Acid Drainage Technology Initiative (ADTI)

Acid mine drainage (AMD) is a long-term water pollution impact of mining in the coal fields of Appalachia and other areas of coal and metal mining. At right is a typical acid mine drainage discharge from an abandoned underground coal mine. To combat this problem, the Acid Drainage Technology Initiative (ADTI) was formed as a partnership of technical experts from industry, state and federal agencies and academia who have joined together to combat AMD and related water-quality problems from mining and seek solutions to them.

ADTI members include, the Office of Surface Mining (OSM), the U. S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Energy (DOE), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the Interstate Mining Compact Commission (IMCC) representing coal mining States, the National Mining Association (NMA) representing mining companies, and the National Mine Land Reclamation Center and associated universities (West Virginia University, Pennsylvania State University and others) and the mining Life-Cycle Center at the Mackay School of Mines, University of Nevada at Reno (and associated universities), representing the academic community.

ADTI provides a forum for collaboration and information exchange on the following goals:

• Develop innovative solutions to AMD and related water-quality problems
  
• Identify, evaluate, and develop “best science” practices to predict AMD prior to mining
  
• Identify successful remediation practices for existing sources of AMD and describe the best technology for AMD prevention
  
• Work cooperatively to develop understanding and applications of proven and innovative technologies to predict, avoid, monitor, and remediate mine drainage
  
• Promote transfer of information on mine drainage prediction, monitoring, avoidance and remediation

ADTI members have developed a Statement of Mutual Intent as a mechanism to allow agencies, organizations, academic institutions, and others to participate in ADTI. Multiple bureaus of the Department of the Interior (DOI), including OSM, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the National Park Service (NPS), Bureau of Reclamatiom (BOR) and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), have participated in the activities of ADTI to this point.

Organization of ADTI

• Two major units: Coal Mining Sector (CMS) and Metal Mining Sector (MMS)
• Working groups in each sector focus on Prediction and Avoidance /Remediation.
• An Operations Committee provides overall direction.

Initially, the ADTI Operations Committee initially set up Working Groups on Prediction and Avoidance/Remediation in 1996 to address these issues, focusing primarily on coal mining in the Eastern U.S. In 1999, a Metal Mining Sector (MMS) was formed to better address these issues for hard rock mining in the Western U.S.

The ADTI Metal Mining Sector website can be found at: http://www.unr.edu/mines/adti/. The Metal Mining Sector of ADTI is preparing a comprehensive workbook on Acid Rock Drainage from Metal (Hard Rock) Mining, with chapters on prediction, remediation, modeling, sampling, monitoring and pit lakes.

COAL MINING SECTOR

The ADTI CMS Mining Sector website can be found at: http://wvw.aciddrainage.com.
Operational and logistical support for the CMS is provided by the National Mined Land Reclamation Center (NMLRC), at West Virginia University. For more information go to: http://wvw.aciddrainage.com.

Coal Mining Sector Projects

A wide variety of mine drainage projects have been and are being undertaken by ADTI CMS members. West Virginia University and NMLRC are studying flooded underground mine pools and their potential for contributing new sources of AMD. OSM funded projects include assessments of abandoned coal mine drainage treatment sites, selenium in coal mine overburden and surface and ground water, field verification of Acid-Base Accounting method to predict AMD and development of standardized lab-based kinetic test methods to evaluate AMD potential using leaching columns and humidity cells to predict the quality of drainage from geologic materials associated with coal mines.

Published Reports

Prediction of Water Quality at Surface Coal Mines (2000).

The ADTI Coal Mining Sector’s Prediction Working Group prepared this technical manual. It provides an overview of the various options available to predict water quality resulting from coal mining and provides guidelines and recommendations on the best science and technology to predict AMD potential at surface coal mines in the Appalachian region.

A Handbook of Technologies for Avoidance and Remediation of Acid Mine Drainage (1998).

The ADTI Coal Mining Sector’s Avoidance/Remediation Working Group prepared this user oriented handbook on AMD Remediation Methods for coal mining in the Appalachian region that includes case studies. It is a compilation of previously conducted AMD remediation technology experiments and technology , including those that did not succeed. The anticipated outcome will be a higher success rate in remediating existing sources of AMD and more cost effective stream cleanup.

OSM and the National Mining Association provided funding for these publications, which were published by the NMLRC. Both publications are available online from the Coal Mining Sector of ADTI website: http://wvw.aciddrainage.com.

Printed copies of both reports are also available at no cost. To obtain a printed copy, contact the West Virginia Water Resources Institute, West Virginia University, 202 NRCCE Building PO Box 6064 Morgantown, WV 26506-6064, Attention:  Terry Polce.  email: Terry.Polce@mail.wvu.edu ; Phone: (304) 293-2867 x 5450; Fax: (304) 293-7822

For a more comprehensive account of the formation, goals and major accomplishments of the CMS, its current and ongoing activities and its future plans, click on the following link:Formation, Goals and Major Accomplishments of the Coal Mining Sector of the Acid Drainage Technology Initiative.

Continuing and Future Work

Continuing support of ADTI CMS activities has been through OSM’s funding of a series of cooperative agreements with the National Mine Land Reclamation Center (NMLRC) at West Virginia University. This OSM funding constitutes an important component of support to ADTI CMS. Funded studies include:

• Field verification of the widely used Acid Base Accounting method for prediction of postmining water quality
• Technical Support for Watershed Restoration Projects and Follow-up Evaluations
• In-Situ Underground Mine AMD Treatment Technology
• Kinetic Test Methods to develop standardized column leaching kinetic test procedures for evaluating coal mine related AMD potential
• Selenium Pollution

In addition, the ADTI CMS has been continuing to address areas of high priority (identified below), while working to develop a five year roadmap for future work. As a result of a series of planning meetings, CMS has been reorganized into five Technical Working Groups, each of which is responsible for specific topics considered for further study. The Technical Working Groups and their topics constitute a roadmap to guide CMS activities. This roadmap will enable ADTI to more effectively work with other organizations concerned with acid drainage and to communicate to interested parties what has been accomplished and what remains to be done.

A series of White Papers covering the issues in each Technical Working Group identifies particular work that needs to be completed, and, where possible, developing a specific proposal for work. These white papers are being used as planning documents for needed research and as a tool in recruiting additional participants and obtaining additional funding. These White papers are available online from the ADTI website at the following webaddress:
http://www.aciddrainage.com/problem_summaries.cfm.

Based on the White Papers, the CMS will draft a plan for future work in accordance with available budget. The Technical Working Groups and their topics are listed below:

CMS Technical Working Groups and Topics

• Water Quality Group
  Manganese Standard
  Prediction of Long-Term AMD Discharges
  Treatment for non-conventional constituents
  Prediction and Treatment of Selenium
  Prediction of Contaminant Loading: Predict Contaminant Concentrations from Mines
  
• Underground Mining Group
  Prediction of Contaminant Loading of UG Mines
  Prediction of Long Term AMD Discharge from Flooded UG Mines
  Prediction of Long Term AMD Discharge from Above Drainage UG Mines
  Treatment Methods for large volume UG Mine Discharges
  In-Situ (in mine) Treatment
  
• Passive Treatment Group
  Long Term Performance
  Reasons for Success or Failure
  Improved Methods
  Refuse Caps/Barriers
  In-situ Treatment
  
• Coal Combustion By-Products (CCB) Group
  Risk Assessment (Test methods)
  Field Validation (documentation of benefits/impacts).
  
• Technology Transfer Group
  Dissemination of information to “technically-oriented” users.:
  Develop (an improved) Website
  Develop brochures/pamphlets/fact sheets to distribute at meetings/conferences;
  or, even to mail to targeted receipents.

FAQs

What is acid mine drainage?

Acid mine drainage (AMD) or acid rock drainage (ARD), collectively called acid drainage (AD), is acidic water (pH <5.0), laden with iron, sulfate and other metals, that forms when geologic strata containing sulfide minerals such as pyrite are exposed to the atmosphere or oxidizing environments. AMD can form from coal mining, both in surface and in underground mines, but AD can also result from metal mining, or under natural conditions where sulfides in geologic materials are encountered in highway construction, and other deep excavations. Iron sulfides common in coal regions are predominately pyrite and marcasite (FeS2), but other metals may be combined with sulfide in the form of chalcopyrite (CuFeS2), covellite (CuS), and arsenopyrite (FeAsS). Pyrite commonly occurs with other metal sulfides, potential causing AD.

What is the Acid Drainage Technology Initiative?

To combat the long-term water pollution impacts of mining in the coal fields of Appalachia and other areas of coal and metal mining, the Acid Drainage Technology Initiative (ADTI) was formed as a partnership of technical experts from industry, state and federal agencies and academia who have joined together to combat AMD and related water-quality problems from mining and seek solutions to them. There are two major units: a Coal Mining Sector (CMS) and a Metal Mining Sector (MMS). Working groups in each sector focus on Prediction and Avoidance /Remediation. An Operations Committee provides overall direction.

Where can I find more information about the Acid Drainage Technology Initiative?

A. You can find more information at the following websites: for the ADTI Coal Mining Sector website go to: http://wvw.aciddrainage.com. for the ADTI Metal Mining Sector website go to: http://www.unr.edu/mines/adti/.