. Lemly

    2007-01-01

    This paper gives step-by-step instructions for assessing aquatic selenium hazards associated with mining. The procedure was developed to provide the U.S. Forest Service with a proactive capability for determining the risk of selenium pollution when it reviews mine permit applications in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The procedural...

  6. 77 FR 64097 - Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement to the 2011 Final EIS for the Leasing and Underground...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-10-18

    ... Final EIS for the Leasing and Underground Mining of the Greens Hollow Federal Coal Lease Tract (UTU... Mining of the Greens Hollow Federal Coal Lease Tract UTU-84102. Supplemental analyses are required to... mining methods, with foreseeable access from existing adjacent leases. The Forest Service and BLM have...

  7. Several problems in regard to national land management

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Dong Wenlang

    1983-09-21

    This article examines several problems with regard to land management in China. National land management is defined as development of the territorial land (including the earth's surface and underground), territorial waters and territorial air space under the jurisdiction of a sovereign country. The Chinese State Council established the Bureau of National Land Management in 1981. Areas of concern include natural resources, or land resources (including continental land, rivers and lakes, territorial waters and what is beneath the waters and the airspace above the waters, also the continental shelves), mineral resources and biological resources; social resources, which include human resources, intellectualmore » resources, social and cultural traditions, and the material and technical foundations of a society. Untapped resources of land, waters, forests, grasslands and minerals are to be developed through reclamation, mining, and engineering projects. Geography and national land economics are the theoretical and applied sciences directly related to national land management.« less

  8. 30 CFR 947.816 - Performance standards-surface mining activities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ..., DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR PROGRAMS FOR THE CONDUCT OF SURFACE MINING OPERATIONS WITHIN EACH STATE WASHINGTON... Forest Practices Act, RCW 76.09, the Water Pollution Control Act, RCW 90.48, the Minimum Water Flows and...

  9. Evaluation of plant species composition after thirteen years post coal mining rehabilitation in East Kutai District of East Kalimantan, Indonesia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Komara, L. L.; Murtinah, V.; Arbain

    2018-04-01

    Coal mining leaving large overburden which needs to be rehabilitated by conducting reclamation and re-vegetation. This study objective was to evaluate plant species composition after thirteen years of re-vegetation activities in a coal mining rehabilitation site in KutaiTimur District, East Kalimantan, with coordinate 00º33’23”-00º38’17” NL and 117º23’55”-117º23’20” EL. This study compared rehabilitation site with the natural forest conditions sites. There were found 28 plant species in the rehabilitation site, consisting of 19 wood species (Cassia siamea and Ficus uncinata) and 9 non-wood species (Nephrolepis biserata and Miscanthus javanica).In comparison, 36 species were found in the natural forest condition, consisting of 25 woody species (Nephelium eriopetalum and Macaranga hypoleuca)and 11 non-wood species (Fordia splendidisima and Saurauia umbellata). Woody species diversity indices in the rehabilitation site after 13 years post mining (i.e., 2,21) was lower than in the natural forest sites (3,01); while the diversity indices for non-wood species were relatively similar (1,48 and 1,96 in the rehabilitation and natural forest sites respectively). Species richness of non-wood species was low, but it has a high coverage per species in this site.To restore rehabilitation site woody species to its assumed natural conditions, 22woody species should be planted.

  10. Changes in the Extent of Surface Mining and Reclamation in the Central Appalachians Detected Using a 1976-2006 Landsat Time Series

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Townsend, Philip A.; Helmers, David P.; Kingdon, Clayton C.; McNeil, Brenden E.; de Beurs, Kirsten M.; Eshleman, Keith N.

    2009-01-01

    Surface mining and reclamation is the dominant driver of land cover land use change (LCLUC) in the Central Appalachian Mountain region of the Eastern U.S. Accurate quantification of the extent of mining activities is important for assessing how this LCLUC affects ecosystem services such as aesthetics, biodiversity, and mitigation of flooding.We used Landsat imagery from 1976, 1987, 1999 and 2006 to map the extent of surface mines and mine reclamation for eight large watersheds in the Central Appalachian region of West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. We employed standard image processing techniques in conjunction with a temporal decision tree and GIS maps of mine permits and wetlands to map active and reclaimed mines and track changes through time. For the entire study area, active surface mine extent was highest in 1976, prior to implementation of the Surface Mine Control and Reclamation Act in 1977, with 1.76% of the study area in active mines, declining to 0.44% in 2006. The most extensively mined watershed, Georges Creek in Maryland, was 5.45% active mines in 1976, declining to 1.83% in 2006. For the entire study area, the area of reclaimed mines increased from 1.35% to 4.99% from 1976 to 2006, and from 4.71% to 15.42% in Georges Creek. Land cover conversion to mines and then reclaimed mines after 1976 was almost exclusively from forest. Accuracy levels for mined and reclaimed cover was above 85% for all time periods, and was generally above 80% for mapping active and reclaimed mines separately, especially for the later time periods in which good accuracy assessment data were available. Among other implications, the mapped patterns of LCLUC are likely to significantly affect watershed hydrology, as mined and reclaimed areas have lower infiltration capacity and thus more rapid runoff than unmined forest watersheds, leading to greater potential for extreme flooding during heavy rainfall events.

  11. Carbon Sequestration on Surface Mine Lands

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Donald Graves; Christopher Barton; Richard Sweigard

    2006-03-31

    Since the implementation of the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) in May of 1978, many opportunities have been lost for the reforestation of surface mines in the eastern United States. Research has shown that excessive compaction of spoil material in the backfilling and grading process is the biggest impediment to the establishment of productive forests as a post-mining land use (Ashby, 1998, Burger et al., 1994, Graves et al., 2000). Stability of mine sites was a prominent concern among regulators and mine operators in the years immediately following the implementation of SMCRA. These concerns resultedmore » in the highly compacted, flatly graded, and consequently unproductive spoils of the early post-SMCRA era. However, there is nothing in the regulations that requires mine sites to be overly compacted as long as stability is achieved. It has been cultural barriers and not regulatory barriers that have contributed to the failure of reforestation efforts under the federal law over the past 27 years. Efforts to change the perception that the federal law and regulations impede effective reforestation techniques and interfere with bond release must be implemented. Demonstration of techniques that lead to the successful reforestation of surface mines is one such method that can be used to change perceptions and protect the forest ecosystems that were indigenous to these areas prior to mining. The University of Kentucky initiated a large-scale reforestation effort to address regulatory and cultural impediments to forest reclamation in 2003. During the three years of this project 383,000 trees were planted on over 556 acres in different physiographic areas of Kentucky (Table 1, Figure 1). Species used for the project were similar to those that existed on the sites before mining was initiated (Table 2). A monitoring program was undertaken to evaluate growth and survival of the planted species as a function of spoil characteristics and reclamation practice. In addition, experiments were integrated within the reforestation effort to address specific questions pertaining to sequestration of carbon (C) on these sites.« less

  12. Forestry as a reclamation practice on strip mined lands in Kansas

    Treesearch

    Harold G. Gallaher; Gary G. Naughton

    1980-01-01

    A general description of the significance of coal strip mining in Kansas and the current efforts to reclaim spoil banks to forest uses. Landowner's objectives are shown to be the most limiting factor in forestry operations.

  13. Trees for tomorrow

    Treesearch

    Edward A. Johnson

    1980-01-01

    As coal production increases, forestry will become an increasingly important land use both before and after mining activity. New studies are needed to determine the long-range effect of mining in forested areas and to maximize the production of wood products on reclaimed areas.

  14. 76 FR 40875 - Cedar Gulch Mine, Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, Josephine County, OR

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-07-12

    ... listed as threatened under the Endangered Special Act, as amended (specifically coho salmon and the... National Forest System surface resources. Responsible Official Roy Bergstrom, District Ranger, Wild Rivers...

  15. Impact of ecosystem management on microbial community level physiological profiles of postmining forest rehabilitation.

    PubMed

    Cookson, W R; O'Donnell, A J; Grant, C D; Grierson, P F; Murphy, D V

    2008-02-01

    We investigated the impacts of forest thinning, prescribed fire, and contour ripping on community level physiological profiles (CLPP) of the soil microbial population in postmining forest rehabilitation. We hypothesized that these management practices would affect CLPP via an influence on the quality and quantity of soil organic matter. The study site was an area of Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata Donn ex Sm.) forest rehabilitation that had been mined for bauxite 12 years previously. Three replicate plots (20 x 20 m) were established in nontreated forest and in forest thinned from 3,000-8,000 stems ha(-1) to 600-800 stems ha(-1) in April (autumn) of 2003, followed either by a prescribed fire in September (spring) of 2003 or left nonburned. Soil samples were collected in August 2004 from two soil depths (0-5 cm and 5-10 cm) and from within mounds and furrows caused by postmining contour ripping. CLPP were not affected by prescribed fire, although the soil pH and organic carbon (C), total C and total nitrogen (N) contents were greater in burned compared with nonburned plots, and the coarse and fine litter mass lower. However, CLPP were affected by forest thinning, as were fine litter mass, soil C/N ratio, and soil pH, which were all higher in thinned than nonthinned plots. Furrow soil had greater coarse and fine litter mass, and inorganic phosphorous (P), organic P, organic C, total C, total N, ammonium, microbial biomass C contents, but lower soil pH and soil C/N ratio than mound soil. Soil pH, inorganic P, organic P, organic C, total C and N, ammonium, and microbial biomass C contents also decreased with depth, whereas soil C/N ratio increased. Differences in CLPP were largely (94%) associated with the relative utilization of gluconic, malic (greater in nonthinned than thinned soil and mound than furrow soil), L-tartaric, succinic, and uric acids (greater in thinned than nonthinned, mound than furrow, and 5-10 cm than 0-5 cm soil). The relative utilization of amino acids also tended to increase with increasing soil total C and organic C contents but decreased with increasing nitrate content, whereas the opposite was true for carboxylic acids. Only 45% of the variance in CLPP was explained using a multivariate multiple regression model, but soil C and N pools and litter mass were significant predictors of CLPP. Differences in soil textural components between treatments were also correlated with CLPP; likely causes of these differences are discussed. Our results suggest that 1 year after treatment, CLPP from this mined forest ecosystem are resilient to a spring prescribed fire but not forest thinning. We conclude that differences in CLPP are likely to result from complex interactions among soil properties that mediate substrate availability, microbial nutrient demand, and microbial community composition.

  16. The red oak - white oak forests of the Anthracite Region

    Treesearch

    C. F. Burnham; M. J. Ferree; F. E. Cunningham

    1947-01-01

    The red oak - white oak forests of the Anthracite Region occupy as substantial portion - 28.6 percent or 915,200 acres - of the region's 3,198,400 acres of forest land. These forests have been so heavily cut for lumber and mine timbers during the past 100 years and have been so badly ravaged by fire following these heavy cuttings that in their present condition...

  17. Amazonian forest restoration: an innovative system for native species selection based on phenological data and performance indices

    Treesearch

    Oliver H. Knowles; John A. Parrotta

    1995-01-01

    One hundred and sixty taxa of upland moist forest trees were studied with reference to their suitability for forest restoration on bauxite mined Iands in western Para State, Brazil. Over a 14-year period, field observations in native primary forests, nursery studies, and evaluations of over 600 ha of mixed-species reforestation areas were used to characterize fruiting...

  18. To provide for the conveyance of a small parcel of National Forest System land in Los Padres National Forest in California, and for other purposes.

    THOMAS, 113th Congress

    Rep. Capps, Lois [D-CA-24

    2013-08-02

    Senate - 07/30/2014 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. (All Actions) Tracker: This bill has the status Passed HouseHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

  19. 75 FR 25881 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal Extension and Opportunity for Public Meeting; Arizona

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-05-10

    ... National Forest System land from the mining laws to protect the Smithsonian Institution's Fred Lawrence...: Comments and meeting request should be sent to the Coronado National Forest Office, Federal Building, 300... approximately 61.356 acres of National Forest System land located in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, from location...

  20. 75 FR 25882 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal Extension and Opportunity for Public Meeting; Arizona

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-05-10

    ... National Forest System land from the mining laws for use as a base camp site for the Smithsonian..., 2010. ADDRESSES: Comments and meeting request should be sent to the Coronado National Forest Office... acres of National Forest System land located in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, from location and entry...

  1. 75 FR 8111 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal Extension and Opportunity for Public Meeting; Alaska

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-02-23

    ... National Forest System land from surface entry and mining, but not from mineral leasing laws, to protect... the Juneau Falls Recreation Area. This withdrawal comprises approximately 320 acres of National Forest System land located in the Chugach National Forest, within T. 5 N., R. 4 W., Seward Meridian, as...

  2. Chapter 7: Selecting tree species for reforestation of Appalachian mined lands

    Treesearch

    V. Davis; J.A. Burger; R. Rathfon; C.E. Zipper

    2017-01-01

    The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) is a method for reclaiming coal-mined land to forested postmining land uses under the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) (Chapter 2, this volume). Step 4 of the FRA is to plant native trees for commercial timber value, wildlife habitat, soil stability, watershed protection, and other environmental...

  3. 36 CFR 251.10 - Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. 251.10 Section 251.10... areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. The location of mining claims in such areas within...

  4. 36 CFR 251.10 - Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. 251.10 Section 251.10... areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. The location of mining claims in such areas within...

  5. 36 CFR 251.10 - Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. 251.10 Section 251.10... areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. The location of mining claims in such areas within...

  6. 36 CFR 251.10 - Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. 251.10 Section 251.10... areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. The location of mining claims in such areas within...

  7. 36 CFR 251.10 - Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 2 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Prohibition of location of mining claims within certain areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. 251.10 Section 251.10... areas in the Norbeck Wildlife Preserve, South Dakota. The location of mining claims in such areas within...

  8. Reforesting unused surface mined lands by replanting with native trees

    Treesearch

    Patrick N. Angel; James A. Burger; Carl E. Zipper; Scott Eggerud

    2012-01-01

    More than 600,000 ha (1.5 million ac) of mostly forested land in the Appalachian region were surface mined for coal under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act. Today, these lands are largely unmanaged and covered with persistent herbaceous species, such as fescue (Festuca spp.) and sericea lespedeza (Lespedeza cuneata [Dum. Cours.] G. Don,) and a mix of...

  9. Bibliography of surface-mine reclamation research: 1976-1993

    Treesearch

    Jerry T. Crews

    1999-01-01

    Contains citations for 177 articles and publications that describe research on or related to reclamation of surface-mined lands conducted from 1976 through 1993 by scientists with the Northeastern Forest Experiment Station and cooperating organizations. A subject index is included.

  10. OVERVIEW OF MINE WASTE TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Mine Waste Technology Program (MWTP) is an interagency agreement with the DOE and has partnerships with Universities, Forest Service, BLM, Industry and states. The mission of the MWTP is to provide engineering solutions to national environmental issues resulting from the past...

  11. Exploring an Ecologically Sustainable Scheme for Landscape Restoration of Abandoned Mine Land: Scenario-Based Simulation Integrated Linear Programming and CLUE-S Model

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Liping; Zhang, Shiwen; Huang, Yajie; Cao, Meng; Huang, Yuanfang; Zhang, Hongyan

    2016-01-01

    Understanding abandoned mine land (AML) changes during land reclamation is crucial for reusing damaged land resources and formulating sound ecological restoration policies. This study combines the linear programming (LP) model and the CLUE-S model to simulate land-use dynamics in the Mentougou District (Beijing, China) from 2007 to 2020 under three reclamation scenarios, that is, the planning scenario based on the general land-use plan in study area (scenario 1), maximal comprehensive benefits (scenario 2), and maximal ecosystem service value (scenario 3). Nine landscape-scale graph metrics were then selected to describe the landscape characteristics. The results show that the coupled model presented can simulate the dynamics of AML effectively and the spatially explicit transformations of AML were different. New cultivated land dominates in scenario 1, while construction land and forest land account for major percentages in scenarios 2 and 3, respectively. Scenario 3 has an advantage in most of the selected indices as the patches combined most closely. To conclude, reclaiming AML by transformation into more forest can reduce the variability and maintain the stability of the landscape ecological system in study area. These findings contribute to better mapping AML dynamics and providing policy support for the management of AML. PMID:27023575

  12. Exploring an Ecologically Sustainable Scheme for Landscape Restoration of Abandoned Mine Land: Scenario-Based Simulation Integrated Linear Programming and CLUE-S Model.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Liping; Zhang, Shiwen; Huang, Yajie; Cao, Meng; Huang, Yuanfang; Zhang, Hongyan

    2016-03-24

    Understanding abandoned mine land (AML) changes during land reclamation is crucial for reusing damaged land resources and formulating sound ecological restoration policies. This study combines the linear programming (LP) model and the CLUE-S model to simulate land-use dynamics in the Mentougou District (Beijing, China) from 2007 to 2020 under three reclamation scenarios, that is, the planning scenario based on the general land-use plan in study area (scenario 1), maximal comprehensive benefits (scenario 2), and maximal ecosystem service value (scenario 3). Nine landscape-scale graph metrics were then selected to describe the landscape characteristics. The results show that the coupled model presented can simulate the dynamics of AML effectively and the spatially explicit transformations of AML were different. New cultivated land dominates in scenario 1, while construction land and forest land account for major percentages in scenarios 2 and 3, respectively. Scenario 3 has an advantage in most of the selected indices as the patches combined most closely. To conclude, reclaiming AML by transformation into more forest can reduce the variability and maintain the stability of the landscape ecological system in study area. These findings contribute to better mapping AML dynamics and providing policy support for the management of AML.

  13. Silent reminders: geologic wonders of the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    ,; ,

    2001-01-01

    The iron industry played a vital role in the industrialization of the United States and in the development of the U.S. economy and society. Much of the early history of the iron industry took place in Virginia. The remains of 11 iron furnaces and nearby mines in the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests in Virginia and West Virginia are silent reminders of a time when iron mines and furnaces operated along a belt that extended through the Appalachian Mountains from New York State to Alabama.

  14. Policy Implications and Suggestions on Administrative Measures of Urban Flood

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, S. V.; Lee, M. J.; Lee, C.; Yoon, J. H.; Chae, S. H.

    2017-12-01

    The frequency and intensity of floods are increasing worldwide as recent climate change progresses gradually. Flood management should be policy-oriented in urban municipalities due to the characteristics of urban areas with a lot of damage. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to prepare a flood susceptibility map by using data mining model and make a policy suggestion on administrative measures of urban flood. Therefore, we constructed a spatial database by collecting relevant factors including the topography, geology, soil and land use data of the representative city, Seoul, the capital city of Korea. Flood susceptibility map was constructed by applying the data mining models of random forest and boosted tree model to input data and existing flooded area data in 2010. The susceptibility map has been validated using the 2011 flood area data which was not used for training. The predictor importance value of each factor to the results was calculated in this process. The distance from the water, DEM and geology showed a high predictor importance value which means to be a high priority for flood preparation policy. As a result of receiver operating characteristic (ROC), random forest model showed 78.78% and 79.18% accuracy of regression and classification and boosted tree model showed 77.55% and 77.26% accuracy of regression and classification, respectively. The results show that the flood susceptibility maps can be applied to flood prevention and management, and it also can help determine the priority areas for flood mitigation policy by providing useful information to policy makers.

  15. Water, Energy and Carbon Balance Research: Recovery Trajectories For Oil Sands Reclamation and Disturbed Watersheds in the Western Boreal Forest

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Petrone, R. M.; Carey, S. K.

    2014-12-01

    The Oil Sand Region (OSR) of North-Central Alberta exists within the sub-humid Boreal Plains (BP) ecozone, with a slight long-term moisture deficit regime. Despite this deficit, the BP is comprised of productive wetland and mixed wood (aspen and conifer dominated) forests. Reclamation activities are now underway at a large number of surface mining operations in the OSR, where target ecosystems are identified, soil prescriptions placed and commercial forest species planted. Some watersheds have been created that now contain wetlands. However, recent work in the BP suggests that over time wetlands supply moisture for the productivity of upland forests. Thus, water use of reclaimed forests is going to be critical in determining the sustainability of these systems and adjacent wetlands, and whether in time, either will achieve some form of equivalent capability that will allow for certification by regulators. A critical component in the success of any reclamation is that sufficient water is available to support target ecosystems through the course of natural climate cycles in the region. Water Use Efficiency (WUE), which links photosynthesis (GEP) with water use (Evapotranspiration (ET)), provides a useful metric to compare ecosystems and evaluate their utilization of resources. In this study, 41 site years of total growing season water and carbon flux data over 8 sites (4 reclamation, 4 regeneration) were evaluated using eddy covariance micrometeorological towers. WUE shows clear discrimination among ecosystem types as aspen stands assimilate more carbon per unit weight of water than conifers. WUEs also change with time as ecosystems become more effective at transpiring water through plant pathways compared with bare-soil evaporation, which allows an assessment of ability to limit water loss without carbon uptake. In addition, clonal rooting systems allow aspen forests to recover quicker after disturbance than reclamation sites in terms of their WUE. For reclamation sites, there is considerable variability in GEP and ET associated with vegetation establishment, with enhanced ET losses over-riding any significant changes in C uptake, suggesting that long-term mine water management must consider ecosystem pathways if down-gradient wetlands and end-pit lakes are to be sustained.

  16. Reforestation as a post-mining land use in the Midwest

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Parr, D.E.

    1982-12-01

    With the passage of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (P.L. 95-87), some very stringent requirements for the successful establishment of trees and shrubs have come into effect. In response to these requirements, AMAX Coal Company is developing a reforestation program for seven surface mines in Indiana and Illinois using the best technology currently available. The program emphasizes obtaining good quality stock, the proper care and handling of stock, the proper planting of the stock, and an effective weed control program. The value of weed control for the establishment and growth of hardwoods has long been recognizedmore » in the forest industry, but has not been used extensively in the reforestation of surface mined lands. The improved survival of tree seedlings with the use of weed control justifies the additional cost. Weed control also enhances the growth of tree seedlings. However, the long term growth of seedlings is questionable due to the compaction resulting from the extensive grading required to achieve approximate original contour. To minimize compaction, a forest area in Illinois is being minimally graded only to the extent necessary for environmental stability. Minimal grading is designed to reduce compaction which in turn will promote the development of a more productive forest resource.« less

  17. Sustainable Mineral-Intensive Growth in Odisha, India

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nayak, S.

    2012-04-01

    The focus of the work is to highlight the present environmental and social impacts of extensive mining on the health of the common people of Odisha. The mining activities have created havoc impact to the environment and social life of the state. Odisha has huge deposits of ores and minerals of chromite, nickel, bauxite, iron, coal, copper, manganese, graphite, vanadium etc. The mining activities have encouraged rapid urbanization and at the same time have altered the topography of these areas and extensively degraded the forest land. For long term sustainable development of the society, it is necessary to take a balanced and integrated approach towards environmental protection and economic advancement. Industries should aim at achieving their goals, through a system of permits based on best available techniques, which gives emphasis on integrated prevention and control of consumption of energy and water as well as pollution of water, air and soil. The rapid industrial growth has brought promising opportunities for economic development and poverty reduction in Odisha but at the same time has caused extensive environmental degradation. The best management practices to deal with environmental and social impacts on mineral-intensive growth are suggested in this work. In addition to lean technology, economic implications of the introduction of environmental technologies for mining activities are also discussed.

  18. Applying genetic algorithms to set the optimal combination of forest fire related variables and model forest fire susceptibility based on data mining models. The case of Dayu County, China.

    PubMed

    Hong, Haoyuan; Tsangaratos, Paraskevas; Ilia, Ioanna; Liu, Junzhi; Zhu, A-Xing; Xu, Chong

    2018-07-15

    The main objective of the present study was to utilize Genetic Algorithms (GA) in order to obtain the optimal combination of forest fire related variables and apply data mining methods for constructing a forest fire susceptibility map. In the proposed approach, a Random Forest (RF) and a Support Vector Machine (SVM) was used to produce a forest fire susceptibility map for the Dayu County which is located in southwest of Jiangxi Province, China. For this purpose, historic forest fires and thirteen forest fire related variables were analyzed, namely: elevation, slope angle, aspect, curvature, land use, soil cover, heat load index, normalized difference vegetation index, mean annual temperature, mean annual wind speed, mean annual rainfall, distance to river network and distance to road network. The Natural Break and the Certainty Factor method were used to classify and weight the thirteen variables, while a multicollinearity analysis was performed to determine the correlation among the variables and decide about their usability. The optimal set of variables, determined by the GA limited the number of variables into eight excluding from the analysis, aspect, land use, heat load index, distance to river network and mean annual rainfall. The performance of the forest fire models was evaluated by using the area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve (ROC-AUC) based on the validation dataset. Overall, the RF models gave higher AUC values. Also the results showed that the proposed optimized models outperform the original models. Specifically, the optimized RF model gave the best results (0.8495), followed by the original RF (0.8169), while the optimized SVM gave lower values (0.7456) than the RF, however higher than the original SVM (0.7148) model. The study highlights the significance of feature selection techniques in forest fire susceptibility, whereas data mining methods could be considered as a valid approach for forest fire susceptibility modeling. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. AN OVERVIEW OF THE MINE WASTE TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM PROJECTS

    EPA Science Inventory

    The Mine Waste Technology Program (MWTP) is an interagency agreement with the DOE and has partnerships with Universities, Forest Service, BLM, Industry and states. The mission of the MWTP is to provide engineering solutions to national environmental issues resulting from the past...

  20. Alaska Department of Natural Resources

    Science.gov Websites

    and Commissions Board of Agriculture Board of Forestry Community Forest Council Forest Stewardship Development Advisory Board Media Releases Public Notices Divisions/Offices Divisions Agriculture Forestry Programs and Services Agriculture Forestry Geological & Geophysical Surveys Mining, Land & Water

  1. Alaska Department of Natural Resources

    Science.gov Websites

    Commissions Board of Agriculture Board of Forestry Community Forest Council Forest Stewardship Coordinating Development Advisory Board Media Releases Public Notices Divisions/Offices Divisions Agriculture Forestry divisions reflect its major programs: Agriculture, Forestry, Geological & Geophysical Surveys, Mining

  2. Alaska Department of Natural Resources

    Science.gov Websites

    Commissions Board of Agriculture Board of Forestry Community Forest Council Forest Stewardship Coordinating Development Advisory Board Media Releases Public Notices Divisions/Offices Divisions Agriculture Forestry major programs: Agriculture, Forestry, Geological & Geophysical Surveys, Mining, Land & Water

  3. Thinning young oak stands for small mine timbers - at a profit

    Treesearch

    Stanley M. Filip

    1949-01-01

    Young red oak-white oak stands in the Anthracite Forest Region of Pennsylvania occupy nearly 3/4 million acres of land (fig. 1). At present they are a source of lagging, forepoles, and small props used in the coal mines. Under good cutting practice, a substantial quantity of these mine timbers could be produced by thinning these stands, which would at the same time...

  4. Ecological restoration of litter in mined areas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Teresinha Gonçalves Bizuti, Denise; Nino Diniz, Najara; Schweizer, Daniella; de Marchi Soares, Thaís; Casagrande, José Carlos; Henrique Santin Brancalion, Pedro

    2016-04-01

    The success of ecological restoration projects depends on going monitoring of key ecological variables to determine if a desired trajectory has been established and, in the case of mining sites, nutrient cycling recovery plays an utmost importance. This study aimed to quantify and compare the annual litter production in native forests, and in restoration sites established in bauxite mines. We collected samples in 6 native forest remnants and 6 year-old restoration sites every month for a period of one year, in the city of Poços de Caldas/MG, SE Brazil. 120 wire collectors were used (0,6x0,6) and suspended 30cm above the soil surface. The material was dried until constant weight, weighed and fractionated in leaves, branches and reproductive material. The average annual litter production was 2,6 Mg ha-1 in native forests and 2,1 in forest in restoration sites, differing statistically. Litter production was higher in the rainy season, especially in September. Among the litter components, the largest contributor to total production was the fraction leaves, with 55,4% of the total dry weight of material collected, followed by reproductive material which contributed 24,5% and branches, with 20%. We conclude that the young areas in restoration process already restored important part, but still below the production observed in native areas.

  5. Preliminary geologic map of the Chugach National Forest Special Study Area, Alaska

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Nelson, Steven W.; Miller, Marti L.; Haeussler, Peter J.; Snee, Lawrence W.; Philips, Patti J.; Huber, Carol

    1999-01-01

    In 1990, both the U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Bureau of Mines were contacted by the Chugach National Forest (CNF) for the purpose of providing mineral resource information for the CNF Master Plan during the planning period fiscal years 1991-1994. This information is to address the terms and requirements of the 1986 Settlement Agreement and to provide mineral and geologic information useful to the CNF for making land-use decisions. In early 1992 an Interagency Agreement between the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Bureau of Mines and the Chugach National Forest was signed. In this agreement the U.S. Geological Survey is to provide a report which estimates the undiscovered mineral endowments of the 'special' study area and to identify the potential for mineral discovery and development. The U.S. Bureau of Mines was to prepare a report updating the discovered mineral endowment of the Special Study Area. These reports are now published (Roe and Balen, 1994; Nelson and others, 1994). This geologic map is a component of the U.S. Geological Survey contribution to the overall project.

  6. Towards a System Combining SAR and Optical Sentinel Data to Monitor Gold Mining in the Guiana Shield

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rahm, Mathieu; Lardeux, Cedric; Frison, Pierre-Louis; Bedeau, Caroline; Crabbe, Sarah; Svensson, Sara; Hardjoprajitno, Mercedes; Moe soe Let, Valentien; Miranda, Pricilla; Paloeng, Consuela; Kasanpawiro, Cindyrella; Smartt, Towana; Totaram, Jasmin; Funi, Claudia; Farias, Patrick; Lauger, Anthony

    2016-08-01

    Included in the Guiana Shield ecosystem which is one of the largest blocks of intact tropical forest worldwide, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and the Brazilian state of Amapá play a critical role in mitigating climate change, preserving biodiversity and regulating water of the Amazon basin. Under low pressure in the past, degradation of this fragile ecosystem is growing, especially driven by gold mining activities.The REDD+ for the Guiana Shield project developed a method involving each country in data production to monitor the impact of this activity on the forest cover and freshwater at the regional level. This paper presents the data and methodology that were used to quantify the impact on the forest cover. It discusses the results of three reference years (2001, 2008 and 2014) which confirmed the alarming expansion of gold mining in the region. Furthermore, the paper shows the results of innovative methods combining the use of optical and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite data on pilot sites to improve the efficiency of future monitoring.

  7. Where Occupation and Environment Overlap: US Forest Service Worker Exposure to Libby Amphibole Fibers

    PubMed Central

    Harper, Martin; Butler, Corey; Berry, David; Wroble, Julie

    2015-01-01

    The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducted an evaluation of exposures to asbestiform amphibole, known as Libby Amphibole (LA), to personnel from the US Department of Agriculture-Forest Service (USFS) working in the Kootenai National Forest near a former vermiculite mine close to Libby, Montana. LA is associated with vermiculite that was obtained from this mine; mining and processing over many years have resulted in the spread of LA into the surrounding Kootenai Forest where it has been found in tree bark, soil, and forest floor litter. As a result of this and other contamination, Libby and surrounding areas have been designated a “Superfund” site by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This article describes the application of EPA methods for assessing cancer risks to NIOSH sampling results. Phase-contrast microscopy for airborne asbestos fiber evaluation was found to be less useful than transmission electron microscopy in the presence of interfering organic (plant) fibers. NIOSH Method 7402 was extended by examination of larger areas of the filter, but fiber counts remained low. There are differences between counting rules in NIOSH 7402 and the ISO method used by EPA but these are minor in the context of the uncertainty in concentration estimates from the low counts. Estimates for cancer risk are generally compatible with those previously estimated by the EPA. However, there are limitations to extrapolating these findings of low risk throughout the entire area and to tasks that were not evaluated. PMID:25715191

  8. Where occupation and environment overlap: US Forest Service worker exposure to Libby Amphibole fibers.

    PubMed

    Harper, Martin; Butler, Corey; Berry, David; Wroble, Julie

    2015-01-01

    The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducted an evaluation of exposures to asbestiform amphibole, known as Libby Amphibole (LA), to personnel from the US Department of Agriculture-Forest Service (USFS) working in the Kootenai National Forest near a former vermiculite mine close to Libby, Montana. LA is associated with vermiculite that was obtained from this mine; mining and processing over many years have resulted in the spread of LA into the surrounding Kootenai Forest where it has been found in tree bark, soil, and forest floor litter. As a result of this and other contamination, Libby and surrounding areas have been designated a "Superfund" site by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This article describes the application of EPA methods for assessing cancer risks to NIOSH sampling results. Phase-contrast microscopy for airborne asbestos fiber evaluation was found to be less useful than transmission electron microscopy in the presence of interfering organic (plant) fibers. NIOSH Method 7402 was extended by examination of larger areas of the filter, but fiber counts remained low. There are differences between counting rules in NIOSH 7402 and the ISO method used by EPA but these are minor in the context of the uncertainty in concentration estimates from the low counts. Estimates for cancer risk are generally compatible with those previously estimated by the EPA. However, there are limitations to extrapolating these findings of low risk throughout the entire area and to tasks that were not evaluated.

  9. A proposal for continuation of support for the application of remotely sensed data to state and regional problems. Part 1: Technical proposal

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    1981-01-01

    The objectives, procedures, accomplishments, plans, and ultimate uses of information from current projects at the Mississippi Remote Sensing Center are discussed for the following applications: (1) land use planning; (2) strip mine inventory and reclamation; (3) biological management for white tailed deer; (4) forest habitats in potential lignite areas; (5) change discrimination in gravel operations; (6) discrimination of freshwater wetlands for inventory and monitoring; and (7) remote sensing data analysis support systems. The initiation of a conceptual design for a LANDSAT based, state wide information system is proposed.

  10. Assessment of carbon sequestration potential of revegetated coal mine overburden dumps: A chronosequence study from dry tropical climate.

    PubMed

    Ahirwal, Jitendra; Maiti, Subodh Kumar

    2017-10-01

    Development of secondary forest as post-mining land use in the surface coal mining degraded sites is of high research interest due to its potential to sequester atmospheric carbon (C). The objectives of this study were to assess the improvement in mine soil quality and C sequestration potential of the post-mining reclaimed land with time. Hence, this study was conducted in reclaimed chronosequence sites (young, intermediate and old) of a large open cast coal project (Central Coal Fields Limited, Jharkhand, India) and results were compared to a reference forest site (Sal forest, Shorea robusta). Mine soil quality was assessed in terms of accretion of soil organic carbon (SOC), available nitrogen (N) and soil CO 2 flux along with the age of revegetation. After 14 years of revegetation, SOC and N concentrations increased three and five-fold, respectively and found equivalent to the reference site. Accretion of SOC stock was estimated to be 1.9 Mg C ha -1 year -1 . Total ecosystem C sequestered after 2-14 years of revegetation increased from 8 Mg C ha -1 to 90 Mg C ha -1 (30-333 Mg CO 2 ha -1 ) with an average rate of 6.4 Mg C ha -1 year -1 . Above ground biomass contributes maximum C sequestrate (50%) in revegetated site. CO 2 flux increased with age of revegetation and found 11, 33 and 42 Mg CO 2 ha -1 year -1 in younger, intermediate and older dumps, respectively. Soil respiration in revegetated site is more influenced by the temperature than soil moisture. Results of the study also showed that trees like, Dalbergia sissoo and Heterophragma adenophyllum should be preferred for revegetation of mine degraded sites. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  11. Mercury Speciation and Trophic Magnification Slopes in Giant Salamander Larvae from the Pacific Northwest, USA

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bank, M. S.; Crocker, J.; Wachtl, J.; Kleeman, P.; Fellers, G.; Currens, C.; Hothem, R.; Madej, M. A.

    2014-12-01

    Mercury (Hg) contamination of stream salamanders in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States has received little attention. Here we report total Hg (HgT) and methyl mercury (MeHg) concentrations in larval giant salamanders (Dicamptodon spp.) and surface water from forested and chaparral lotic ecosystems distributed along a latitudinal gradient throughout Northern California and Washington. To test hypotheses related to potential effects from mining land-use activities, salamander larvae were also sampled from a reference site at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, California, and at a nearby, upstream site (Shasta county) on Bureau of Land Management land where Hg contamination from gold mining activities has been documented. HgT concentrations in whole body larvae ranged from 4.6 to 74.5 ng/g wet wt. and percent MeHg ranged from 67% to 86%. Both HgT and MeHg larval tissue concentrations were significantly higher at the mining site in comparison to measured background levels (P < 0.001). We conclude that salamander larvae in remote stream ecosystems, where Hg sources were dominated by atmospheric deposition, were generally low in HgT and MeHg and, in comparison, watersheds with a legacy of land-use practices (i.e., mining operations) had approximately 4.5 - 5.5 times the level of HgT bioaccumulation. Moreover, trophic magnification slopes were highest in the Shasta county region where mining was present. These findings suggest that mining activities increase HgT and MeHg exposure to salamander larvae in the region and may present a threat to other higher trophically positioned organisms, and their associated food webs.

  12. 77 FR 46110 - Notice of Application for Proposed Withdrawal Extension and Opportunity for Public Meeting; Oregon

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-08-02

    ... additional 20-year term. PLO No. 6986 withdrew approximately 4,239.95 acres of National Forest System land...)), which withdrew approximately 4,239.95 acres of National Forest System lands in the Siskiyou National Forest, from location and entry under the United States mining laws (30 U.S.C. ch. 2), but not from...

  13. 75 FR 57061 - Public Land Order No. 7749; Extension of Public Land Order Nos. 6801 and 6812; Arizona

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-09-17

    ... National Forest System lands from location or entry under the United States mining laws (30 U.S.C. chapter... Service Coronado National Forest Office, Federal Building, 300 West Congress Street, Tucson, Arizona 85701.... Public Land Order No. 6801 (55 FR 38550, (1990)) that withdrew 61.356 acres of National Forest System...

  14. 75 FR 51110 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal and Opportunity for Public Meeting; South Dakota

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-08-18

    ...,387.22 acres of National Forest System land from mining in order to protect the unique cave resources... other forms of disposition as may by law be made of National Forest System land and to mineral leasing... National Forest, 1019 North 5th Street, Custer, South Dakota 57730, or the Montana State Director (MT- 924...

  15. Boise Basin Experimental Forest (Idaho)

    Treesearch

    Russell T. Graham; Theresa B. Jain

    2004-01-01

    The Boise Basin Experimental Forest was established in 1933 to study ponderosa pine. It consists of 3,537 ha with elevations ranging from 1,200 to 3,630 m. Boise Basin is divided into three units surrounding Idaho City in southern Idaho. Idaho City was a booming mining town in the 1870s and the surrounding forests supplied material to the community. Two units were...

  16. Review of broad-scale drought monitoring of forests: Toward an integrated data mining approach

    Treesearch

    Steve Norman; Frank H. Koch; William W. Hargrove

    2016-01-01

    Efforts to monitor the broad-scale impacts of drought on forests often come up short. Drought is a direct stressor of forests as well as a driver of secondary disturbance agents, making a full accounting of drought impacts challenging. General impacts  can be inferred from moisture deficits quantified using precipitation and temperature measurements. However,...

  17. 30 CFR 875.14 - Eligible lands and water after certification.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    .... 875.14 Section 875.14 Mineral Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT... such mining or processing, and abandoned or left in an inadequate reclamation status before August 3, 1977. However, for Federal lands, waters, and facilities under the jurisdiction of the Forest Service...

  18. 30 CFR 740.4 - Responsibilities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... national forest, as specified in § 761.11(b) of this chapter. (b) OSM is responsible for: (1) Providing a... Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FEDERAL LANDS PROGRAM GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR SURFACE COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS ON FEDERAL LANDS § 740.4...

  19. 30 CFR 740.4 - Responsibilities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... national forest, as specified in § 761.11(b) of this chapter. (b) OSM is responsible for: (1) Providing a... Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FEDERAL LANDS PROGRAM GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR SURFACE COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS ON FEDERAL LANDS § 740.4...

  20. 30 CFR 740.4 - Responsibilities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... national forest, as specified in § 761.11(b) of this chapter. (b) OSM is responsible for: (1) Providing a... Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FEDERAL LANDS PROGRAM GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR SURFACE COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS ON FEDERAL LANDS § 740.4...

  1. 30 CFR 740.4 - Responsibilities.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... national forest, as specified in § 761.11(b) of this chapter. (b) OSM is responsible for: (1) Providing a... Resources OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING RECLAMATION AND ENFORCEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FEDERAL LANDS PROGRAM GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR SURFACE COAL MINING AND RECLAMATION OPERATIONS ON FEDERAL LANDS § 740.4...

  2. Revegetation for aesthetics

    Treesearch

    Bernard M. Slick

    1980-01-01

    Surface mining is changing the landscape character of forests in the East. Aesthetic visual aspects of the landscape are considered in the analysis, planning, and design of revegetation strategies. Application of landscape architectural design techniques in the revegetation of surface-mined lands, as well as knowledge of biological characteristics, will enhance the...

  3. Inyo National Forest Land Exchange Act

    THOMAS, 113th Congress

    Sen. Feinstein, Dianne [D-CA

    2013-12-20

    Senate - 07/30/2014 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Senate Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 113-433. (All Actions) Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

  4. Evaluating data mining algorithms using molecular dynamics trajectories.

    PubMed

    Tatsis, Vasileios A; Tjortjis, Christos; Tzirakis, Panagiotis

    2013-01-01

    Molecular dynamics simulations provide a sample of a molecule's conformational space. Experiments on the mus time scale, resulting in large amounts of data, are nowadays routine. Data mining techniques such as classification provide a way to analyse such data. In this work, we evaluate and compare several classification algorithms using three data sets which resulted from computer simulations, of a potential enzyme mimetic biomolecule. We evaluated 65 classifiers available in the well-known data mining toolkit Weka, using 'classification' errors to assess algorithmic performance. Results suggest that: (i) 'meta' classifiers perform better than the other groups, when applied to molecular dynamics data sets; (ii) Random Forest and Rotation Forest are the best classifiers for all three data sets; and (iii) classification via clustering yields the highest classification error. Our findings are consistent with bibliographic evidence, suggesting a 'roadmap' for dealing with such data.

  5. Species-level persistence probabilities for recovery and conservation status assessment.

    PubMed

    Che-Castaldo, Judy P; Neel, Maile C

    2016-12-01

    Recovery planning for species listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act has been hampered by a lack of consistency and transparency, which can be improved by implementing a standardized approach for evaluating species status and developing measurable recovery criteria. However, managers lack an assessment method that integrates threat abatement and can be used when demographic data are limited. To help meet these needs, we demonstrated an approach for evaluating species status based on habitat configuration data. We applied 3 established persistence measures (patch occupancy, metapopulation capacity, and proportion of population lost) to compare 2 conservation strategies (critical habitat designated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Forest Service's Carbonate Habitat Management Strategy) and 2 threat scenarios (maximum limestone mining, removal of all habitat in areas with mining claims; minimum mining, removal of habitat only in areas with existing operations and high-quality ore) against a baseline of existing habitat for 3 federally listed plant species. Protecting all area within the designated critical habitat maintained a similar level (83.9-99.9%) of species persistence as the baseline, whereas maximum mining greatly reduced persistence (0.51-38.4% maintained). The 3 persistence measures provided complementary insights reflecting different aspects of habitat availability (total area, number of patches, patch size, and connectivity). These measures can be used to link recovery criteria developed following the 3 R principles (representation, redundancy, and resilience) to the resulting improvements in species viability. By focusing on amount and distribution of habitat, our method provides a means of assessing the status of data-poor species to inform decision making under the Endangered Species Act. © 2016 Society for Conservation Biology.

  6. Research on Occupational Safety, Health Management and Risk Control Technology in Coal Mines.

    PubMed

    Zhou, Lu-Jie; Cao, Qing-Gui; Yu, Kai; Wang, Lin-Lin; Wang, Hai-Bin

    2018-04-26

    This paper studies the occupational safety and health management methods as well as risk control technology associated with the coal mining industry, including daily management of occupational safety and health, identification and assessment of risks, early warning and dynamic monitoring of risks, etc.; also, a B/S mode software (Geting Coal Mine, Jining, Shandong, China), i.e., Coal Mine Occupational Safety and Health Management and Risk Control System, is developed to attain the aforementioned objectives, namely promoting the coal mine occupational safety and health management based on early warning and dynamic monitoring of risks. Furthermore, the practical effectiveness and the associated pattern for applying this software package to coal mining is analyzed. The study indicates that the presently developed coal mine occupational safety and health management and risk control technology and the associated software can support the occupational safety and health management efforts in coal mines in a standardized and effective manner. It can also control the accident risks scientifically and effectively; its effective implementation can further improve the coal mine occupational safety and health management mechanism, and further enhance the risk management approaches. Besides, its implementation indicates that the occupational safety and health management and risk control technology has been established based on a benign cycle involving dynamic feedback and scientific development, which can provide a reliable assurance to the safe operation of coal mines.

  7. Research on Occupational Safety, Health Management and Risk Control Technology in Coal Mines

    PubMed Central

    Zhou, Lu-jie; Cao, Qing-gui; Yu, Kai; Wang, Lin-lin; Wang, Hai-bin

    2018-01-01

    This paper studies the occupational safety and health management methods as well as risk control technology associated with the coal mining industry, including daily management of occupational safety and health, identification and assessment of risks, early warning and dynamic monitoring of risks, etc.; also, a B/S mode software (Geting Coal Mine, Jining, Shandong, China), i.e., Coal Mine Occupational Safety and Health Management and Risk Control System, is developed to attain the aforementioned objectives, namely promoting the coal mine occupational safety and health management based on early warning and dynamic monitoring of risks. Furthermore, the practical effectiveness and the associated pattern for applying this software package to coal mining is analyzed. The study indicates that the presently developed coal mine occupational safety and health management and risk control technology and the associated software can support the occupational safety and health management efforts in coal mines in a standardized and effective manner. It can also control the accident risks scientifically and effectively; its effective implementation can further improve the coal mine occupational safety and health management mechanism, and further enhance the risk management approaches. Besides, its implementation indicates that the occupational safety and health management and risk control technology has been established based on a benign cycle involving dynamic feedback and scientific development, which can provide a reliable assurance to the safe operation of coal mines. PMID:29701715

  8. 36 CFR 7.26 - Death Valley National Monument.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Death Valley National... INTERIOR SPECIAL REGULATIONS, AREAS OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM § 7.26 Death Valley National Monument. (a) Mining. Mining in Death Valley National Monument is subject to the following regulations, which are...

  9. 36 CFR 65.2 - Effects of designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... Section 65.2 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... the National Park System. (7) Section 9 of the Mining in the National Parks Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 1342... any surface mining activity which the Secretary has determined may destroy a National Historic...

  10. 36 CFR 65.2 - Effects of designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... Section 65.2 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... the National Park System. (7) Section 9 of the Mining in the National Parks Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 1342... any surface mining activity which the Secretary has determined may destroy a National Historic...

  11. 36 CFR 65.2 - Effects of designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... Section 65.2 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... the National Park System. (7) Section 9 of the Mining in the National Parks Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 1342... any surface mining activity which the Secretary has determined may destroy a National Historic...

  12. Role of mycorrhizae in forestation of surface mines

    Treesearch

    Donald H. Marx

    1980-01-01

    A brief introduction to ecto- and endomycorrhizae and their importance to plants is presented. Recent findings confirm the significance of ectomycorrhizae, particularly those formed by Pisolithus tinctorius in nurseries, to survival and growth of pine seedlings on strip-mined lands. Commercial inoculum of this fungus may be available in 1981. Recent...

  13. 77 FR 18786 - Eastern Washington Cascades Provincial Advisory Committee and the Yakima Provincial Advisory...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-03-28

    ... DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Forest Service Eastern Washington Cascades Provincial Advisory Committee and the Yakima Provincial Advisory Committee AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION: Notice of meeting... Chief's 10-Year Stewardship Challenge, Upper Yakima Basin Water Enhancement Project, Holden Mine...

  14. Studies on mycorrhizal inoculation on dry matter yield and root colonization of some medicinal plants grown in stress and forest soils.

    PubMed

    Chandra, K K; Kumar, Neeraj; Chand, Gireesh

    2010-11-01

    Five medicinal plants viz. Abelmoschatus moschatus Linn., Clitoria tematea L., Plumbagozeylanica L., Psorolea corylifolia L. and Withania sominifera L. were grown in a polypot experiment in five soils representing coal mine soil, coppermine soil, fly ash, skeletal soil and forest soil with and without mycorrhizal inoculations in a completely randomized block design. Dry matter yield and mycorrhizal root colonization of plants varied both in uninoculated and inoculated conditions. The forest soil rendered highest dry matter due to higher yield of A. moschatus, P. zeylanica and P corylifolia while fly ash showed lowest dry matter without any inoculants. P. cematea were best in coalmine soil and W. sominifera in copper mine soil without mycorrhizal inoculation. The mycorrhiza was found to enhance the dry matter yield. This contributed minimum 0.19% to maximum up to 422.0% in different soils as compared to uninoculated plants. The mycorrhizal dependency was noticed maximum in plants grown in fly ash followed by coal mine soil, copper mine soil, skeletal soil and forest soil. The mycorrhizal response was increased maximum in W. sominifera due to survival in fly ash after inoculation followed by P corylifolia and P cematea. Percent root colonization in inoculated plant was increased minimum of 1.10 fold to maximum of 12.0 folds in comparison to un-inoculated plants . The native mycorrhiza fungi were also observed to colonize 4.0 to 32.0% roots in plants understudy. This study suggests that mycorrhizal inoculation increased the dry matter yield of medicinal plants in all soils under study. It also helps in survival of W. sominifera in fly ash.

  15. On Intensive Late Holocene Iron Mining and Production in the Northern Congo Basin and the Environmental Consequences Associated with Metallurgy in Central Africa.

    PubMed

    Lupo, Karen D; Schmitt, Dave N; Kiahtipes, Christopher A; Ndanga, Jean-Paul; Young, D Craig; Simiti, Bernard

    2015-01-01

    An ongoing question in paleoenvironmental reconstructions of the central African rainforest concerns the role that prehistoric metallurgy played in shaping forest vegetation. Here we report evidence of intensive iron-ore mining and smelting in forested regions of the northern Congo Basin dating to the late Holocene. Volumetric estimates on extracted iron-ore and associated slag mounds from prehistoric sites in the southern Central African Republic suggest large-scale iron production on par with other archaeological and historically-known iron fabrication areas. These data document the first evidence of intensive iron mining and production spanning approximately 90 years prior to colonial occupation (circa AD 1889) and during an interval of time that is poorly represented in the archaeological record. Additional site areas pre-dating these remains by 3-4 centuries reflect an earlier period of iron production on a smaller scale. Microbotanical evidence from a sediment core collected from an adjacent riparian trap shows a reduction in shade-demanding trees in concert with an increase in light-demanding species spanning the time interval associated with iron intensification. This shift occurs during the same time interval when many portions of the Central African witnessed forest transgressions associated with a return to moister and more humid conditions beginning 500-100 years ago. Although data presented here do not demonstrate that iron smelting activities caused widespread vegetation change in Central Africa, we argue that intense mining and smelting can have localized and potentially regional impacts on vegetation communities. These data further demonstrate the high value of pairing archeological and paleoenvironmental analyses to reconstruct regional-scale forest histories.

  16. On Intensive Late Holocene Iron Mining and Production in the Northern Congo Basin and the Environmental Consequences Associated with Metallurgy in Central Africa

    PubMed Central

    Lupo, Karen D.; Schmitt, Dave N.; Kiahtipes, Christopher A.; Ndanga, Jean-Paul; Young, D. Craig; Simiti, Bernard

    2015-01-01

    An ongoing question in paleoenvironmental reconstructions of the central African rainforest concerns the role that prehistoric metallurgy played in shaping forest vegetation. Here we report evidence of intensive iron-ore mining and smelting in forested regions of the northern Congo Basin dating to the late Holocene. Volumetric estimates on extracted iron-ore and associated slag mounds from prehistoric sites in the southern Central African Republic suggest large-scale iron production on par with other archaeological and historically-known iron fabrication areas. These data document the first evidence of intensive iron mining and production spanning approximately 90 years prior to colonial occupation (circa AD 1889) and during an interval of time that is poorly represented in the archaeological record. Additional site areas pre-dating these remains by 3-4 centuries reflect an earlier period of iron production on a smaller scale. Microbotanical evidence from a sediment core collected from an adjacent riparian trap shows a reduction in shade-demanding trees in concert with an increase in light-demanding species spanning the time interval associated with iron intensification. This shift occurs during the same time interval when many portions of the Central African witnessed forest transgressions associated with a return to moister and more humid conditions beginning 500-100 years ago. Although data presented here do not demonstrate that iron smelting activities caused widespread vegetation change in Central Africa, we argue that intense mining and smelting can have localized and potentially regional impacts on vegetation communities. These data further demonstrate the high value of pairing archeological and paleoenvironmental analyses to reconstruct regional-scale forest histories. PMID:26161540

  17. The Stream-Catchment (StreamCat) and Lake-Catchment ...

    EPA Pesticide Factsheets

    Background/Question/MethodsLake and stream conditions respond to both natural and human-related landscape features. Characterizing these features within contributing areas (i.e., delineated watersheds) of streams and lakes could improve our understanding of how biological conditions vary spatially and improve the use, management, and restoration of these aquatic resources. However, the specialized geospatial techniques required to define and characterize stream and lake watersheds has limited their widespread use in both scientific and management efforts at large spatial scales. We developed the StreamCat and LakeCat Datasets to model, predict, and map the probable biological conditions of streams and lakes across the conterminous US (CONUS). Both StreamCat and LakeCat contain watershed-level characterizations of several hundred natural (e.g., soils, geology, climate, and land cover) and anthropogenic (e.g., urbanization, agriculture, mining, and forest management) landscape features for ca. 2.6 million stream segments and 376,000 lakes across the CONUS, respectively. These datasets can be paired with field samples to provide independent variables for modeling and other analyses. We paired 1,380 stream and 1,073 lake samples from the USEPAs National Aquatic Resource Surveys with StreamCat and LakeCat and used random forest (RF) to model and then map an invertebrate condition index and chlorophyll a concentration, respectively. Results/ConclusionsThe invertebrate

  18. Diurnal raptors in the fragmented rain forest of the Sierra Imataca, Venezuela

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Alvarez, E.; Ellis, D.H.; Smith, D.G.; LaRue, C.T.; Bird, David M.; Varland, Daniel E.; Negro, Juan Jose

    1996-01-01

    The rain forest of the Sierra Imataca in eastern Venezuela has been subjected to extensive deforestation for pastures and agricultural settlements. In the last decade the opening of access roads combined with intensified logging and mining activities have fragmented a significant portion of the remaining forest. We noted local distribution and habitat use for 42 species of diurnal raptors observed in affected areas in this region. We observed some raptors considered as forest interior species and other open country species foraging and roosting in man-made openings inside the forest.

  19. Natural Terrestrial Sequestration Potential of Highplains Prairie to Subalpine Forest and Mined-Lands Soils Derived from Weathering of Tertiary Volcanics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yager, D. B.; Burchell, A.; Robinson, R.; Odell, S.; Dick, R. P.; Johnson, C. A.; Hidinger, J.; Rathke, D.

    2007-12-01

    There is now widespread agreement that, if the climate is to be stabilized, then net greenhouse gas emissions must be greatly reduced (IPCC, 2007). The need to reduce net CO2 emissions plus the possible economic and environmental ramifications of not addressing climate change have stimulated important atmospheric carbon mitigation actions, as well as, studies to understand and quantify potential carbon sinks. Soils represent a potentially large and environmentally significant natural carbon reservoir. Increasing the natural terrestrial sequestration potential (NTS) of soils is among the seven, "Sokolow CO2 stabilization wedges' or carbon management strategies needed to thwart doubling of atmospheric CO2. Additionally, high plains to subalpine temperate soils tend to be less susceptible to baseline C pool declines due to global warming than are warmer regions and are important ecosystems in which to quantify soil carbon storage capacity. To examine the potential of magnesium silicate-bearing soils to sequester additional carbon, we sampled 60 high plains prairie to subalpine forest soil horizons derived from weathering of Tertiary-age dacite-andesite- basalt compositions in Colorado, U.S.A.: the San Luis Valley, San Juan Volcanic Field, Grand Mesa, White River- Roan Plateau (Flat Tops), Rocky Mountain National Park, Front Range and propylitically-altered terrain in the western San Juan Volcanic field containing secondary magnesium silicates (chlorite-species). Data for C, N, O (total conc., isotopes), metals, major and trace elements, Hg, S, microbial enzymes (β-glucosidase, arylsulfatase, acid neutralizing capacity (ANC), and 14C radiocarbon dates are reported. Samples demonstrate variable but elevated C relative to average global soil C. In particular, the propylitically-altered rocks have a high instantaneous ANC in laboratory tests (> 20 kg/ton CaCO3 equivalent) and derivative forest soils containing low-temperature charcoal "burn" horizons have high total organic carbon contents (12-14 Wt.% in the A-B horizons; 0 to 30 cm). These data are important to understanding the carbon sequestration potential that soils derived from intermediate to mafic igneous rocks can provide. Additionally, for range or forest management and mine waste remediation scenarios, this data suggests C mitigation efforts may be augmented by 'geomimicry' scenarios whereby projects model and enhance natural processes that support CO2 sequestration.

  20. The chestnut oak forests of the anthracite region

    Treesearch

    C. F. Burnham; M. J. Ferree; F. E. Cunningham

    1947-01-01

    The chestnut oak forests occur mostly on poor sites along the tops and southern slopes of ridges in the central and southern parts of the Anthracite Region (see map). This forest type is not of much commercial value. It contains some saw timber and mine timber, but most of the chestnut oak stands are of seedling-and-sapling size. Furthermore, many of them are in...

  1. Distribution and ecology of the big-eared bat, Corynorhinus (=Plecotus) townsendii in Californa

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Pierson, Elizabeth D.; Fellers, Gary M.

    1998-01-01

    This study had two primary objectives: to conduct roost surveys C. townsendii in two parts of California where distributional information was most limited or lacking, and to obtain information on roosting and foraging ecology in two distinctly different habitats. This project was urgently needed because 1) recent California Department of Fish and Game surveys (conducted in 1987-1991) documented significant population declines in most surveyed areas, 2) distribution was still unknown in areas with suitable roosting habitat, and 30 the impact of various land management practices (e.g. prescribed fire, timber, harvest, agriculture, and grazing) on foraging behavior was unknown. A total of 95 abandoned mines, 18 caves, 11 man-made water tunnels, and 7 buildings were surveys for bats. Twenty-pne structures (twelve caves and nine mines) showed significant use by C. townsendii. Eleven are located in the western Sierra Nevada foothills, and ten in the Trinity Mountain area, Six maternity colonies, ranging in size from 48 to about 250 adult females, were identifies. Three were in caves, and three were in mines. Distribution for this species is somewhat patchy, and appears to be limited by the availability of roosting habitat. Historic and recent records would suggest that populations are concentrated in areas with abundant caves (especially the large lava flows in the northeastern portion of the state and karstic regions in the Sierra Nevada and Trinity Alps) or extensive abandoned mine working (particularly in the desert regions to the east and southeast of the Sierra Nevada). Radiotracking studies were conducted in two different habitats: 1) coastal forest (California bay, Douglas fir, and redwood) and grazed grassland at Pt. Reyes National Seashore, and 2) a mixture of scrub (with juniper and mountain mahogany) and ponderosa pine forest at Lava Beds National Monument. At Point Reyes they study colony resided in an abandoned ranch house, and at Lava Beds in a lava tube. In both settings the animals showed considerable loyalty to their roost sites even though the study was conducted after the nursery season had ended; females traveled greater distances than males to forage; and all the animals foraged in close association with vegetation -- in the vegetated gullies and redwood forest at Pt. Reyes, and in the vegetated lava trenches, near juniper or mountain mahogany, and with the stands of ponderosa pine at Lava Beds. Genetic variation was preliminarily examined for three populations using mitochondrial DNA and microsatellites -- two populations within the zone of intergradation between the two subspecies, C. t. townsendii and C. t. pallescens, and one population from the range of C. t. pallescens. These three populations were sufficiently distinct genetically to suggest that these techniques would be appropriated for addressing a wide range of questions for this species, including population differentiation, gene flow and mating systems. Most maternity populations appear to be declining in numbers, and many historic colonies no longer exist. The primary threat to this species appears to be human disturbance at roost sites, particularly recreational caving, renewed mining in old mining districts, and reclamation of abandoned mines for hazard abatement.

  2. 29 CFR 570.54 - Logging occupations and occupations in the operation of any sawmill, lath mill, shingle mill, or...

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... convenience of the user, the revised text is set forth as follows: § 570.54 Forest fire fighting and forest... performed, or mining operations. Portable sawmill shall mean a sawmilling operation where no office or...

  3. An Overview of GIS-Based Modeling and Assessment of Mining-Induced Hazards: Soil, Water, and Forest

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Sung-Min; Yi, Huiuk; Choi, Yosoon

    2017-01-01

    In this study, current geographic information system (GIS)-based methods and their application for the modeling and assessment of mining-induced hazards were reviewed. Various types of mining-induced hazard, including soil contamination, soil erosion, water pollution, and deforestation were considered in the discussion of the strength and role of GIS as a viable problem-solving tool in relation to mining-induced hazards. The various types of mining-induced hazard were classified into two or three subtopics according to the steps involved in the reclamation procedure, or elements of the hazard of interest. Because GIS is appropriated for the handling of geospatial data in relation to mining-induced hazards, the application and feasibility of exploiting GIS-based modeling and assessment of mining-induced hazards within the mining industry could be expanded further. PMID:29186922

  4. An Overview of GIS-Based Modeling and Assessment of Mining-Induced Hazards: Soil, Water, and Forest.

    PubMed

    Suh, Jangwon; Kim, Sung-Min; Yi, Huiuk; Choi, Yosoon

    2017-11-27

    In this study, current geographic information system (GIS)-based methods and their application for the modeling and assessment of mining-induced hazards were reviewed. Various types of mining-induced hazard, including soil contamination, soil erosion, water pollution, and deforestation were considered in the discussion of the strength and role of GIS as a viable problem-solving tool in relation to mining-induced hazards. The various types of mining-induced hazard were classified into two or three subtopics according to the steps involved in the reclamation procedure, or elements of the hazard of interest. Because GIS is appropriated for the handling of geospatial data in relation to mining-induced hazards, the application and feasibility of exploiting GIS-based modeling and assessment of mining-induced hazards within the mining industry could be expanded further.

  5. A crisis in the making: responses of Amazonian forests to land use and climate change.

    PubMed

    Laurance, W F

    1998-10-01

    At least three global-change phenomena are having major impacts on Amazonian forests: (1) accelerating deforestation and logging; (2) rapidly changing patterns of forest loss; and (3) interactions between human land-use and climatic variability. Additional alterations caused by climatic change, rising concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide, mining, overhunting and other large-scale phenomena could also have important effects on the Amazon ecosystem. Consequently, decisions regarding Amazon forest use in the next decade are crucial to its future existence.

  6. Prehospital Emergencies in Illegal Gold Mining Sites in French Guiana.

    PubMed

    Egmann, Gérald; Tattevin, Pierre; Palancade, Renaud; Nacher, Matthieu

    2018-03-01

    Illegal gold mining is flourishing in French Guiana, existing outside the law due to both the high cost of gold mining permits and the challenges of law enforcement within the Amazon forest. We report the characteristics of, and the medical responses to, medical emergencies in illegal gold mining sites. We performed a retrospective study of all medical emergencies reported from illegal gold mining sites to the centralized call office of SAMU 973 from 1998 through 2000 and from 2008 through 2010. According to the national health care system, any medical emergency within the territory is handled by the prehospital emergency medical service (SAMU 973), irrespective of the patients' legal status. Data were extracted from the SAMU 973 notebook registry (1998-2000) or the SAMU 973 computerized database (2008-2010) and werre collected using a standardized questionnaire. Of 71,932 calls for medical emergencies in French Guiana during the study periods, 340 (0.5%) originated from illegal gold mining sites. Of these, 196 (58%) led to medical evacuation by helicopter, whereas the overall rate of evacuation by helicopter after placing a call to SAMU 973 was only 4% (3020/71,932; P<0.0001 for comparison with illegal gold mining sites). Medical emergencies were classified as illness (48%, mostly infectious), trauma (44%, mostly weapon wounds), and miscellaneous (8%). Medical emergencies at illegal gold mining sites in the Amazon forest mostly include infectious diseases, followed by trauma, and often require medical evacuation by helicopter. Our study suggests that implementation of preventive medicine within gold mining sites, irrespective of their legal status, could be cost-effective and reduce morbidity. Copyright © 2017 Wilderness Medical Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Spatial Data Mining for Estimating Cover Management Factor of Universal Soil Loss Equation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tsai, F.; Lin, T. C.; Chiang, S. H.; Chen, W. W.

    2016-12-01

    Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) is a widely used mathematical model that describes long-term soil erosion processes. Among the six different soil erosion risk factors of USLE, the cover-management factor (C-factor) is related to land-cover/land-use. The value of C-factor ranges from 0.001 to 1, so it alone might cause a thousandfold difference in a soil erosion analysis using USLE. The traditional methods for the estimation of USLE C-factor include in situ experiments, soil physical parameter models, USLE look-up tables with land use maps, and regression models between vegetation indices and C-factors. However, these methods are either difficult or too expensive to implement in large areas. In addition, the values of C-factor obtained using these methods can not be updated frequently, either. To address this issue, this research developed a spatial data mining approach to estimate the values of C-factor with assorted spatial datasets for a multi-temporal (2004 to 2008) annual soil loss analysis of a reservoir watershed in northern Taiwan. The idea is to establish the relationship between the USLE C-factor and spatial data consisting of vegetation indices and texture features extracted from satellite images, soil and geology attributes, digital elevation model, road and river distribution etc. A decision tree classifier was used to rank influential conditional attributes in the preliminary data mining. Then, factor simplification and separation were considered to optimize the model and the random forest classifier was used to analyze 9 simplified factor groups. Experimental results indicate that the overall accuracy of the data mining model is about 79% with a kappa value of 0.76. The estimated soil erosion amounts in 2004-2008 according to the data mining results are about 50.39 - 74.57 ton/ha-year after applying the sediment delivery ratio and correction coefficient. Comparing with estimations calculated with C-factors from look-up tables, the soil erosion values estimated with C-factors generated from spatial data mining results are more in agreement with the values published by the watershed administration authority.

  8. Mines, prospects, and mineral sites, wilderness and RARE II areas, White Mountain National Forest, New Hampshire

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Gazdik, G. C.; Harris, Gazdik; Welsh, R. A.; Girol, V. P.

    1988-01-01

    The areas investigated are located in the White Mountain National Forest in Coos, Grafton, and Carroll Counties, New Hampshire. Personnel from the U.S. Bureau of Mines conducted field reconnaissance of the westernmost areas, Kinsman Mountain, Mt. Wolf-Gordon Pond, Jobildunk, and Carr Mountain, in the fall of 1980. Field reconnaissance of the eastern areas, Great Gulf, Presidential Range-Dry River, Dartmouth Range, Pemigewasset and Wild River was conducted in the spring of 1981. A total of 237 rock and 103 panned-concentrate samples were collected during the investigations. Reconnaissance radiometric ground surveys were conducted at selected locations.

  9. The last frontiers of wilderness: Tracking loss of intact forest landscapes from 2000 to 2013

    PubMed Central

    Potapov, Peter; Hansen, Matthew C.; Laestadius, Lars; Turubanova, Svetlana; Yaroshenko, Alexey; Thies, Christoph; Smith, Wynet; Zhuravleva, Ilona; Komarova, Anna; Minnemeyer, Susan; Esipova, Elena

    2017-01-01

    An intact forest landscape (IFL) is a seamless mosaic of forest and naturally treeless ecosystems with no remotely detected signs of human activity and a minimum area of 500 km2. IFLs are critical for stabilizing terrestrial carbon storage, harboring biodiversity, regulating hydrological regimes, and providing other ecosystem functions. Although the remaining IFLs comprise only 20% of tropical forest area, they account for 40% of the total aboveground tropical forest carbon. We show that global IFL extent has been reduced by 7.2% since the year 2000. An increasing rate of global IFL area reduction was found, largely driven by the tripling of IFL tropical forest loss in 2011–2013 compared to that in 2001–2003. Industrial logging, agricultural expansion, fire, and mining/resource extraction were the primary causes of IFL area reduction. Protected areas (International Union for Conservation of Nature categories I to III) were found to have a positive effect in slowing the reduction of IFL area from timber harvesting but were less effective in limiting agricultural expansion. The certification of logging concessions under responsible management had a negligible impact on slowing IFL fragmentation in the Congo Basin. Fragmentation of IFLs by logging and establishment of roads and other infrastructure initiates a cascade of changes that lead to landscape transformation and loss of conservation values. Given that only 12% of the global IFL area is protected, our results illustrate the need for planning and investment in carbon sequestration and biodiversity conservation efforts that target the most valuable remaining forests, as identified using the IFL approach. PMID:28097216

  10. Chapter 1: The Appalachian regional reforestation initiative

    Treesearch

    Patrick Angel; Vic Davis; Jim Burger; Don Graves; Carl Zipper

    2017-01-01

    The Appalachian Regional Reforestation Initiative (ARRI) is a cooperative effort by the States of the Appalachian region with the U.S. Department of the Interior's Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) to encourage restoration of high-quality forests on reclaimed coal mines in the eastern United States. The goals of ARRI are to communicate...

  11. Forestation of surface mines for wildlife

    Treesearch

    Thomas G. Zarger

    1980-01-01

    This report reviews TVA program efforts to promote the use of wildlife shrubs in mined-land reclamation including work on plant materials development, demonstrations to acquaint landowners with a variety of food and cover plants, and action programs to incorporate wildlife plants into postmining land use. It deals briefly with wildlife considerations under Public Law...

  12. Impacts of Mountaintop Removal and Valley Fill Coal Mining on C and N Processing in Terrestrial Soils and Headwater Streams.

    EPA Science Inventory

    We measured C and N cycling indicators in Appalachian watersheds impacted by mountaintop removal and valley fill (MTR/VF) coal mining, and in nearby forested watersheds. These watersheds include ephemeral, intermittent, and perennial stream reaches, and the length of time since d...

  13. [Effects of Different Reclaimed Scenarios on Soil Microbe and Enzyme Activities in Mining Areas].

    PubMed

    Li, Jun-jian; Liu, Feng; Zhou, Xiao-mei

    2015-05-01

    Abstract: Ecological degradation in the mining areas is greatly aggravated in recent several decades, and ecological restoration has become the primary measure for the sustainable development. Soil microbe and enzyme activity are sensitive indices to evaluate soil quality. Ecological reconstruction was initiated in Antaibao mining area, and we tested soil physicochemical properties, microbial populations of azotobacteria, nitrifying-bacteria and denitrifying-bacteria, and enzyme activities (including sucrose, polyphenol oxidase, dehydrogenase and urease) under different regeneration scenarios. Regeneration scenarios had significant effects on soil physicochemical properties, microbial population and enzyme activities. Total nitrogen was strongly correlated with azotobacteria and nitrifying-bacteria, however, total nitrogen was not correlated with denitrifying-bacteria. Phenol oxidase activity was negatively correlated with soil organic carbon and total nitrogen, but other enzyme activities were positively correlated with soil organic carbon and total nitrogen. Principal Component Analysis ( PCA) was applied to analyze the integrated fertility index (IFI). The highest and lowest IFIs were in Robinia pseudoacacia-Pinus tabuliformis mixed forests and un-reclaimed area, respectively. R. pseudoacacia-P. tabuliformis mixed forests were feasible for reclaimed mining areas in semi-arid region Northwest Shanxi.

  14. Reconnaissance for determining effects of land use and surficial geology on concentrations of selected elements on streambed materials from the coal-mining region, southwestern Indiana, October 1979 to March 1980

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wilber, W.G.; Boje, Rita R.

    1982-01-01

    Streambed materials were collected in October 1979 from 69 watersheds in Southwest Indiana having predominantly forested, agricultural, reclaimed, and unreclaimed mined land use to determine whether concentrations of sorbed and acid-soluble metals and trace elements were affected by land use and surficial geology. Analysis of variance indicated that 10% or more of the total variation in aluminum, arsenic, cobalt, iron, nickel, selenium, and zinc concentrations on streambed materials was accounted for by differences in land use. Concentrations of aluminum, cobalt, iron, nickel, selenium, and zinc on streambed materials smaller than 0.062-millimeter from mined watersheds were significantly greater than the concentrations of these elements on streambed materials from agricultural and forested watersheds. The greater concentrations of these elements on streambed materials are due to (1) their concentrations in mine drainage and their subsequent absorption and (or) copecipitation with the oxides and hydroxides of aluminum and iron and (2) their concentrations in coal and pyritic material in streambed materials. (USGS)

  15. GIS INTERNET MAP SERVICE FOR DISPLAYING SELENIUM CONTAMINATION DATA IN THE SOUTHEASTERN IDAHO PHOSPHATE MINING RESOURCE AREA

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Roger Mayes; Sera White; Randy Lee

    2005-04-01

    Selenium is present in waste rock/overburden that is removed during phosphate mining in southeastern Idaho. Waste rock piles or rock used during reclamation can be a source of selenium (and other metals) to streams and vegetation. Some instances (in 1996) of selenium toxicity in grazing sheep and horses caused public health and environmental concerns, leading to Idaho Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) involvement. The Selenium Information System Project is a collaboration among the DEQ, the United States Forest Service (USFS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the Idaho Mining Association (IMA), Idaho State University (ISU), and the Idaho National Laboratorymore » (INL)2. The Selenium Information System is a centralized data repository for southeastern Idaho selenium data. The data repository combines information that was previously in numerous agency, mining company, and consultants’ databases and web sites. These data include selenium concentrations in soil, water, sediment, vegetation and other environmental media, as well as comprehensive mine information. The Idaho DEQ spearheaded a selenium area-wide investigation through voluntary agreements with the mining companies and interagency participants. The Selenium Information System contains the results of that area-wide investigation, and many other background documents. As studies are conducted and remedial action decisions are made the resulting data and documentation will be stored within the information system. Potential users of the information system are agency officials, students, lawmakers, mining company personnel, teachers, researchers, and the general public. The system, available from a central website, consists of a database that contains the area-wide sampling information and an ESRI ArcIMS map server. The user can easily acquire information pertaining to the area-wide study as well as the final area-wide report. Future work on this project includes creating custom tools to increase the simplicity of the website and increasing the amount of information available from site-specific studies at 15 mines.« less

  16. Modeling of information on the impact of mining exploitation on bridge objects in BIM

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bętkowski, Piotr

    2018-04-01

    The article discusses the advantages of BIM (Building Information Modeling) technology in the management of bridge infrastructure on mining areas. The article shows the problems with information flow in the case of bridge objects located on mining areas and the advantages of proper information management, e.g. the possibility of automatic monitoring of structures, improvement of safety, optimization of maintenance activities, cost reduction of damage removal and preventive actions, improvement of atmosphere for mining exploitation, improvement of the relationship between the manager of the bridge and the mine. Traditional model of managing bridge objects on mining areas has many disadvantages, which are discussed in this article. These disadvantages include among others: duplication of information about the object, lack of correlation in investments due to lack of information flow between bridge manager and mine, limited assessment possibilities of damage propagation on technical condition and construction resistance to mining influences.

  17. Cooperative partnerships and the role of private landowners

    Treesearch

    T. Bently Wigley; James M. Sweeney

    1993-01-01

    Because most land, including forest land, in the United States is privately owned, it is clear the private sector should be a major cooperator in "Partners in Flight" efforts to conserve neotropical migratory birds. The "private sector" is more than forest landowners, whether corporate or noncorporate; it includes agricultural landowners, mining...

  18. 36 CFR 2.1 - Preservation of natural, cultural and archeological resources.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Preservation of natural, cultural and archeological resources. 2.1 Section 2.1 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK... subbottom profilers used for authorized scientific, mining, or administrative activities. (b) The...

  19. 36 CFR 34.5 - Applicable regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Applicable regulations. 34.5 Section 34.5 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR EL... transportation services. (8) 5.13Nuisances. (9) 5.14Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. [51 FR 29103, Aug...

  20. 36 CFR 34.5 - Applicable regulations.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Applicable regulations. 34.5 Section 34.5 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR EL... transportation services. (8) 5.13Nuisances. (9) 5.14Prospecting, mining, and mineral leasing. [51 FR 29103, Aug...

  1. 36 CFR 62.3 - Effects of designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Effects of designation. 62.3 Section 62.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... national natural landmarks that may be irreparably lost or destroyed by surface mining activity (see § 62.6...

  2. 36 CFR 62.3 - Effects of designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Effects of designation. 62.3 Section 62.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... national natural landmarks that may be irreparably lost or destroyed by surface mining activity (see § 62.6...

  3. 36 CFR 62.3 - Effects of designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Effects of designation. 62.3 Section 62.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... national natural landmarks that may be irreparably lost or destroyed by surface mining activity (see § 62.6...

  4. 36 CFR 2.1 - Preservation of natural, cultural and archeological resources.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Preservation of natural, cultural and archeological resources. 2.1 Section 2.1 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK... subbottom profilers used for authorized scientific, mining, or administrative activities. (b) The...

  5. 36 CFR 62.3 - Effects of designation.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Effects of designation. 62.3 Section 62.3 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR... national natural landmarks that may be irreparably lost or destroyed by surface mining activity (see § 62.6...

  6. Random Forests for Evaluating Pedagogy and Informing Personalized Learning

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Spoon, Kelly; Beemer, Joshua; Whitmer, John C.; Fan, Juanjuan; Frazee, James P.; Stronach, Jeanne; Bohonak, Andrew J.; Levine, Richard A.

    2016-01-01

    Random forests are presented as an analytics foundation for educational data mining tasks. The focus is on course- and program-level analytics including evaluating pedagogical approaches and interventions and identifying and characterizing at-risk students. As part of this development, the concept of individualized treatment effects (ITE) is…

  7. Hydrological, geological, and biological site characterization of breccia pipe uranium deposits in Northern Arizona

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Alpine, Andrea E.

    2010-01-01

    On July 21, 2009, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar proposed a two-year withdrawal of about 1 million acres of Federal land near the Grand Canyon from future mineral entry. These lands are contained in three parcels: two parcels on U.S. Bureau of Land Management land to the north of the Grand Canyon (North and East Segregation Areas) and one on the Kaibab National Forest south of the Grand Canyon (South Segregation Area). The purpose of the two-year withdrawal is to examine the potential effects of restricting these areas from new mine development for the next 20 years. This proposed withdrawal initiated a period of study during which the effects of the withdrawal must be evaluated. At the direction of the Secretary, the U.S. Geological Survey began a series of short-term studies designed to develop additional information about the possible effects of uranium mining on the natural resources of the region. Dissolved uranium and other major, minor, and trace elements occur naturally in groundwater as the result of precipitation infiltrating from the surface to water-bearing zones and, presumably, to underlying regional aquifers. Discharges from these aquifers occur as seeps and springs throughout the region and provide valuable habitat and water sources for plants and animals. Uranium mining within the watershed may increase the amount of radioactive materials and heavy metals in the surface water and groundwater flowing into Grand Canyon National Park and the Colorado River, and deep mining activities may increase mobilization of uranium through the rock strata into the aquifers. In addition, waste rock and ore from mined areas may be transported away from the mines by wind and runoff.

  8. Soil organic carbon and nitrogen accumulation on coal mine spoils reclaimed with maritime pine (Pinus pinaster Aiton) in Agacli-Istanbul.

    PubMed

    Sever, Hakan; Makineci, Ender

    2009-08-01

    Mining operations on open coal mines in Agacli-Istanbul have resulted in the destruction of vast amounts of land. To rehabilitate these degraded lands, plantations on this area began in 1988. Twelve tree species were planted, however, the most planted tree species was maritime pine (Pinus pinaster Aiton). This study performed on 14 sample plots randomly selected in maritime pine plantations on coal mine soil/spoils in 2005. Soil samples were taken from eight different soil layers (0-1, 1-3, 3-5, 5-10, 10-20, 20-30, 30-40 and 40-50 cm) into the soil profile. On soil samples; fine soil fraction (<2 mm), soil acidity (pH), organic carbon (C(org)) and total nitrogen (N(t)) contents were investigated, and results were compared statistically among soil layers. As a result, 17 years after plantations, total forest floor accumulation determined as 17,973.20 kg ha(-1). Total nitrogen and organic matter amounts of forest floor were 113.90 and 14,640.92 kg ha(-1) respectively. Among soil layers, the highest levels of organic carbon (1.77%) and total nitrogen (0.096%) and the lowest pH value (pH 5.38) were found in 0-1 cm soil layer, and the variation differs significantly among soil layers. Both organic carbon and total nitrogen content decreased, pH values increased from 0-1 to 5-10 cm layer. In conclusion, according to results obtained maritime pine plantations on coal mine spoils; slow accumulation and decomposition of forest floor undergo simultaneously. Depending on these changes organic carbon and total nitrogen contents increased in upper layer of soil/spoil.

  9. Mineral resource appraisal of the Salmon National Forest, Idaho

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Johnson, Rick; Close, Terry; McHugh, Ed

    1998-01-01

    The Salmon National Forest administers 1,776,994 net acres of mountainous terrain located in east-central Idaho. Most of the Forest is in Lemhi County; only a small portion falls within Idaho and Valley Counties. Approximately 426,114 acres of the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness extends into the western part of the Forest and mineral entry is severely restricted. Because of its location within the Salmon River drainage, the Forest also is subject to numerous issues surrounding restoration of anadromous fish runs. Mineral production from the Salmon National Forest began during 1866 when placer gold was discovered in Leesburg Basin. Hardrock mining quickly spread throughout the Forest and many deposits containing a wide range of commodities were discovered and developed. Although early records are sketchy, production is estimated to include 940,000 ounces gold, 654,000 ounces silver, 61.9 million pounds copper, 8.9 million pounds lead, 13.9 million pounds cobalt, 208,000 pounds zinc, and 37,000 tons fluorite mill feed. Mineral resources are large, diverse, and occur in many deposit types including exhalative, stockwork, disseminated, vein, replacement, sedimentary, skarn, breccia pipe, porphyry, and placer. The largest cobalt resource in the United States occurs in the Blackbird Mining District. Other resources include gold, silver, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphate, manganese, iron, fluorite, uranium, thorium, rare earth oxides, and barite.

  10. A bill to amend the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993 to require the Bureau of Land Management to provide a claimant of a small miner waiver from claim maintenance fees with a period of 60 days after written receipt of 1 or more defects is provided to the claimant by registered mail to cure the 1 or more defects or pay the claim maintenance fee, and for other purposes.

    THOMAS, 113th Congress

    Sen. Murkowski, Lisa [R-AK

    2013-02-14

    Senate - 04/25/2013 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 113-28. (All Actions) Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

  11. An evaluation of potential occupational exposure to asbestiform amphiboles near a former vermiculite mine.

    PubMed

    Hart, Julie F; Spear, Terry M; Ward, Tony J; Baldwin, Caitlan E; Salo, Marissa N; Elashheb, Mohamed I

    2009-01-01

    Amphibole asbestos (AA) has been detected on the surface of tree bark in forests neighboring an abandoned vermiculite mine near Libby, Montana. In the present study, simulations were performed to assess potential AA exposure associated with United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service (FS) occupational activities. Bark samples were collected prior, and personal breathing zone (PBZ) and Tyvek clothing wipe samples were collected during and immediately after trials that simulated FS activities. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses revealed AA bark concentrations up to 15 million structures per square centimeter (s/cm(2)). AA was detected in 25% of the PBZ TEM samples. AA was detected on wipe samples collected from all activities evaluated. This research demonstrates the potential for airborne exposure and transport of AA in the Kootenai National Forest. These findings are especially relevant to those that work in the area and to the general public who may conduct recreational activities.

  12. Idaho and Montana non-fuel exploration database 1980-1997

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Buckingham, David A.; DiFrancesco, Carl A.; Porter, Kenneth E.; Bleiwas, Donald I.; Causey, J. Douglas; Ferguson, William B.

    2006-01-01

    This report describes a relational database containing information about mineral exploration projects in the States of Idaho and Montana for the years 1980 through 1997 and a spatial (geographic) database constructed using data from the relational database. The focus of this project was to collect information on exploration for mineral commodities with the exception of sand, gravel, coal, geothermal, oil, and gas. The associate databases supplied with this report are prototypes that can be used or modified as needed. The following sources were used to create the databases-serial mining periodicals; annual mineral publications; mining company reports; U.S. Bureau of Mines (USBM) and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) publications; an Idaho mineral property data base developed by Dave Boleneus, USGS, Spokane, Washington; Montana state publications; and discussions with representatives of Montana, principally the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology and the Department of Environmental Quality. Fifty commodity groups were reported between the 596 exploration projects identified in this study. Precious metals (gold, silver, or platinum group elements) were the primary targets for about 67 percent of the exploration projects. Information on 17 of the projects did not include commodities. No location could be determined for 51 projects, all in Idaho. During the time period evaluated, some mineral properties were developed into large mining operations (for example Beal Mountain Mine, Stillwater Mine, Troy Mine, Montana Tunnels Mine) and six properties were reclaimed. Environmental Impact Statements were done on four properties. Some operating mines either closed or went through one or more shutdowns and re-openings. Other properties, where significant resources were delineated by recent exploration during this time frame, await the outcome of important factors for development such as defining additional reserves, higher metal prices, and the permitting process. Many of these projects examined relatively minor mineral occurrences. Approximately half of the exploration projects are located on Federal lands and about 40 percent were on lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service. More than 75 percent of the exploration occurred in areas with significant previous mineral activity.

  13. Impacts of surface gold mining on land use systems in Western Ghana.

    PubMed

    Schueler, Vivian; Kuemmerle, Tobias; Schröder, Hilmar

    2011-07-01

    Land use conflicts are becoming increasingly apparent from local to global scales. Surface gold mining is an extreme source of such a conflict, but mining impacts on local livelihoods often remain unclear. Our goal here was to assess land cover change due to gold surface mining in Western Ghana, one of the world's leading gold mining regions, and to study how these changes affected land use systems. We used Landsat satellite images from 1986-2002 to map land cover change and field interviews with farmers to understand the livelihood implications of mining-related land cover change. Our results showed that surface mining resulted in deforestation (58%), a substantial loss of farmland (45%) within mining concessions, and widespread spill-over effects as relocated farmers expand farmland into forests. This points to rapidly eroding livelihood foundations, suggesting that the environmental and social costs of Ghana's gold boom may be much higher than previously thought.

  14. The price of gold: mercury exposure in the Amazonian rain forest.

    PubMed

    Branches, F J; Erickson, T B; Aks, S E; Hryhorczuk, D O

    1993-01-01

    Concern has surfaced over the recent discovery of human mercury exposure throughout the tropical rain forest of South America's Amazon River Basin. The probable source of mercury has been traced to gold mines located within the interior. The mining process involves the extraction of gold from ore by burning off a mercury additive, resulting in vaporization of elemental mercury into the surrounding environment. The purpose of this case series is to document mercury levels in miners and local villagers presenting with a history of exposure, or signs and symptoms consistent with mercury toxicity. Over a five year period (1986-91), the whole blood and urine mercury levels of 55 Brazilian patients demonstrating signs and symptoms consistent with mercury exposure were collected. Thirty-three (60%) of the subjects had direct occupational exposure to mercury via gold mining and refining. Whole blood mercury levels ranged from 0.4-13.0 micrograms/dL (mean 3.05 micrograms/dL). Spot urine levels ranged 0-151 micrograms/L (mean = 32.7 micrograms/L). Occupational mercury exposure is occurring in the Amazon River Basin. Interventions aimed at altering the gold mining process while protecting the workers and surrounding villagers from the source of exposure are essential. The impact of the gold mining industry on general environmental contamination has not been investigated.

  15. Total mercury loadings in sediment from gold mining and conservation areas in Guyana.

    PubMed

    Howard, Joniqua; Trotz, Maya A; Thomas, Ken; Omisca, Erlande; Chiu, Hong Ting; Halfhide, Trina; Akiwumi, Fenda; Michael, Ryan; Stuart, Amy L

    2011-08-01

    The Low Carbon Development Strategy proposed in June 2009 by the government of Guyana in response to the Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries program has triggered evaluation of forest-related activities, thereby acting as a catalyst for improvements in Guyana's small- to medium-scale gold mining industry. This has also shed light on areas committed to conservation, something that has also been handled by Non Governmental Organizations. This paper compares water quality and mercury concentrations in sediment from four main areas in Guyana, two that are heavily mined for gold using mercury amalgamation methods (Arakaka and Mahdia) and two that are considered conservation areas (Iwokrama and Konashen). Fifty-three sediment and soil mercury loadings ranged from 29 to 1,200 ng/g and averaged 215 ± 187 ng/g for all sites with similar averages in conservation and mining areas. Sediment loadings are within the range seen in French Guiana and Suriname, but conservation area samples had higher loadings than the corresponding uncontaminated baselines. Type of ore and location in the mining process seemed to influence mercury loadings. Mercury sediment loadings were slightly positively correlated with pH (correlation coefficient = 0.2; p value < 0.001) whereas no significant correlations were found with dissolved oxygen or turbidity.

  16. 43 CFR 3832.20 - Lode and placer mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Lode and placer mining claims. 3832.20... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) LOCATING MINING CLAIMS OR SITES Types of Mining Claims § 3832.20 Lode and placer mining claims. ...

  17. Land disturbances from strip-mining in eastern Kentucky: 4. Big Sandy coal reserve district

    Treesearch

    William T. Plass

    1967-01-01

    Results of an airphoto survey to determine the extent of land disturbance by coal mining and by coal-haul roads in one of the six coal-reserve districts of eastern Kentucky. Describes the district, forest, cover, physiography and geology, and distribution and physical characteristics of the acres disturbed in this district.

  18. Land disturbances from strip-mining in eastern Kentucky: 6. Southwestern coal reserve district

    Treesearch

    William T. Plass

    1967-01-01

    Results of an airphoto survey to determine the extent of land disturbance by coal mining and by coal-haul roads in one of the six coal-reserve districts of eastern Kentucky. Describes the district, forest cover, physiography and geology, and distribution and physical characteristics of the acres disturbed in this district.

  19. Structural and functional characteristics of natural and constructed channels draining a reclaimed mountaintop removal and valley fill coal mine

    EPA Science Inventory

    Mountaintop removal and valley fill (MTR/VF) coal mining has altered the landscape of the Central Appalachian region in the United States. The goals of this study were to 1) compare the structure and function of natural and constructed stream channels in forested and MTR/VF catch...

  20. 77 FR 39575 - Special Areas; Roadless Area Conservation; Applicability to the National Forests in Colorado

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-07-03

    ..., gas, and hydrogen pipelines and electric transmission and distribution facilities are located outside... Currant Creek would not be mined until Oak Mesa was mined out. Oil and gas resources were another issue that generated substantial public input. Colorado has 8% of all dry natural gas reserves in the U.S...

  1. Land disturbances from strip-mining in eastern Kentucky: 5. Hazard coal reserve district

    Treesearch

    William T. Plass

    1967-01-01

    Results of an airphoto survey to determine the extent of land disturbance by coal mining and by coal-haul roads in one of the six coal-reserve districts of eastern Kentucky. Describes the district, forest cover, physiography and geology, and distribution and physical characteristics of the acres disturbed in this district.

  2. Gold-rush in a forested El Dorado: deforestation leakages and the need for regional cooperation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dezécache, Camille; Faure, Emmanuel; Gond, Valéry; Salles, Jean-Michel; Vieilledent, Ghislain; Hérault, Bruno

    2017-03-01

    Tropical forests of the Guiana Shield are the most affected by gold-mining in South America, experiencing an exponential increase in deforestation since the early 2000’s. Using yearly deforestation data encompassing Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana and the Brazilian State of Amapá, we demonstrated a strong relationship between deforestation due to gold-mining and gold-prices at the regional scale. In order to assess additional drivers of deforestation due to gold-mining, we focused on the national scale and highlighted the heterogeneity of the response to gold-prices under different political contexts. Deforestation due to gold-mining over the Guiana Shield occurs mainly in Guyana and Suriname. On the contrary, past and current repressive policies in Amapá and French Guiana likely contribute to the decorrelation of deforestation and gold prices. In this work, we finally present a case study focusing on French Guiana and Suriname, two neighbouring countries with very different levels of law enforcement against illegal gold-mining. We developed a modelling framework to estimate potential deforestation leakages from French Guiana to Suriname in the border areas. Based on our assumptions, we estimated a decrease in deforestation due to gold-mining of approx. 4300 hectares in French Guiana and an increase of approx. 12 100 hectares in Suriname in response to the active military repression of illegal gold-mining launched in French Guiana. Gold-mining in the Guiana Shield provides challenging questions regarding REDD+ implementation. These questions are discussed at the end of this study and are important to policy makers who need to provide sustainable alternative employment to local populations in order to ensure the effectiveness of environmental policies.

  3. Novel approaches to assess the quality of fertility data stored in dairy herd management software.

    PubMed

    Hermans, K; Waegeman, W; Opsomer, G; Van Ranst, B; De Koster, J; Van Eetvelde, M; Hostens, M

    2017-05-01

    Scientific journals and popular press magazines are littered with articles in which the authors use data from dairy herd management software. Almost none of such papers include data cleaning and data quality assessment in their study design despite this being a very critical step during data mining. This paper presents 2 novel data cleaning methods that permit identification of animals with good and bad data quality. The first method is a deterministic or rule-based data cleaning method. Reproduction and mutation or life-changing events such as birth and death were converted to a symbolic (alphabetical letter) representation and split into triplets (3-letter code). The triplets were manually labeled as physiologically correct, suspicious, or impossible. The deterministic data cleaning method was applied to assess the quality of data stored in dairy herd management from 26 farms enrolled in the herd health management program from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine Ghent University, Belgium. In total, 150,443 triplets were created, 65.4% were labeled as correct, 17.4% as suspicious, and 17.2% as impossible. The second method, a probabilistic method, uses a machine learning algorithm (random forests) to predict the correctness of fertility and mutation events in an early stage of data cleaning. The prediction accuracy of the random forests algorithm was compared with a classical linear statistical method (penalized logistic regression), outperforming the latter substantially, with a superior receiver operating characteristic curve and a higher accuracy (89 vs. 72%). From those results, we conclude that the triplet method can be used to assess the quality of reproduction data stored in dairy herd management software and that a machine learning technique such as random forests is capable of predicting the correctness of fertility data. Copyright © 2017 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  4. 36 CFR 60.2 - Effects of listing under Federal law.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Effects of listing under Federal law. 60.2 Section 60.2 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF... National Register, certain provisions of the Surface Mining and Control Act of 1977 require consideration...

  5. 36 CFR 60.2 - Effects of listing under Federal law.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Effects of listing under Federal law. 60.2 Section 60.2 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF... National Register, certain provisions of the Surface Mining and Control Act of 1977 require consideration...

  6. 36 CFR 65.7 - Monitoring National Historic Landmarks.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Monitoring National Historic Landmarks. 65.7 Section 65.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE... section 9, Mining in the National Parks Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 1342, 16 U.S.C. 1980), whenever the...

  7. 36 CFR 65.7 - Monitoring National Historic Landmarks.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Monitoring National Historic Landmarks. 65.7 Section 65.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE... section 9, Mining in the National Parks Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 1342, 16 U.S.C. 1980), whenever the...

  8. 36 CFR 60.2 - Effects of listing under Federal law.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Effects of listing under Federal law. 60.2 Section 60.2 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF... National Register, certain provisions of the Surface Mining and Control Act of 1977 require consideration...

  9. 36 CFR 65.7 - Monitoring National Historic Landmarks.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false Monitoring National Historic Landmarks. 65.7 Section 65.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE... section 9, Mining in the National Parks Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 1342, 16 U.S.C. 1980), whenever the...

  10. 36 CFR 60.2 - Effects of listing under Federal law.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false Effects of listing under Federal law. 60.2 Section 60.2 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF... National Register, certain provisions of the Surface Mining and Control Act of 1977 require consideration...

  11. 36 CFR 65.7 - Monitoring National Historic Landmarks.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false Monitoring National Historic Landmarks. 65.7 Section 65.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE... section 9, Mining in the National Parks Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 1342, 16 U.S.C. 1980), whenever the...

  12. 36 CFR 65.7 - Monitoring National Historic Landmarks.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-07-01

    ... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false Monitoring National Historic Landmarks. 65.7 Section 65.7 Parks, Forests, and Public Property NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE... section 9, Mining in the National Parks Act of 1976 (90 Stat. 1342, 16 U.S.C. 1980), whenever the...

  13. 77 FR 24673 - Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests; Colorado; Federal Coal Lease Modifications...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2012-04-25

    ..., other soil disturbance may occur due to temporary road construction and drilling of methane drainage... soil disturbance may occur due to temporary road construction and drilling of methane drainage wells. A... scenic integrity of that landscape, as prescribed in the Forest Plan. Coal Mine Methane--The parent...

  14. 76 FR 78234 - Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests and Thunder Basin National Grassland, Campbell County, WY...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-12-16

    ... the road construction, the final easement would be acquired by Campbell County, and this road will be... National Grassland, Campbell County, WY; Mackey Road Relocation AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. ACTION... authorize Peabody Powder River Mining, LLC to vacate and relocate portions of Campbell County Road 69...

  15. Chapter 6: Tree-compatible ground covers for reforestation and erosion control

    Treesearch

    J. Burger; V. Davis; C. Zipper; J. Skousen; C. Barton; P. Angel

    2017-01-01

    Productive native forests create economic value for landowners, produce raw materials for wood-based products, and provide benefits such as watershed control, water quality protection, carbon storage, wildlife habitat, and native plant diversity. Owners of lands mined for coal in the Appalachian region are increasingly interested in assuring that productive forests are...

  16. 43 CFR 3833.20 - Amending mining claims and sites.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Amending mining claims and sites. 3833.20... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) RECORDING MINING CLAIMS AND SITES Amending Mining Claims and Sites § 3833.20 Amending mining claims and sites. ...

  17. 30 CFR 71.301 - Respirable dust control plan; approval by District Manager and posting.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... District Manager and posting. 71.301 Section 71.301 Mineral Resources MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION... plan; approval by District Manager and posting. (a) The District Manager will approve respirable dust control plans on a mine-by-mine basis. When approving respirable dust control plans, the District Manager...

  18. Predicting CD4 count changes among patients on antiretroviral treatment: Application of data mining techniques.

    PubMed

    Kebede, Mihiretu; Zegeye, Desalegn Tigabu; Zeleke, Berihun Megabiaw

    2017-12-01

    To monitor the progress of therapy and disease progression, periodic CD4 counts are required throughout the course of HIV/AIDS care and support. The demand for CD4 count measurement is increasing as ART programs expand over the last decade. This study aimed to predict CD4 count changes and to identify the predictors of CD4 count changes among patients on ART. A cross-sectional study was conducted at the University of Gondar Hospital from 3,104 adult patients on ART with CD4 counts measured at least twice (baseline and most recent). Data were retrieved from the HIV care clinic electronic database and patients` charts. Descriptive data were analyzed by SPSS version 20. Cross-Industry Standard Process for Data Mining (CRISP-DM) methodology was followed to undertake the study. WEKA version 3.8 was used to conduct a predictive data mining. Before building the predictive data mining models, information gain values and correlation-based Feature Selection methods were used for attribute selection. Variables were ranked according to their relevance based on their information gain values. J48, Neural Network, and Random Forest algorithms were experimented to assess model accuracies. The median duration of ART was 191.5 weeks. The mean CD4 count change was 243 (SD 191.14) cells per microliter. Overall, 2427 (78.2%) patients had their CD4 counts increased by at least 100 cells per microliter, while 4% had a decline from the baseline CD4 value. Baseline variables including age, educational status, CD8 count, ART regimen, and hemoglobin levels predicted CD4 count changes with predictive accuracies of J48, Neural Network, and Random Forest being 87.1%, 83.5%, and 99.8%, respectively. Random Forest algorithm had a superior performance accuracy level than both J48 and Artificial Neural Network. The precision, sensitivity and recall values of Random Forest were also more than 99%. Nearly accurate prediction results were obtained using Random Forest algorithm. This algorithm could be used in a low-resource setting to build a web-based prediction model for CD4 count changes. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. 76 FR 64110 - Safety and Health Management Programs for Mines

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-10-17

    ... DEPARTMENT OF LABOR Mine Safety and Health Administration RIN 1219-AB71 Safety and Health Management Programs for Mines AGENCY: Mine Safety and Health Administration, Labor. ACTION: Notice of public meetings. SUMMARY: The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) is holding a public meeting, and plans...

  20. Large herbivores in novel ecosystems - Habitat selection by red deer (Cervus elaphus) in a former brown-coal mining area

    PubMed Central

    Bøcher, Peder Klith; Root-Bernstein, Meredith; Svenning, Jens-Christian

    2017-01-01

    After centuries of range contraction, many megafauna species are recolonizing parts of Europe. One example is the red deer (Cervus elaphus), which was able to expand its range and is now found in half the areas it inhabited in the beginning of the 19th century. Herbivores are important ecosystem engineers, influencing e.g. vegetation. Knowledge on their habitat selection and their influence on ecosystems might be crucial for future landscape management, especially for hybrid and novel ecosystems emerging in post-industrial landscapes. In this study, red deer habitat selection was studied in a former brown-coal mining area in Denmark. Here, natural settings were severely changed during the mining activity and its current landscape is in large parts managed by hunters as suitable deer habitat. We assessed red deer habitat preferences through feces presence and camera traps combined with land cover data from vegetation sampling, remote sensing and official geographic data. Red deer occurrence was negatively associated with human disturbance and positively associated with forage availability, tree cover and mean terrain height. Apparently, red deer are capable of recolonizing former industrial landscapes quite well if key conditions such as forage abundance and cover are appropriate. In the absence of carnivores, human disturbance, such as a hunting regime is a main reason why deer avoid certain areas. The resulting spatial heterogeneity red deer showed in their habitat use of the study area might be a tool to preserve mosaic landscapes of forest and open habitats and thus promote biodiversity in abandoned post-industrial landscapes. PMID:28505192

  1. Large herbivores in novel ecosystems - Habitat selection by red deer (Cervus elaphus) in a former brown-coal mining area.

    PubMed

    Müller, Anke; Dahm, Maria; Bøcher, Peder Klith; Root-Bernstein, Meredith; Svenning, Jens-Christian

    2017-01-01

    After centuries of range contraction, many megafauna species are recolonizing parts of Europe. One example is the red deer (Cervus elaphus), which was able to expand its range and is now found in half the areas it inhabited in the beginning of the 19th century. Herbivores are important ecosystem engineers, influencing e.g. vegetation. Knowledge on their habitat selection and their influence on ecosystems might be crucial for future landscape management, especially for hybrid and novel ecosystems emerging in post-industrial landscapes. In this study, red deer habitat selection was studied in a former brown-coal mining area in Denmark. Here, natural settings were severely changed during the mining activity and its current landscape is in large parts managed by hunters as suitable deer habitat. We assessed red deer habitat preferences through feces presence and camera traps combined with land cover data from vegetation sampling, remote sensing and official geographic data. Red deer occurrence was negatively associated with human disturbance and positively associated with forage availability, tree cover and mean terrain height. Apparently, red deer are capable of recolonizing former industrial landscapes quite well if key conditions such as forage abundance and cover are appropriate. In the absence of carnivores, human disturbance, such as a hunting regime is a main reason why deer avoid certain areas. The resulting spatial heterogeneity red deer showed in their habitat use of the study area might be a tool to preserve mosaic landscapes of forest and open habitats and thus promote biodiversity in abandoned post-industrial landscapes.

  2. Suspended-sediment yields from an unmined area and from mined areas before and after reclamation in Pennsylvania, June 1978-September 1983

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Reed, L.A.; Hainly, R.A.

    1989-01-01

    The U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, has collected hydrologic data from areas in Tioga, Clearfield, and Fayette Counties to determine the effects of surface coal mining on sediment yields. The data were collected from June 1978 through September 1983. Rainfall, streamflow and suspended-sediment data were collected with automatic recording and sampling equipment. Data were collected in Tioga County from an agricultural area that was unaffected by mining and from a forested area prior to surface mining. Data were collected from two areas affected by active surface mining in Tioga County and from an area in Clearfield County being mined by the contour-surface method. Data also were collected from three areas, Tioga, Clearfield, and Fayette Counties, during and after reclamation. The efficiencies of sediment-control pounds in Clearfield and Fayette Counties also were determined. The average annual sediment yield from the agricultural area in Tioga County, which was 35 percent forested, was 0.48 ton per acre per year, and the yield from the forested area prior to mining was 0.0036 ton per acre per year. The average annual sediment yields from the areas affected by active surface mining were 22 tons per acre from the improved haul road and 148 tons per acre from the unimproved haul road. The average annual sediment yield from the site in Clearfield County that had been prepared for mining was 6.3 tons per acre. The average annual sediment yield from the same site while it was being mined by the contour method was 5.5 tons per acre per year. The sediment-control pond reduced the average annual sediment yield to 0.50 ton per acre while the site was prepared for mining and to 0.14 ton per acre while the site was being mined. Because the active surface mining reduced the effective drainage area to the pond, the sediment yield decreased from 0.50 to 0.14 ton per acre. Average annual suspended-sediment yields from the reclaimed site in Tioga County were 1.0 ton per acre during the first year, when vegetation was becoming established, and 0.037 ton per acre during the second year, when vegetation was well established. The average annual sediment yield below a 21.2-acre, reclaimed, surface mine in Clearfield County that had been mined by the contour method was 15 tons per acre during the first year when vegetation was becoming established. However, the average annual sediment yield below a sediment-control pond at this reclaimed site in Clearfield County was 0.30 ton per acre. Data collected from a 4.2-acre reclaimed area that had been surface mined by the block-cut method in Fayette County showed that annual sediment yields from the area were 77 tons per acre in 1981 (no vegetation), 32 tons per acre in 1982 (sparse vegetation), and 1.0 ton per acre in 1983 (well-esatablished vegetation). The average annual yield below a sediment-control pond at the mine site in Fayette County was 0.19 ton per acre during the 27 months of data collection.

  3. Credit Risk Evaluation of Power Market Players with Random Forest

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Umezawa, Yasushi; Mori, Hiroyuki

    A new method is proposed for credit risk evaluation in a power market. The credit risk evaluation is to measure the bankruptcy risk of the company. The power system liberalization results in new environment that puts emphasis on the profit maximization and the risk minimization. There is a high probability that the electricity transaction causes a risk between companies. So, power market players are concerned with the risk minimization. As a management strategy, a risk index is requested to evaluate the worth of the business partner. This paper proposes a new method for evaluating the credit risk with Random Forest (RF) that makes ensemble learning for the decision tree. RF is one of efficient data mining technique in clustering data and extracting relationship between input and output data. In addition, the method of generating pseudo-measurements is proposed to improve the performance of RF. The proposed method is successfully applied to real financial data of energy utilities in the power market. A comparison is made between the proposed and the conventional methods.

  4. [Community forestry and the social ecology of development].

    PubMed

    Cabarle, B J

    1991-01-01

    Tropical forests are the most important resource of rural communities, offering nutrition, housing, and spiritual sustenance. Yet millions of people dependent on the forests often have no legal means of voicing their views in national policies affecting forests. Tropical forests disappear by the thousands of square miles every year. In the 1980s the rate of deforestation increased by 80% because of accelerated agricultural development, mining, road construction, and timber production. This also meant the destruction of the habitats of innumerable species of plants and animals, with unforeseeable consequences for the global climate. The adoption of community silviculture is fundamental for the utilization of timber resources and the improvement of agricultural activities while preserving pristine forests. At the University of Chiang Mai, Thailand, the sociocultural aspects of self-help and self-dependence relating to development are emphasized. As a component of rural integrated development, community silviculture was adopted in the 1970s. In the US social silviculture was institutionalized in the 1930s by the Civil Conservation Corps. It was demonstrated clearly that stable ownership of both forests and land is the foundation of effective silvicultural projects. However, often local inhabitants' rights have been ignored when clearing major forest tracts for agroindustrial enterprises. Silviculture projects for the community require five components for success: 1) leadership; 2) organizational base; 3) equal participation of community members for the distribution of benefits; 4) the ability to bring in effective external capital; and 5) good financial management for continuous operation. A number of innovative projects have been launched using environmentally viable technology for sustainable production in Mexico (Yanesha Forestry Cooperative) and in Peru (the Quintana Roo natural regeneration project).

  5. Land disturbances from strip-mining in eastern Kentucky: 3. Licking River coal reserve district

    Treesearch

    William T. Plass

    1967-01-01

    Results of an airphoto survey to determine the extent of land disturbance by coal mining and by coal-haul roads in one of the six coal-reserve districts of eastern Kentucky. Describes the district, forest cover, physiography and geology, and distribution and physical characteristics of the 1,456 acres disturbed in this 1.1 million-acre district.

  6. Reforestation species study on a reclaimed surface mine in western Maryland

    Treesearch

    Jay A. Engle

    1980-01-01

    Westvaco Forest Research established a species comparison test including eighteen species of trees in the spring of 1978 on a recently reclaimed surface mine in Garrett County, Maryland. After two growing seasons height growth of all species has not been impressive. Seven species have better than 75 percent survival with pitch pine being best. Seven other species have...

  7. 75 FR 28281 - Notice of Proposed Withdrawal Extension and Public Meeting; Oregon

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2010-05-20

    ... approximately 11,675.51 acres of National Forest System land from mining in order to protect the scientific and... Natural Area. The withdrawal created by PLO No. 6880 will expire on September 29, 2011, unless extended... County, Oregon, from location and entry under the United States mining laws (30 U.S.C. ch. 2). The area...

  8. Three Kids Mine Remediation and Reclamation Act

    THOMAS, 113th Congress

    Sen. Reid, Harry [D-NV

    2013-02-14

    Senate - 07/30/2013 Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining. Hearings held. With printed Hearing: S.Hrg. 113-85. (All Actions) Notes: For further action, see H.R.697, which became Public Law 113-135 on 7/25/2014. Tracker: This bill has the status IntroducedHere are the steps for Status of Legislation:

  9. Revegetating surface-mined lands with herbaceous and woody species together

    Treesearch

    Willis G. Vogel

    1980-01-01

    Herbaceous cover is required for erosion control on surface-mined lands even where forests are to be established. Where planted with trees, herbaceous species usually cause an increase in tree seedling mortality and retard tree growth, especially in the first few years after planting. Trees seem to be affected most by competition for moisture because their survival is...

  10. The 3D Elevation Program: summary for Virginia

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Carswell, William J.

    2013-01-01

    Elevation data are essential to a broad range of applications, including forest resources management, wildlife and habitat management, national security, recreation, and many others. For the Commonwealth of Virginia, elevation data are critical for urban and regional planning, natural resources conservation, flood risk management, agriculture and precision farming, resource mining, infrastructure and construction management, and other business uses. Today, high-quality light detection and ranging (lidar) data are the sources for creating elevation models and other elevation datasets. Federal, State, and local agencies work in partnership to (1) replace data, on a national basis, that are (on average) 30 years old and of lower quality and (2) provide coverage where publicly accessible data do not exist. A joint goal of State and Federal partners is to acquire consistent, statewide coverage to support existing and emerging applications enabled by lidar data. The new 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) initiative, managed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), responds to the growing need for high-quality topographic data and a wide range of other three-dimensional representations of the Nation’s natural and constructed features.

  11. Application of Modern Tools and Techniques for Mine Safety & Disaster Management

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kumar, Dheeraj

    2016-04-01

    The implementation of novel systems and adoption of improvised equipment in mines help mining companies in two important ways: enhanced mine productivity and improved worker safety. There is a substantial need for adoption of state-of-the-art automation technologies in the mines to ensure the safety and to protect health of mine workers. With the advent of new autonomous equipment used in the mine, the inefficiencies are reduced by limiting human inconsistencies and error. The desired increase in productivity at a mine can sometimes be achieved by changing only a few simple variables. Significant developments have been made in the areas of surface and underground communication, robotics, smart sensors, tracking systems, mine gas monitoring systems and ground movements etc. Advancement in information technology in the form of internet, GIS, remote sensing, satellite communication, etc. have proved to be important tools for hazard reduction and disaster management. This paper is mainly focused on issues pertaining to mine safety and disaster management and some of the recent innovations in the mine automations that could be deployed in mines for safe mining operations and for avoiding any unforeseen mine disaster.

  12. Management of the water balance and quality in mining areas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pasanen, Antti; Krogerus, Kirsti; Mroueh, Ulla-Maija; Turunen, Kaisa; Backnäs, Soile; Vento, Tiia; Veijalainen, Noora; Hentinen, Kimmo; Korkealaakso, Juhani

    2015-04-01

    Although mining companies have long been conscious of water related risks they still face environmental management problems. These problems mainly emerge because mine sites' water balances have not been adequately assessed in the stage of the planning of mines. More consistent approach is required to help mining companies identify risks and opportunities related to the management of water resources in all stages of mining. This approach requires that the water cycle of a mine site is interconnected with the general hydrologic water cycle. In addition to knowledge on hydrological conditions, the control of the water balance in the mining processes require knowledge of mining processes, the ability to adjust process parameters to variable hydrological conditions, adaptation of suitable water management tools and systems, systematic monitoring of amounts and quality of water, adequate capacity in water management infrastructure to handle the variable water flows, best practices to assess the dispersion, mixing and dilution of mine water and pollutant loading to receiving water bodies, and dewatering and separation of water from tailing and precipitates. WaterSmart project aims to improve the awareness of actual quantities of water, and water balances in mine areas to improve the forecasting and the management of the water volumes. The study is executed through hydrogeological and hydrological surveys and online monitoring procedures. One of the aims is to exploit on-line water quantity and quality monitoring for the better management of the water balances. The target is to develop a practical and end-user-specific on-line input and output procedures. The second objective is to develop mathematical models to calculate combined water balances including the surface, ground and process waters. WSFS, the Hydrological Modeling and Forecasting System of SYKE is being modified for mining areas. New modelling tools are developed on spreadsheet and system dynamics platforms to systematically integrate all water balance components (groundwater, surface water, infiltration, precipitation, mine water facilities and operations etc.) into overall dynamic mine site considerations. After coupling the surface and ground water models (e.g. Feflow and WSFS) with each other, they are compared with Goldsim. The third objective is to integrate the monitoring and modelling tools into the mine management system and process control. The modelling and predictive process control can prevent flood situations, ensure water adequacy, and enable the controlled mine water treatment. The project will develop a constantly updated management system for water balance including both natural waters and process waters.

  13. VRLane: a desktop virtual safety management program for underground coal mine

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Mei; Chen, Jingzhu; Xiong, Wei; Zhang, Pengpeng; Wu, Daozheng

    2008-10-01

    VR technologies, which generate immersive, interactive, and three-dimensional (3D) environments, are seldom applied to coal mine safety work management. In this paper, a new method that combined the VR technologies with underground mine safety management system was explored. A desktop virtual safety management program for underground coal mine, called VRLane, was developed. The paper mainly concerned about the current research advance in VR, system design, key techniques and system application. Two important techniques were introduced in the paper. Firstly, an algorithm was designed and implemented, with which the 3D laneway models and equipment models can be built on the basis of the latest mine 2D drawings automatically, whereas common VR programs established 3D environment by using 3DS Max or the other 3D modeling software packages with which laneway models were built manually and laboriously. Secondly, VRLane realized system integration with underground industrial automation. VRLane not only described a realistic 3D laneway environment, but also described the status of the coal mining, with functions of displaying the run states and related parameters of equipment, per-alarming the abnormal mining events, and animating mine cars, mine workers, or long-wall shearers. The system, with advantages of cheap, dynamic, easy to maintenance, provided a useful tool for safety production management in coal mine.

  14. 76 FR 1629 - Public Land Order No. 7758; Revocation of Secretarial Order Dated March 7, 1932; Wyoming

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2011-01-11

    ... the remaining 27,825 acres of National Forest System lands withdrawn for the Bureau of Reclamation's...,600 acres National Forest System lands in Sublette County, Wyoming, for the Bureau of Reclamation's.... The lands will not be opened to the public land or mining laws until completion of an analysis to...

  15. Koa (Acacia koa) ecology and silviculture

    Treesearch

    Patrick J. Baker; Paul G. Scowcroft; John J. Ewel

    2009-01-01

    Koa (Acacia koa) is a tree species endemic to Hawaii that is of immense ecological and economic importance. This species has been mined from local forests for its wood for more than 100 years, and extensive areas of koa-dominated forests have been converted to grazing lands. Today, in recognition of the great importance and value of koa and the...

  16. 43 CFR 3862.8 - Patents for mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2011-10-01 2011-10-01 false Patents for mining claims. 3862.8 Section... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) MINERAL PATENT APPLICATIONS Lode Mining Claim Patent Applications § 3862.8 Patents for mining claims. ...

  17. 43 CFR 3862.8 - Patents for mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2014-10-01 2014-10-01 false Patents for mining claims. 3862.8 Section... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) MINERAL PATENT APPLICATIONS Lode Mining Claim Patent Applications § 3862.8 Patents for mining claims. ...

  18. 43 CFR 3862.8 - Patents for mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2013-10-01 2013-10-01 false Patents for mining claims. 3862.8 Section... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) MINERAL PATENT APPLICATIONS Lode Mining Claim Patent Applications § 3862.8 Patents for mining claims. ...

  19. 43 CFR 3862.8 - Patents for mining claims.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-10-01

    ... 43 Public Lands: Interior 2 2012-10-01 2012-10-01 false Patents for mining claims. 3862.8 Section... MANAGEMENT, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR MINERALS MANAGEMENT (3000) MINERAL PATENT APPLICATIONS Lode Mining Claim Patent Applications § 3862.8 Patents for mining claims. ...

  20. Investigating uranium distribution in surface sediments and waters: a case study of contamination from the Juniper Uranium Mine, Stanislaus National Forest, CA.

    PubMed

    Kayzar, Theresa M; Villa, Adam C; Lobaugh, Megan L; Gaffney, Amy M; Williams, Ross W

    2014-10-01

    The uranium concentrations and isotopic compositions of waters, sediment leachates and sediments from Red Rock Creek in the Stanislaus National Forest of California were measured to investigate the transport of uranium from a point source (the Juniper Uranium Mine) to a natural surface stream environment. The ((234)U)/((238)U) composition of Red Rock Creek is altered downstream of the Juniper Mine. As a result of mine-derived contamination, water ((234)U)/((238)U) ratios are 67% lower than in water upstream of the mine (1.114-1.127 ± 0.009 in the contaminated waters versus 1.676 in the clean branch of the stream), and sediment samples have activity ratios in equilibrium in the clean creek and out of equilibrium in the contaminated creek (1.041-1.102 ± 0.007). Uranium concentrations in water, sediment and sediment leachates are highest downstream of the mine, but decrease rapidly after mixing with the clean branch of the stream. Uranium content and compositions of the contaminated creek headwaters relative to the mine tailings of the Juniper Mine suggest that uranium has been weathered from the mine and deposited in the creek. The distribution of uranium between sediment surfaces (leachable fraction) and bulk sediment suggests that adsorption is a key element of transfer along the creek. In clean creek samples, uranium is concentrated in the sediment residues, whereas in the contaminated creek, uranium is concentrated on the sediment surfaces (∼70-80% of uranium in leachable fraction). Contamination only exceeds the EPA maximum contaminant level (MCL) for drinking water in the sample with the closest proximity to the mine. Isotopic characterization of the uranium in this system coupled with concentration measurements suggest that the current state of contamination in Red Rock Creek is best described by mixing between the clean creek and contaminated upper branch of Red Rock Creek rather than mixing directly with mine sediment. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

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