By Anne Daymut, Watershed Coordinator, Western PA Coalition For Abandoned Mine Reclamation

The Appalachian Region Independent Power Producers Association (ARIPPA) is partnering with the Eastern and Western Pennsylvania Coalitions for Abandoned Mine Reclamation to offer competitive awards to watershed and conservancy organizations facilitating abandoned mine drainage (AMD) and/or abandoned mine land (AML) remediation projects in Pennsylvania.

The deadline to apply is May 31.

Awards are granted under the guidance and administration of EPCAMR and WPCAMR. The amount distributed by ARIPPA in 2023 will be $6,000. However, the total grant award could potentially increase depending on contributions from other donors.

Eligible Applicants are environmental organizations with 501(c)(3) nonprofit status or conservation districts in Pennsylvania who provide a letter stating the organization supports ARIPPA, including the removal and conversion of coal refuse into alternative energy and the beneficial use of CFB ash for AML/AMD reclamation purposes.

Funding may be used for, but it not limited to, the following:

-- Operations, maintenance, and rehabilitation of AMD treatment systems

-- Stream monitoring equipment purchases

-- Analyses and watershed plans

-- Vegetation management and erosion control

-- Educational purposes to promote AMD/AML reclamation

-- Supplies for trash cleanups

-- Drone purchase and training to use as a tool to promote AMD/AML reclamation

Organized in 1989, ARIPPA is a nonprofit trade association comprised of independent electric power producers, environmental remediators, and service providers located in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia that use coal refuse as a primary fuel to generate electricity.

Utilizing circulating fluidized bed (CFB) boiler technology to convert both anthracite and bituminous coal refuse into electricity, ARIPPA plants also provide unique multimedia environmental benefits by combining the production of energy with the removal of coal refuse piles and reclamation of the land for productive purposes.

Today, there are 10 such CFB facilities in Pennsylvania and one each in Virginia and West Virginia.

ARIPPA plants are important contributors in the cleanup of AML sites and the associated air and water pollutants throughout the Appalachian region.

To date, the Pennsylvania facilities alone have remediated more than 230 million tons of coal refuse, improved or restored more than 1,200 miles of streams, and reclaimed more than 7,200 acres of abandoned mine lands in the state.

However, much work remains to address this problem. AML projects in particular are costly and long-term endeavors often taken on by non-profit organizations that operate through grant funds.

According to the Department of Environmental Protection’s Mining and Reclamation Advisory Board, the average cost of an AML project is at least $8,000 per acre. If AMD is present on those lands, the cost could be even higher.

The ARIPPA AMD/AML Reclamation Grants are designed to help environmental organizations and conservation districts continue their efforts toward improving our environment.

Click Here for instructions, the application and background on the program.

(Reprinted from WPCAMR’s latest Abandoned Mine Post.  Sign up for your own copy.)

[Posted: January 3, 2023]

1/9/2023