Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Awards

Eligible Voters

Judges (one ballot accepted from each
of the following or their official designee):
AML Manager, Virginia Division of Mined Land Reclamation

AML Program Manager, New Mexico Mining and Minerals Division
AML Program Coordinator, Alaska Division of Mining
AML Program Specialist, OSM Lexington Field Office

Assistant Director Restoration, Indiana Division of Reclamation
Chief, OSM Alton Field Division

Chief, OSM Denver Field Division

Chief, OSM Federal Reclamation Program Division
Chief, OSM Pittsburgh Field Division

Chief, Missouri AML Section Land Reclamation Program
Chief, Montana Abandoned Mine Reclamation Bureau

Chief, West Virginia Office of Abandoned Mine Lands and Reclamation
Chief, Surface Mining and Reclamation Division, Arkansas
Chief, Utah Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program

Director, Alabama Mining and Reclamation Division

Director, Colorado Office of Active and Inactive Mines
Director, Crow Tribe AML Program

Director, Injection and Mining Division, DNR, Louisiana
Director, Kentucky Division of Abandoned Mine Lands

Director, Navajo Nation Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Department
Director, North Dakota AML Division
Director, Oklahoma AML Program

Director, Pennsylvania Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation
Director, Texas Surface Mining and Reclamation Division

Environmental Specialist, OSM Pittsburgh Field Division

Environmental Specialist – Senior, Division of Soil Conservation, Iowa
Field Office Director, OSM Tulsa Field Office

Field Office Director, OSM Wyoming Field Office

Field Office Director, OSM Birmingham Field Office

Organizations Eligible
to Submit Nominations
Alabama Mining and Reclamation
Alaska Division of Mining
Arkansas Dept. of Pollution Control and Ecology
Colorado Office of Active and Inactive Mines
Crow Tribe AML Program
Hopi Tribe Abandoned Mine Land Program
Illinois Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Division
Indiana Division of Reclamation
Iowa AML Program
Kansas Surface Mining Section
Kentucky Division of Abandoned Mine Lands
Louisiana Injection and Mining Division
Maryland Abandoned Mine Lands Section
Missouri AML Section Land Reclamation Program
Montana Abandoned Mine Reclamation Bureau
Navajo Nation Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Department
New Mexico Mining and Minerals Division
North Dakota AML Division
Ohio Division of Mines and Reclamation
Oklahoma AML Program
Pennsylvania Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation
Tennessee Abandoned Mine Land Program
Texas Surface Mining and Reclamation Division
Utah Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program
Virginia Division of Mine Land Reclamation
West Virginia Office of Abandoned Mine Lands and Reclamation
Wyoming AML Program

2012

Abandoned Mine Land

Reclamation Awards

Field Office Director, OSM Casper Field Office

Field Office Director, OSM Charleston Field Office
Field Office Director, OSM Knoxville Field Office

Manager, Hopi Tribe Abandoned Mine Land Program

Manager, Illinois Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Division
Manager, OSM Olympia Office

Mining Section Chief, Kansas Surface Mining Section

Natural Resources Administrator, Ohio Division of Mines and Reclamation

Nominations Due March 30, 2012

Regional Director, OSM Mid-Continent Region

For further information, go to:
www.osmre.gov/topic/awards/Awards.htm
Peter Mali
[email protected]
(202) 208-2565

Regional Director, OSM Appalachian Region
Regional Director, OSM Western Region

Supervisor, Maryland Abandoned Mine Lands Section
Director, Tennessee AML Program
Director, Wyoming AML Program

In the event of a tie, the winner will be determined
by a team of OSM and State officials.

Cynthia Johnson
[email protected]
(202) 208-2565

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
Washington, D.C. 20240

Call for nominations
Office of Surface Mining
Reclamation and Enforcement

Judging Standards
Judging standards for the 2012 awards are as follows:

1. Clarity and Completeness of Nomination Package (5 pts.)
2. Difficulty of Achieving Reclamation under
Existing Conditions (17 pts.)

a. Special and unique considerations (8)
b. On-site difficulty of the project (9)
c. Project start and completion dates and construction costs
d. Names of organizations responsible for the reclamation,
including contractors
e. Date submitted

Abandoned Mine Land Reclamation Awards
History and objectives of the program

3. On-Site Effectiveness (30 pts.)

The Surface Mining Law was enacted to ensure that land
mined for coal would be restored to beneficial use as part
of the mining process, and that lands abandoned without
reclamation prior to the law would be reclaimed as well.
Today, abandoned mine land reclamation funded under the
Surface Mining Law has eliminated thousands of dangerous
health, safety, and environmental problems resulting
from abandoned mine lands throughout the country.
Abandoned mines can harm the environment and endanger
the lives and health of those living in the coal fields. Eliminating these problems through reclamation requires specialized
skills, innovative thinking, and dedication.
For the past 20 years, the Department of the Interior’s
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
(OSM) has recognized those responsible for the nation’s
highest achievements in abandoned mine land reclamation.
Begun in 1992, the annual Abandoned Mine Land
Reclamation Awards Program publicly recognizes outstanding
abandoned mine land reclamation and publicizes exemplary
reclamation techniques.

What projects are eligible for an award?
Abandoned Mine Land projects funded wholly or in part and
completed by approved state or tribal programs are eligible for
an award.
This includes all types of reclamation, including coal, noncoal, high-priority, and emergency projects. Abandoned mine
reclamation completed by citizen groups or other non-state/nontribal organizations are not eligible for these awards. One project
may be submitted by each state or tribal program each year.
In 2011, OSM gave five awards: one national award, one
national award for small projects (restricted to projects
receiving less than $1 million in a state or tribe that receives
less than $6 million annually in AML funding), and one
award in each of OSM’s three regions. Any entry is eligible
for the national award.

Required Information and Format
A . A text-only cover sheet containing:

1. Name and location of the nominated reclamation project;
2. Name, address, phone numbers and email addresses of those
submitting the nomination;
3. Project start and completion dates and construction costs;
4. Names of organizations responsible for the reclamation,
including contractors; and
5. Date submitted.

B . A narrative description of the work that resulted in
exemplary abandoned mine land reclamation.

The narrative should not exceed six single-spaced pages;
it should fully describe the abandoned mine problem,
including background and reclamation techniques used.
The text should also contain photo captions and references
to maps, diagrams, or other graphics.

C. Color photographs (including maps, diagrams, or graphics).

The photos should show both the specific activity and
the surrounding conditions. They should provide a clear
understanding of the reclamation accomplishments.

D. Format.

Each nomination package must be submitted electronically.
Packages will be posted on the web in Adobe Acrobat format;
they may be submitted as one file in Acrobat (containing text
and photos), or as a Word file containing text and separate
files containing photographs (or graphics) in .jpg format. All
nominations must include the cover photo in .jpg format in a
separate file.

For judging purposes, nominees should submit low-resolution
photos (72 dpi). Nominees will be required to submit
high-resolution photos (3.2 megapixel .jpg photos) if the
project is selected for an award.

a. Effective/innovative use of technology (8)
b. Landscape conforms to the natural environment (8)
c. Elimination of significant health and safety problem (14)

4 . Funding (12 pts.)

a. Effective use of funds (6)
b. Leveraging – use of partners for funding or technology (6)

5. Benefits to the Community (18 pts.)

a. Community support for the project (6)
b. Long-term benefits to the community (12)

6 . Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (18 pts.)

a. Exceeds the spirit and intent of SMCRA (10)
b. Increased public awareness of SMCRA (4)
c. Transferability to other AML projects (4)

Nominations Due March 30, 2012
State and tribal Abandoned Mine Land Programs must provide
nominations directly to OSM Headquarters in Washington, D.C.,
by March 30, 2012. Nominations and questions about the awards
should be e-mailed to:
[email protected] or [email protected]