Whether by surface or underground methods, coal mining can have profound effects
on both ground water and surface drainage. In the past, coal mines and coal-preparation
facilities produced acidic mine drainage that contaminated streams and water
wells, left areas barren of vegetation, increased erosion, and caused siltation
of streams.
Since 1977, implementation of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation
Act under the U.S. Department
of the Interior, Office of Surface Mining has greatly reduced the hydrologic
problems formerly associated with coal mining. The Indiana
Department of Natural Resources, Division of Reclamation (IDOR) administers
coal mining and land restoration programs for both active and abandoned coal
mining operations. Many of the water-related problems created by past mining
have been addressed by the IDOR through the Abandoned Mine Land (AML) Program,
which deals with problems created prior to 1977.
Together with IDOR, the Indiana Geological Survey has been involved in a series of AML projects to assess the hydrologic effects of reclamation. For an example of such a project, see Quality and Hydrology of Water in a Coal Waste Pile Amended with Synthetic Soil, Chinook Mine, Clay County, Indiana.