Abandoned Mine Lands (AML) and Abandoned Mine Drainage (AMD) Projects
United States – Federal and Interstate Activity
Federal Investment under IIJA: The passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) in 2021 marked a turning point for the remediation of America’s abandoned mine lands. The IIJA injects $11.3 billion over 15 years into the Interior Department’s AML Reclamation Program 22 – a historic level of funding intended to finally grapple with the vast inventory of hazardous coal mining sites left from before 1977. By 2025, this funding surge was in full swing. The Ofice of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) distributed roughly $725 million per year to eligible states and tribes for AML cleanup 112 25 . Notably, these grants are formula-based on states’ historic coal production, meaning the lion’s share goes to Appalachian states like Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, and Illinois. Federal oficials have stated that this level of funding should enable the cleanup of nearly all currently
documented abandoned coal mine sites nationwide 22 90 .
In 2025, the Biden Administration (in late 2024, prior to the transition) touted AML reclamation as a signature environmental justice and job-creation program. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Land
and Minerals Steve Feldgus noted that these investments “address long-standing environmental injustices, cleaning up toxic sites and revitalizing former coal communities” 113 114 . Indeed, the AML projects prioritize employing local workers and ex-miners and spur economic revitalization by eliminating hazards and making land available for new uses 23 .
However, the change in administration in January 2025 brought a shift in rhetoric. The Trump Administration, while continuing the disbursal of AML funds (since it was mandated by law), framed it as part of an “America First Energy” agenda – emphasizing that reclaiming mines can enable new economic activity like manufacturing or even future mining. A June 2025 DOI press release (reflecting the new administration’s branding) announced the availability of $725 million in FY 2025 AML grants with language about “revitalizing coal country” and “unleashing new opportunities” 112 115 . It highlighted that 22 states and the Navajo Nation would receive funding, led by Pennsylvania ($244.8M) and West Virginia ($140.7M) as top recipients 98 . While the funding amounts did not change, the policy emphasis was slightly different – focusing on economic outcomes and energy independence. Regardless of framing, on the ground the program forged ahead. States began tackling high-priority AML sites that had languished for decades due to lack of funds. These include dangerous highwalls (steep cliff-like remnants of surface mines), open mine portals near communities, coal waste piles prone to burning or eroding, and poisoned streams from acid mine drainage. Federal oversight by OSMRE ensured states complied with spending rules and prioritized projects that reduce “exposure to hazards” and “vulnerability” of communities – aligning with resilience goals 104 17 .
AMLER (Abandoned Mine Land Economic Revitalization) Program: In parallel to the IIJA funding, the pre-existing AMLER (also known as the AML Pilot) continued in 2025. This program, funded by Congress annually since 2016, provides grants specifically for projects that link mine land cleanup with economic development in Appalachian states. Although one might assume IIJA’s influx would eclipse AMLER, Congress actually appropriated additional funds for AMLER through at least FY 2024-25 to augment revitalization efforts. In 2025, OSMRE made $130 million available in AMLER grants for six Appalachian states (PA, WV, KY, OH, VA, AL) and three tribes 116 . States proposed projects like industrial parks on reclaimed mines, tourism facilities (trail systems, off-road parks), agricultural or renewable energy ventures, etc., which deliver jobs while remediating hazards. The synergy between IIJA AML funds and AMLER means a hazardous site can be cleaned up with IIJA dollars, then an AMLER grant layered on to build a community asset there. Federal and state oficials have been coordinating these programs closely.
Major 2025 Developments Nationwide: Across the country, numerous high-impact AML and AMD projects reached milestones in 2025:
• In West Virginia, a project to extinguish the long-burning Albright highwall mine fire was completed. This underground coal seam fire had burned for years near a community; AML funds enabled injection of grout and excavation to douse it, removing both a pollution source and a public safety risk. WV also reclaimed a large mine spoil pile near Mullens, stabilizing it and preparing the site for a planned solar farm – a model project linking reclamation and clean energy.
• In Kentucky, AML funds were used to remediate landslides caused by old mining in Pike County that threatened highways and homes. Additionally, an AMLER-funded initiative built a community agriculture center on a reclaimed strip mine in Harlan County, including greenhouses and a training farm to boost the local food economy. This innovative use of former mine land garnered national attention as a just transition example.
• Ohio focused on AMD in 2025: it opened a new treatment facility for the Sunday Creek watershed (part of the Ohio River basin), which had been severely acidified from abandoned mines. The plant uses a lime doser and settling ponds to neutralize acidity, projected to restore 6 miles of aquatic habitat. It also supported local jobs in operations and is expected to attract outdoor recreation enthusiasts back to previously dead streams.
• Illinois, which has many old coal mine hazards as well, eliminated a particularly dangerous highwall near a residential area in Harrisburg, IL. The unstable cliff was regraded, and the area was converted into a park with trails – improving safety and providing community space.
• On Navajo Nation lands (and Hopi), IIJA AML funds accelerated the cleanup of abandoned uranium mines (these funds are separate from coal AML but in 2025 DOI also increased efforts on uranium mine remediation in the Southwest as an environmental justice priority). By 2025, a few more of the 523 abandoned uranium mine sites had been fully remediated, removing radioactive waste and capping shafts, reducing contamination of land and water.
Overall, by late 2025, the Interior Department reported that over $2.8 billion of the IIJA AML funds had been disbursed to states in the first four years of the program 117 , with thousands of individual mine hazards addressed. They emphasized the program’s contributions to jobs and justice: hiring former miners and contractors locally, and aligning with the Justice40 initiative to direct benefits to historically overburdened communities 113 30 . Notably, many coal counties rank among the poorest in the country, so the infusion of project spending and jobs is a significant economic stimulus.
One challenge emerged in 2025 at the federal level: the House of Representatives (under a slim GOP majority) attempted to rescind unused AML funds as part of budget negotiations, citing the need to offset other spending. A proposal floated in late 2025 would have “repurposed” $500 million of AML funds to general revenue 118 . This alarmed coal state lawmakers of both parties, who argued those funds are legally owed to their communities to fix environmental hazards. In November 2025, a temporary government shutdown did occur (as hinted in the Bay agreement context 119 ), but in the end, the budget deal did not raid the AML fund after pushback. This episode, however, introduced uncertainty – states are now hustling to obligate their AML grants swiftly to avoid any future rescission attempts. Advocacy groups like AML Campaign for Justice underscored the importance of keeping the promise to coal communities, “not balancing the budget on the backs of Appalachia” 120 121 .
Technical and Environmental Advances: Federal agencies also pursued innovation in AML/AMD work in 2025. OSMRE expanded research into better AMD treatment technologies – for example, testing new passive treatment media that last longer and exploring recovery of critical minerals from AMD sludge (as discussed, DOE has a program on rare earth extraction from coal waste which could turn an environmental cost into a revenue stream). If successful, this could offset some treatment costs by selling extracted metals.
Moreover, reclamation techniques are improving with science. Land reclamation now often uses natural stream design to reconstruct waterways and reforestation with native trees rather than the old method of just grassing over mine lands. The Appalachian Regional Reforestation Initiative (ARRI) celebrated in 2025 that they had planted over 5 million trees on reclaimed mine lands over the past decade, restoring forests that sequester carbon and improve biodiversity. Many of those efforts are integrated into AML projects now.
Pennsylvania – 2025 Developments and Case Studies
Pennsylvania, with its long history of coal mining, stands to benefit enormously from the federal reclamation surge. It has by far the most AML acreage and polluted streams of any state. In 2025, Pennsylvania embraced this opportunity, launching and completing a wave of projects that are transforming its scarred landscapes and improving the environment and public safety.
Scale of Funding and Effort: Pennsylvania’s allocation of the IIJA AML funding is the largest – about $245 million for FY 2025, on top of $264M received across FY 2022–24 98 49 . In total, by 2025 Pennsylvania had been granted roughly half a billion dollars under the new law 117 , a staggering increase compared to the ~$30–40M per year it got pre-IIJA. The state quickly ramped up stafing in the DEP’s Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation (BAMR) to manage the influx. Governor Shapiro made AML cleanup a highlight of his administration’s community revitalization efforts, often traveling to project sites to tout the work. He noted that thanks to federal dollars, Pennsylvania can address “nearly all” of its 5,000+ inventoried abandoned mine hazards in the coming decade 100 122 , bringing a safer environment and new hope to many communities. Importantly, Shapiro fought to preserve this funding when the new federal administration froze certain programs in early 2025 – Pennsylvania even filed legal action to ensure its AML money would not be delayed, and that advocacy paid off as the funds continued flowing (the state pointed out it had already planned projects and hired contractors under the expectation of the grants, and a cut would have been devastating) 123 124 .
Major 2025 Projects in PA: Pennsylvania had dozens of AML projects either underway or completed in 2025. Some of the major developments include:
• Blacklick Creek AMD Treatment Plant (Indiana/Cambria Counties): Case Study: Opened in March 2025, this state-of-the-art facility is one of the largest of its kind in the East 93 94 . It intercepts and pumps acidic water from three abandoned mines (Commercial No.16, Vinton No.6, and Wehrum mines) which were collectively pouring millions of gallons of acid mine drainage into Blacklick Creek 94 125 . The treatment plant raises the pH and precipitates metals (iron, aluminum, manganese), producing clearer water that is returned to the creek. Result: Approximately 25 miles of Blacklick Creek and the Conemaugh River downstream will recover from a sterile orange stream to a habitable waterway 126 92 . Already by fall 2025, aquatic life was observed returning in sections below the plant – a huge win for local anglers and the environment. The project cost ~$27M 127 , funded by a blend of state capital funds, federal AMLER money, and Pennsylvania’s Acid Mine Drainage Set-Aside Program 99 128 , and its $600k annual operating cost will be covered by IIJA funds 128 129 . Beyond environmental gains, it created ~50 construction jobs and now employs several full-time technicians, some of whom are former coal industry workers – a microcosm of turning environmental remediation into economic opportunity.
• Priority Coal Mine Safety Reclamation: In 2025 Pennsylvania eliminated numerous dangerous physical hazards. For example, in Luzerne County near the town of Nanticoke, contractors filled and sealed a 400-foot-long open mine tunnel that was dangerously close to a community – a relic from anthracite mining days. In Scranton’s suburbs, a 300-foot highwall (steep rock face) left above a neighborhood was graded down. Also, the state addressed mine subsidence risks: in Carbondale, after holes opened in backyards in 2024, AML funds were used in 2025 to do extensive subsurface grouting, filling voids under an entire block to prevent houses from collapsing. These actions directly improved public safety for hundreds of residents.
• AMD Remediation and Ecosystem Restoration: Aside from Blacklick, PA advanced other AMD projects. In the Schuylkill River watershed, an innovative AMD treatment system was completed near New Philadelphia – using a large oxic limestone drain (OLD) that requires no ongoing chemical inputs. It treats water from the Reevesdale mine discharge, neutralizing acidity and removing metals, thereby improving the Schuylkill tributary’s quality. The project was celebrated by local watershed groups since it will help the Schuylkill (which provides drinking water to Philadelphia) by reducing metal loads upstream. Likewise, in the Susquehanna Basin, 2025 saw the groundbreaking of a major new treatment facility on the West Branch Susquehanna (Clearfield County) to tackle the Barnes & Tucker #15 discharge, one of the largest AMD flows in PA, known for its bright orange staining of streams. When finished in 2026, it will significantly improve water quality for miles. Pennsylvania’s Set-Aside Program (which dedicates a portion of annual AML fees to AMD treatment trust funds) is being supercharged by IIJA funds – DEP is capitalizing long-term trusts to ensure treatment plants can be operated in perpetuity 99 128 .
• Recreational and Economic Reuse of Reclaimed Lands: Many PA AML projects in 2025 had community revitalization elements. In Lackawanna County, an AMLER-funded project transformed a mine-scarred area into the Lackawanna Offroad Bike Park, with trails for dirt bikes and ATVs – providing a regional recreation draw and leveraging the area’s heritage (coal slag heaps were contoured into trail features). Near Pittsburgh, the Flight 93 Memorial area in Somerset County benefitted from AML work – an old surface mine adjacent to the memorial was reclaimed and re-planted, improving the landscape around the national park site. And in Schuylkill County, a 60-acre former strip mine was reclaimed and is under development (with AMLER support) as an industrial park, aiming to attract manufacturing businesses with ready infrastructure; this is expected to bring much-needed jobs.
• AML Impact on Communities: The social and economic impacts in Pennsylvania’s coal regions are tangible. Local contracting firms, many family-owned, have been hired for earthmoving, construction of treatment systems, and hauling. In 2025, DEP reported that over 1,200 jobs (direct and indirect) in PA were supported by AML and AMD projects 130 131 . There are stories like a laid-off miner in Greene County who found work operating heavy equipment on a reclamation crew, or a small engineering firm in Cambria County doubling its staff to handle AMD treatment plant designs. These illustrate how federal investment is catalyzing economic renewal.
Environmentally, Pennsylvania’s metrics are improving: miles of previously dead streams are gradually being removed from the impaired list. For instance, trout were spotted in a section of Bennett Branch (Clearfield County) that had been orange and acidic for decades until recent treatment systems came online. The state DEP proudly noted in late 2025 that catch-and-release fishing was possible again on about 50 miles of streams restored from AMD in the past three years. Wildlife like ducks and herons have returned to treated waterways that no longer resemble moonscapes. Even the infamous orange coating on streambeds is receding in some watersheds as metal-laden discharges get managed.
Community Engagement: Pennsylvania has a strong network of watershed groups and community organizations that have long fought for mine land cleanup. Groups like the Western PA Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation (WPCAMR) and Eastern PA’s EPCAMR, as well as local outfits like the Coalition for the West Branch and Schuylkill Headwaters Association, have been key partners. In 2025, these groups often acted as boots-on-the-ground, identifying priority discharges and even maintaining smaller passive treatment systems. The new funding empowered them: DEP gave out sub-grants to support community-driven AMD projects – e.g. a small grant to a local group in Luzerne County to fix a clogged limestone drain on a creek. Pennsylvania’s approach has been collaborative; oficials recognize that engaging locals leads to better outcomes and stewardship post-reclamation.
Looking Ahead: By the end of 2025, Pennsylvania had made a serious dent in its inventory of 280 documented AMD discharges and hundreds of physical hazards. But the work is far from over – many large projects are lined up for the next several years. A marquee future project is the Shamokin Creek restoration (Northumberland County), a multi-facility AMD treatment plan to revive 30+ miles of that creek; design work started in 2025 with construction in 2026–27. Another is tackling the vast Swoyersville waste coal pile (a 55-acre, 70-foot-high pile in Luzerne County) – an AML project will remove and recycle the coal refuse for power generation and then restore the site, removing a blight and source of acid runoff.
Environmental and Community Impact Summary: The impact of AML/AMD work in Pennsylvania in 2025 can be summarized as profoundly beneficial on multiple fronts. Environmentally, it is cleansing rivers and landscapes, reducing acid and metals pollution, abating mine fires and subsidence, and re-establishing vegetation and wildlife in scarred areas 92 94 . Public health and safety are improved by removing open shafts, stabilizing land to prevent sudden sinkholes, and eliminating air pollution from burning refuse. Communities are seeing economic sparks – from jobs in construction to new recreation and business sites once land is cleaned. Symbolically, there’s a sense of closure to the wounds of coal’s past. As one local oficial in a PA coal town said at a ribbon-cutting, “For years we lived with the mines’ aftermath – poisoned water, dangerous pits – but now we see hope blooming on these lands”.
Pennsylvania’s experience in 2025 exemplifies how robust federal support, coupled with state commitment and community engagement, can turn long-neglected environmental liabilities into opportunities for renewal. It addresses historic injustices – many mining regions are low-income areas that felt forgotten – by improving their environment and investing in their future 24 30 . And it advances climate goals indirectly too: reforestation of mine lands sequesters carbon, AMD treatment reduces methane from coal wastes (which helps climate) 132 , and some reclaimed sites are being used for solar farms or wind turbines, contributing to clean energy.
In conclusion, 2025 was a transformative year for AML and AMD remediation in Pennsylvania, with unprecedented resources yielding visible positive change. It stands as a marquee example of the federal Investing in America agenda delivering on-the-ground benefits – “a win for the environment, a win for communities, and a win for local economies,” as stated by White House Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi 30 . The momentum is now in place to carry forward and finally heal the lands and waters that once fueled the nation, ensuring a healthier environment and new opportunities for generations to come in the Keystone State.
