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Good morning ladies and gentlemen of the AIME. I was doubly pleased when Toby Yu asked me to present to you my thoughts on the past, the present, and the future of bulk transportation by barge. My first pleasure comes from sharing with you the subject that has been my career for many years. I love this industry in the same way Mark Twain loved our rivers. Somehow, I can find in all of the activities that make up this crazy barge business the same sort of excitement that he found in "steam boating." The second reason for my enthusiasm is that Toby carefully pointed out that the presentation had to be kept to a maximum of 15 minutes. I can promise you that I will hold to his maximum time limit.

Jan 1, 1982

By Donald J. Worth

When Eugene Bailey asked me to contribute to this session on "Canadian exploration - 1976", it took a little coaxing before he got me to agree. My immediate reaction was, what could i say about Canadian exploration that already had not been said a hundred times in the past few years; secondly, why include a banking person in such a discussion? Everyone knows banks only come into the picture after the discovery has been made and feasibility well established and validated. Rather than wrestle with these misgivings, I decided to take the easy way out and go on blind faith in Eugene - that is, he asked me so he must think that I could come up with some useful thoughts and at least touch upon some of the pros and cons of exploration in Canada. The object of the whole exploration exercise is to Find economic deposits, once they are found, one cannot really move them elsewhere to mine them. It follows, therefore, that we should really be speaking about the pros and cons of mining In Canada and my treatise will eventually lean in this direction. In any event and before getting down to the pros and cons, let us take a quick look at the history of mineral resource development in our country since the end of world war II. At that time, we were producing well under one billion dollars worth of mineral products including hydrocarbons.

Jan 1, 1976

By John L. Burnett

Field criteria are needed to help the prospector recognize a potentially expansible shale, clay, or slate. Certain criteria have proven useful in California even though the physical-chemical mechanisms of expansion are not thoroughly understood. Three conditions must be satisfied before expansion can take place, The raw material must partially fuse at a low temperature (1800-2000°F.), Concurrently a gas must form. The raw material must be sufficiently impermeable to trap the gas within the particle. Low temperature melting, which is controlled by bulk chemical composition, is difficult to assess in the field but most common shale, clay, and slate is suitable in this respect, The presence of organic carbon, the most common source of an expanding gas, is indicated by dark color of the rock, A large proportion of clay-sized particles promotes impermeability; fine grain-size is indicated by conchoidal fracture, The shape of the expanded particle is commonly indicated by the texture of the raw material. Rocks with well-developed slatey cleavage produce accordion-shaped particles; massive rocks tend to form rounded particles. Undesirable materials commonly present with expansible shale include: weathered shale; sandstone and other coarse-grained sediments; and limestone, Weathering, which is indicated by color, reduces or eliminates expansion; therefore, surface samples seldom are representative of the shale found at depth. Sandstone does not expand and will increase the average weight of the finished product, Limestone or particles of carbonate minerals can be actively harmful because they are converted to free lime (CaO) during the firing process, If free lime is present in concrete, hydration will cause expansion of the lime particles which result in surficial ?popouts.?

Jan 1, 1963

By Bruce Gellar

In March, the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) held its annual conference in Toronto, Ontario. This is the third PDAC meeting the author has attended. The following are some impressions of the meeting. And the author looks forward to the joint meeting of the PDAC and the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum to be held March 5-10, 2000, entitled Mining Millennium 2000. One of the features of next year’s gathering is a proposed forum of world mining ministers, the first ever to be held anywhere.

Jan 1, 1999

By K. Voltaire

As can be guessed from the subtitle, this paper will not be a geologist's one since neither of the authors is a professional geologist. This will be an attempt to present the various aspects of the legal, economic and geological setting that condition the exploration for mineral resources in Haiti. Before going any further, we are going to present a summary of our rather short mining history. One must first mention that Caribbean countries are latecomers to the mining business. If we go back to the colonial period (1500-1600's) there are net many traces of mining activity. The major exception to this is the recovery of alluvial gold in Hispaniola, Puerto-Rico and Cuba and also some sporadic copper mining in Hispaniola (notably in Haiti near the city of Gonaives and in some of the old mining districts in Santo-Domingo). These easily minable deposits were quickly exhausted and mining quite naturally came to an end as agriculture rose as the major economic activity. In the Haitian case, aside from very erratic mention during the 19th Century of the presence of some minerals (i.e. haematite, chalcopyrite) no serious geological work was undertaken. In the meantime, the peasants in the northern part were still looking for alluvial gold in some streams but this amounted to next to nothing. One has to come to the 1920's to find the first comprehensive geological survey. At the time, the country was under the military control of the United States. The American Government sent a team from the U.S.G.S. headed by the late W. Woodring to initiate a survey of the country. Given the lack of transportation, this was a tough task and Woodring and his associates did it magnificently. As a result of their efforts, they published a very thick piece of work of more than 600 pages. "The Geology of the Republic of Haiti" although it was published in 1924 is a classic and is a must for anyone interested in the geology of Haiti.

Jan 1, 1978

By D. J. Boron, R. Kollrack

Introduction The US has the largest total (364 Gt, or 401 billion st) and recoverable (182 Gt, or 201 billion st) coal reserves in the world (Steam/Its Generation and Use, 1978). However, progressive coal use in this country has been hampered by environmental constraints, such as restrictions on sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulate emissions. Since the promulgation of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) New Source Performance Standards (NSPS), it has become apparent that all US coals will require sulfur removal to comply with the new sulfur dioxide emission levels. If more stringent emission standards are imposed, through pending acid rain legislation or amendments to the Clean Air Act, it is likely that the coal industry, and the industrial and utility sectors will look increasingly toward the development of new and advanced coal cleaning technologies to continue and promote the use of coal. Table 1 summarizes the EPA NSPS for sulfur dioxide emissions. Fortunately, the basis for determining sulfur dioxide removal is the Btu and total sulfur content of the run-of-mine coal. Thus, credit is given for any sulfur removed before combustion, e.g., through physical coal cleaning. Unfortunately, physical coal cleaning alone may be unable to produce a compliance coal with respect to the EPA NSPS. Therefore, all industrial and utility coal-fired boilers will require post combustion gas cleanup, e.g., flue gas desulfurization (FGD), to comply with the new regulations. Table 1 - EPA NSPS for SO2 Emission Category SO2 Content of ROM Coal SO2 Reduction Required 1 0-2 Ib/M Btu 70 2 2-6 Ib/M Btu To 0.6 Ib/M Btu (70% to 90%) 3 6-12 Ib/M Btu 90% 4 12 Ib/M Btu To 1.2 Ib/M Btu Alternatives to post combustion gas cleanup, such as staged combustion, lime and coal injection, fluidized-bed combustion, and chemical coal cleaning, are currently under development. Of these, chemical coal cleaning offers the advantages of providing (1) high quality fuel for combustion (low sulfur and ash, high Btu, and attenuated product variability); (2) a solid fuel product for use in retrofitted gas and oil boilers; and (3) a solid fuel product with multiple end uses, e.g., internal combustion engines, carbon electrodes, coke, or chemical feedstock. Gravimelt process In the Gravimelt process, 1.4 mm x 0 (14 mesh x 0), physically beneficiated coal of about 5% moisture is fed into a 3401 to 3901 C (644 ° to 734 ° F) molten bath of sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide. Organic and pyritic sulfur and most of the mineral matter in coal react with and are dissolved in a molten mixture of potassium hydroxide and sodium hydroxide. The reacted coal sulfur is converted to alkali sulfides and polysulfides, whereas the mineral matter is apparently converted to alkali-aluminum silicates and other byproducts that are water and acid soluble. Coal residence time is 60 to 240 minutes. The sodium hydroxide to potassium hydroxide ratio is about 9:1. The total hydroxide-to-coal ratio is no less than 10:1. The specific gravity of the caustic melt is about 1.8 g/cm3 . Thus, coal is buoyant in the bath, and insoluble mineral matter with density greater than 1.8 g/cm3 would sink. Reacted coal is first water-washed with an equal weight volume of water in a countercurrent mode of operation. The coal is filtered and the filtrate sent for regeneration. The coal is then acid-washed in 10% sulfuric acid. The acid-water/coal mixture is filtered to recover the final coal product, and the filtrate treated with lime to precipitate dissolved mineral matter. The precipitate is filtered from the mixture and discarded. The water is recycled to the plant. Filtrate from water-washing is treated to remove sodium sulfide. The sodium sulfide is chemically treated to produce hydrogen sulfide, calcium car¬bonate, sodium hydroxide, and other products. The hydrogen sulfide is treated to produce sulfuric acid for the acid-washing step. The calcium carbonate is treated further or discarded, and the sodium hydroxide is concentrated by evaporation and recycled to the reactor. The Gravimelt process is currently at the bench-scale stage of development. A 0.9-kg (2-lb) continuous reactor is in operation with a continuous water- and acid-washing section adjacent. The regeneration section is not developed to a meaningful extent, although key reactions have been tested in the laboratory. Process conditions, product recovery efficiencies, etc., however, have not been determined adequately and continuous regeneration operation has not been attempted. Work is now in progress to develop each section to a continuous bench-scale operation in processing coal at 9.1 kg/h (20 lb per hr). Microwave process The carbon and hydrogen in coal are relatively transparent to microwave radiation. However, water, caustic, pyrite, and other mineral matter components are strong conductors of microwave radiation energy at the proper frequency. As a result, selective heating of the noncarbonaceous materials occurs that enables the chemical reaction of sulfur and ash with caustic. Although very high temperatures may result from

Jan 1, 1987

By David J. Boron

The United States has the largest total (364 billion metric tons) and recoverable (182 billion metric tons) coal reserves in the world.1 However, progressive coal utilization in this country has been hampered by environmental constraints, such as restrictions on sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulate emissions. New technologies are being pursued both to appease these environmental concerns and improve economic performance and process efficiency. These technologies, however, have not reached the level of effectiveness required for optimum operation. If more stringent emission standards are imposed, it is likely that the coal industry, and the industrial and utility sectors will look increasingly toward the successful development of new and advanced coal cleaning technologies in order to continue and promote the use of coal in this country. The EPA New Source Performance Standards In 1979, the Environmental Protection Agency in response to the amendments to the Clean Air Act of 1977 issued new source performance standards (NSPS) for utility and industrial boilers. The NSPS set emission standards for sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulates affecting boilers of 250 MM Btu per hour heat input or 'greater that started construction after September 1978. Plants starting construction or in operation before September 1978 remained subject to the provisions of the regulations promulgated in 1971, i.e., SO2 emissions of 1.2 15/MM Btu. The NSPS for SO2 emissions provides a sliding scale for SO2 reduction depending on the sulfur content of the run-of-mine coal, with an upper limit of 1.2 lb of SO2 per million Btu and a minimum emission level based on 70% SO2 removal. Table 1 summarizes the EPA NSPS for SO2 emission standards.

Jan 1, 1983

By Colin J. Douch

New Zealand has been a significant producer of gold for over a century. Total recorded production is over 850 tonnes. There were three major periods of production: the first and biggest was between 1860 and 1880, the second was between 1895 and 1920 and the third was between 1930 and 1945. After 1945 gold production fell continually until 1980 when the major upward adjustment in gold price led to renewed interest. There have been important new developments in each of the known gold-rich areas: Westland, Otago and Coromandel and exploration for gold in these areas and in previously unprospected regions has reached unprecedented levels. In Westland over 140 gold processing plants are each producing between two and six ounces a day from low-grade placers. A major gold dredging operation will soon be producing over a tonne of gold annually and other new dredges are proposed. There are still vast reserves of gold-bearing gravels in Westland and prospecting is continuing to reveal new resources. In the Reefton area there is renewed interest in gold-bearing quartz reefs which were the source of over a million ounces of gold between 1900 and 1951. New large opencast reserves are now defined.

Jan 1, 1988

By T. J. Kim, S. Suh

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate overall prospects of the export market in the Pacific Rim for Illinois steam coal in terms of recent changes in global socioeconomic factors. To pursue this objective, three factors affecting the prospects of Illinois coal in the Asian market were selected for detailed analysis: quality requirements of imported coal, particularly those of the Japanese market; import controls and regulatory factors; and transportation factors affecting the export of Illinois coal. Based on these analyses, alternative long-term strategies are suggested for promoting Illinois coal export in the Asian market.

Jan 1, 1988

By Robert E. Moore

Investigators have attempted to develop lime refractories on a scale for broad applications in the metal and ceramic industries for several decades. There was a flurry of activity in the early to mid-fifties but no commercial developments were forthcoming. The literature of that period yields little information on plant trials. A major factor suppressing past interest in lime has to have been the high success with the application of magnesic and dolomitic materials. These materials, usually tar-bonded or impregnated, have become the refractories success story of the past two decades, especially in BOF applications. It is safe to say that their development and application has essentially plateaued, and that work today is focussed on finding cheaper paths to produce MgO-based refractories. For example there are efforts underway to extract MgO from mineral magnesite and to combine natural dolomite with MgO1. Beginning in the late sixties, rather intensive research began on the development of CaO brick, especially in East and West Germany, in Poland, and other communist bloc satellites, 'and also in Italy and Spain. One speculates that the motivation was a regional shortage of good magnesia and dolomitic material. Of course, There has always existed the prospect of cost savings should it be possible to use raw limestone as the starting material. Quite a large literature has appeared treating of these developments which in the early seventies had already reached full plant scale trials and uses. Some of the directions followed in the research have led to novel methods of brick manufacture.

Jan 1, 1985

By D. R. McConnell

The seafloor in the US Pacific OCS and EEZ is enriched to varying degrees in critical and economically important minerals such as nickel, manganese, cobalt, copper, zinc, REY (rare earth elements plus yttrium), titanium, vanadium, antimony, gold, and silver. These mineral deposits take the form of polymetallic nodules on the seabed, cobalt rich ferromanganese crusts on seamounts and ridges swept clean of sediment accumulation, and seafloor massive sulfides formed by hydrothermal systems at geologic plate spreading centers and volcanic margins. Each of these mineral deposits form on or near the deep ocean seafloor where water depths are typically 4000 m to 5500 m and on the seamounts and volcanic arcs that rise from these depths. Commercial interest in deep sea mineral deposits and the potential for collecting or mining them began in earnest in the 1970s but has been heightened in the last 20 years as the international framework for developing these minerals in International Waters has matured that has coincided with forecasted rapid rising demand for minerals to supply energy and manufacturing needs for the green economy. Compilation reports published by academia, government, and private companies are reviewed to assemble data and assess the prospects for deep sea marine minerals in the US Pacific OCS and EEZ. Key compilations were made by the Circum-Pacific Council and USGS in the 1980s and 1990s. These, together with recent (2023) efforts by USGS to compile geochemical data from USGS affiliated marine research sampling cruises from the 1980s and 1990s, historical data maintained by NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), and recent publicly disclosed results from ISA contractors are used to inform the known occurrence and prospectivity for polymetallic nodules, cobalt-rich ferromanganese crusts, and seafloor massive sulfides in the US Pacific OCS and EEZ.

Feb 22, 2026

By Gary Bennethum, L. Courtland Lee

INTRODUCTION For any identified mineral resource to qualify as a minable reserve, it must contain legally and economically extractable mineral at the time of determination. As competition for land has increased, the legal complexities have more than kept pace, frequently becoming the most important determinant in mineral exploration and development projects. Rarely will developers of a project avoid having to obtain numerous federal, state, and/or local permits while acquiring the necessary legal permission to begin mining. Each site must be selected carefully, not only for economic feasibility, but also for legal feasibility. Although it is impossible to present site-specific solutions for all potential underground developments, certain generalizations may be applied to specific land categories, particularly federally owned land. Such federally owned land includes more than 33% of the land area of the United States and many of the areas potentially attractive for future development. State and local restrictions affect a large portion of the nonfederal land, and those restrictions are equally important even though their diversity and current status require more regional study than can be provided herein (the list of references include sources of additional information). Each potential mining site requires a title search of the land status to determine the land ownership and the conditions affecting development. In addition, appropriate data concerning the mineralogic and economic potentials of an area must be collected. As listed in Table 1, many sources of public information are avail- able to aid potential developers. Fig. 1 illustrates a typical federal master title plat. HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE The settlement of the United States reflects a fascinating history of public-land laws and subsequent mineral-disposal laws. Most of the statutes of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries sought to dispose of land for the purpose of generating revenue to the federal government. The underlying need for general revenue contributed directly to numerous and often conflicting land policies. More recently, diverse federal programs such as environmental legislation have transcended the need for revenue in forming the framework that determines who has power over mineral developments and where those developments can take place. In 1812, the General Land Office was established under the Treasury Dept. At that time, English common law prevailed, entitling the owner of the surface to whatever was contained within the surface boundaries from the surface to the center of the earth. Unless a distinct title separated the mineral estate, it was included in the surface-land ownership. However, gold and silver were the property of the crown and were controlled by sovereign prerogative. Early state legislation on the subject of mines and minerals may be classified as legislation providing for the sale of state lands with a reservation of the minerals and legislation recognizing or asserting the sovereign prerogative for precious metals. In 1781, a Pennsylvania statute reserved 20% of all gold and silver ore for the use of the commonwealth. Thomas Jefferson suggested that a portion of all gold and silver be retained by the federal government. These early rules affecting land in the eastern states, now privately held, have been re- pealed, declared obsolete, or largely ignored. Federal legislation prior to 1848 and affecting mining may be classified as legislation reserving the minerals to the United States and legislation authorizing the disposition of reserved minerals by sale, lease, or grant. With many modifications, these basic policies remain in effect at the present time. A 1796 act provided for the sale of the Northwest Territory and for the establishment of the present system of rectangular survey for public lands. The Lake Superior copper region was the scene of "wild and baseless excitement in 1837" when the attorney general concluded that the president had the power to lease lands in Wisconsin; this opinion soon was overturned by another attorney general. By 1846, Congress had passed legislation authorizing the president to sell reserved lead mines "as soon as practicable" since the system of granting Leases had proved to be unprofitable to both the government and the lessees, many of whom refused to pay the rent. The general practice of early federal Legislation was to make a distinction between mineral lands and other lands, deal with them separately, and generally withhold mineral lands from disposal except through special legislation dealing with particular land. In 1848, following the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, a vast land area was ceded to the United States by Mexico. This area included the present states of California, Nevada, and Utah, as well as portions of Arizona. Colorado, New Mexico, and Wyoming. This abolished the Mexican laws and customs relating to mining and preceded the adoption of the miners' own rules and customs. The adoption of those rules and customs followed a hard-fought battle between western congressmen and the eastern establishment. The western congressmen advocated adopting local customs through a location patent system, while the eastern establishment, particularly in Ohio and Indiana, favored an all- leasing system to pay off Civil War debts. The first mining law was passed in 1869 as an amendment to an act granting right-of-way to ditch land owners, and it was followed by the 1872 Mining Law. Precedent was established for the first categories of protected lands in the opening words of this act, which included the phrase "all unreserved" lands. Reserved lands subsequently defined included military and Indian reservations and were excluded from location since they were determined to be reserved lands. However, the overriding purpose of the mining laws was to settle the western lands and generate revenues for the federal

Jan 1, 1982

In order to reach a large, untapped reserve of high-quality coal, D8 Cloverlick mine proposed to mine a corridor nearly 2,000 ft deep beneath the Benham Spur of Black Mountain, Kentucky’s highest peak. D8 Cloverlick mine was extracting the Owl seam, but the corridor’s route lay approximately 70 ft above century-old mine workings in the C–(Darby) seam. Adding to the concern, three serious coal bursts had recently occurred in nearby Owl seam workings.

Jan 7, 2020

By B. Ballard

Engineers at a West Virginia coal preparation plant owned by one of the nation's largest coal producers sought a fire suppression system for the plant's MCC and cable spreading rooms. Officials considered the traditional options of water-based sprinklers, dry chemical, and clean agent systems; however, each of those options presented challenges. Sprinklers can damage electrical equipment, proper delivery of the agent and adequate coverage/protection can be an issue with dry chemical systems, and clean agent systems require room integrity. An alternative to traditional systems was discovered in the Victaulic Vortex Fire Suppression System. The first hybrid inert gas/water mist system (FM 5580), Vortex adequately addressed these concerns. The system, which deploys a high-velocity, low-pressure mixture of water and nitrogen, is not damaging to electrical equipment and extinguishes fires in open, ventilated areas. This is one of the first installations of the Vortex system in a prep plant, and is a compelling example of how new technology can overcome the challenges of traditional technologies. The paper will detail plant specs, situation, and system evaluation, selection, and configuration.

Feb 23, 2014

By T. J. Fronapfel

Impacts to ground water from mining are being comprehensively regulated in Nevada through specific requirements for design, construction, operation, permitting and closure. This program is the nation's most comprehensive for control of activities at mining operations which have the potential to cause groundwater degradation. It encompasses virtually all types of facilities, including placer, physical separation, flotation, testing, leaching and milling. Minimum design requirements are established by regulation, and must be met by each facility. Site-specific monitoring requirements are established for each facility, and are heavily emphasized. Regulatory and technical requirements and relevant permit conditions are presented and discussed.

Jan 1, 1992

By H. J. Chen, Y. Luo, S. S. Peng

Surface subsidence resulting from underground coal mining can cause problems for buried pipelines. In this paper, a technique for assessing the level of stress on a subsidence-affected pipeline is introduced. The main contributors to the stress are identified, and mitigation techniques for reducing the stress are proposed. The proposed mitigation techniques were then successfully tested.

Jan 1, 1998

By Y. Luo

Surface subsidence process due to underground coal mining often has the potential to cause problems to buried pipelines. In this paper, a technique for assessing the stress level on a subsidence-affected pipeline is introduced. The main contributors for the stresses on the pipelines are identified. Mitigation techniques for reducing the stress on the pipeline have been proposed and successfully tested.

Jan 1, 1997

By Gabriel de Almeida

INTRODUCTION The widespread use of desktop computers by an ever increasing number of people, both for personal and for business and government uses, has brought public attention to surprising stories about computer abuse. Before the advent of microcomputers in the information processing environment, hundreds of amazing misdeeds involving large computers had already been reported, most of them perpetrated by highly skilled professionals. The undreamed enlarging of microcomputer potential has steadily posed a major threat to complex mainframe computing systems, as joyful teenagers become familiar with the habit of hacking around someone else's large processing system, by means of makeshift phone communication networks, based on their intended homework for personal computers -- for the sheer fun of it. Now, the never ending capacity and speed improvement of commercially available micros has given rise to a brand new concern for society: the hazards of processing sensitive information in the powerful, but still unsafe microcomputer itself, whether or not linked to other micros or mainframe networks. This paper deals with some aspects of the problems and presents some practical hints as to enhance protection and minimize risks to sensitive and secretive information when processed on microcomputers. The physical considerations of computer security and pertinent safety precautions will not be discussed, because while essentially relevant to information protection, recommendations are well defined by processing resources suppliers and their importance is more widely recognized by users in general. Definitions and Classifications. The following definitions and classifications will be considered in this report: Information Assets: Any knowledge or information processing, storing or conveying device displayed in one's environment. It consists of two main categories: INFORMATION RESOURCES: End user's application data wherever recorded. PROCESSING RESOURCES: EDP skilled user's hardware, software, peripherals, magnetic media, communication devices, auxiliary equipment, supplies and related operational procedures. Information Protection: In a broad sense this is the set of necessary procedures to assure to the legitimate user the effective control of the operation and allow modifications of information assets, so that their physical or cognitive integrity be preserved or any unexpected loss minimized inspite of accidental occurrences or intentional actions. Classification Processes: Commonly two classification processes are used to define key terms in information protection: SENSITIVE CLASSIFICATION: Pre-defined standards for assessing the vulnerability to losses due to lack of proper processing continuity if information is destroyed, disclosed, secluded, or misused. SECRECY CLASSIFICATION: A spectrum of degrees as to the expectancy of holding exclusiveness of unique information whose destruction, disclosure, seclusion or misuse will cause a negative impact on the legitimate holder environment. Sensitive Information: Any knowledge whose destruction. disclosure. seclusion or misuse - - - implies losses to its legitimate holder. It may be classified as: VITAL INFORMATION: An essential knowledge whose lack of proper availability implies total loss or termination of p

Jan 1, 1987

By M. Pantazidou

Motivated by recent EU legislation already entered into force or in preparation, this article aims at offering glimpses of the future landscape in the area of subsurface protection against contamination from point sources. Towards this end, it discusses the most salient parts of legislation for the protection of water resources. It then presents results from the wide consultation rounds organized by the European Commission in order to both receive input and help make all opinions heard on the issue of soil protection. Finally, it introduces key provisions of the recent legislation on environmental liability. From the above pieces of legislation, this paper highlights the elements that concern specifically the protection of the subsurface against spills of hazardous wastes from point sources and the requirements for subsurface restoration.

Jan 1, 2005

By R. M. Von Storch

Most coal mining areas of the Western United States are characterized either by thick beds, steep pitches or heavy cover. Individually, each of these may present inherent safety hazards that influence miring. When all are met at one location, the combined effect is to make the safe operation of the mining property a challenge to management. These combined, conditions are met in most coal mines in southeastern Utah including those of the United States Steel Corporation. This coal bed measures up to 16 feet in thickness, the pitch is as much as 25% and mining is under a cover approaching 2, 000 feet. The Sunnyside coal bed is found in the Book Cliff Mountains, a great escarpment extending from west of Castle Gate, Utah, some 180 miles to Grand Junction, Colorado. West of Green River, Utah, the Book Cliffs swing sharply to the north because of the domelike uplift of the San Rafael Swell to the southwest..It is in this northerly extension of the Book Cliffs that the Sunnyside coal in the Blackhawk Formation of the Mesa Verde Group, Upper Cretaceous Age is found. The strata are transected by numerous faults with from a few inches to as much as a hundred feet of displacement. All of these faults have had some effect on the mining operation, either in roof control or, in the case of major faulting, the pattern of mine development.

Jan 1, 1967