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For longtime Luzerne County residents — and for a lot of other Pennsylvanians — abandoned coal mine were just part of the landscape. A really big part in many neighborhoods, but common.
Open strip mining pits could beckon reckless children and illegal dumpers alike. Stretches of near-lifeless black soil and mounds offered an almost alien landscape within a short drive or even a walk. Maybe a dirt bike or mountain bike afforded some fun. Maybe nature started to take over, providing a spring-fed swimming pool.
Or maybe the water froze thick enough in winter, and the snow fell white enough for a spell, to turn a stretch of mine-scarred land into an ice-skating pond that could look almost magical.
There have been, rumor says, a few brave souls who dared to ski or snow-board culm banks, but that sounds apocryphal. Who would risk their winter gear on such rugged surfaces.
The fact that coal barons came, ripped the land to bits while abusing desperate workers forced to live in company towns, and left the place scarred on the surface and/or undermined below left a bad taste in the mouth. The reality that bore holes and drainage tunnels started spilling orange acid mine water into our rivers and streams made that taste fouler.
For many the legacy of coal is two edged. Yes, it created a boom that prompted the founding of many towns and cities, that spurred migration into the region, and that even helped fund schools, hospitals and other services for miners as well as architectural gems (that, alas, we too often failed to save). But it also discarded workers and their families while poisoning the landscape for decades.
Small wonder, the argument goes, that a generation of “coalcrackers” and their descendants grew particularly wary when someone came to town promising a big boon in economic development. We had one. It was great for some, but the barons left their mess behind, in a very real sense pawning off the spoils of their success to their unemployed workers.
So it was good news, as previously noted in this space, when we learned $244.9 million had been awarded to the Keystone state through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to clean up abandoned mines. Add to that the recent announcement by Gov. Tom Wolf that the state is eligible for another $26.5 million in more traditional Abandoned Mine Reclamation Funding program grants.
“This annual funding allows Pennsylvania to continue its ongoing efforts to clean up our 5,000 abandoned mines and re-purpose the land, which will not only lead to environmental and economic recovery for those communities but also support good-paying jobs,” Wolf said in a media release. “I’m grateful that the Biden Administration recognizes the need to support Pennsylvania and other states that are addressing this legacy issue, which presents and environmental, public health and public safety risks.
While the scars of abandoned mining have receded gradually over the last few decades, there are still plenty of problem areas left. The sooner they are reclaimed or re-purposed, the lower the state’s environmental risks gets and the more appealing we become to outside investors.
– Times Leader