Curve Numbers for Low-Compaction Steep-Sloped Reclaimed Mine Lands in the Southern Appalachians

Hoomehr, Siavash; Schwartz, John S.; Yoder, Daniel C.; Drumm, Eric C.; Wright, Wesley C.

doi:10.1061/(asce)he.1943-5584.0000746

Cited by 15 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Immediately following this period (September – December 2009), D 50 and D 84 site averages were 0.06 mm and 1.70 mm, respectively, and 50 to 60% of the eroded material was composed of silt and clay. In general, rainfall events during the fall, winter, and spring were of lower intensity than in the summer (Hoomehr et al ., ); therefore, the D 50 and D 84 site averages for March – May 2010 were similar to September – December 2009, approximated at 0.15 mm and 3.67 mm, respectively. In June–July 2010, D 50 and D 84 site averages were 1.27 mm and 11.67 mm, respectively, apparently due to greater intensity rainfall events during this summer period.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…K factors used for the two periods would assume a C factor of 1 for bare spoils. Additionally, for steep‐sloped FRA sites, a CN of 58.5–60 should be used in these models (Hoomehr et al ., ). The Ce values can be applied for a rill development period to better estimate sediment yields until rill growth stabilizes and vegetation is established.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…() in eastern Kentucky, they reported no overland flow in a field experiment utilizing loose spoils on low‐gradient slopes ranging from 2 to 10% and inferred this would be the case for steep slopes. However, for steep‐sloped FRA sites as with this study, overland flow did occur, but because the measured CN was 58.5–60 and a λ best fitted to 0.2, infiltration was also a relevant hydrological process (Hoomehr et al ., ). Relative proportion of effective rainfall in terms of overland flow to infiltration appears to increase when mine reclamation slopes exceed 20° (Sheridan et al ., ; Cerda, ; Guebert and Gardner, ; Smets et al ., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As reported by Renard et al . () for the East Tennessee region, the annual erosivity is about 3404 MJ·mm·(ha·h·year) −1 , but measured annual erosivity during this study was 1.5 times that value (Hoomehr et al ., ). The highest rainfall intensities and erosivities occurred during the initial study period from June to August 2009, accounting for about 45% of the total measured erosivity for the study (Figure 7).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Erodibility of low‐compaction steep‐sloped reclaimed surface mine lands in the southern Appalachian region, USA

Hoomehr

Schwartz

Yoder

et al. 2014

Hydrological Processes

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Abstract:The use of loose spoils on steep slopes for surface coal mining reclamation sites has been promoted by the US Department of Interior, Office of Surface Mining for the establishment of native forest, as prescribed by the Forest Reclamation Approach (FRA). Although low-compaction spoils improve tree survival and growth, erodibility on steep slopes was suspected to increase. This study quantified a combined K C factor (combining the effects of the soil erodibility K factor and cover management C) for low compaction, steep-sloped (>20°) reclaimed mine lands in the Appalachian region, USA. The combined K C factor was used because standard Unit Plot conditions required to separate these factors, per Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) experimental protocols, were not followed explicitly. Three active coal mining sites in the Appalachian region of East Tennessee, each containing four replicate field plots, were monitored for rainfall and sediment yields during a 14-month period beginning June 2009. Average cumulative erosivity for the study sites during the monitoring period was measured as 5248.9 MJ·mm·ha À1 ·h À1. and also on average were lower, being more similar to the other two sites after the rill development period. Based on an initial K C factor (K e ) measured during the first few storm events, the average C factor (C e ) was estimated as 0.58 for the rill development period and 0.13 for the post-rill development period. It appears that larger size fractions of spoils influence K C and C e factors on low-compaction steep slopes reclamation sites.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Erodibility of low‐compaction steep‐sloped reclaimed surface mine lands in the southern Appalachian region, USA

Hoomehr

Schwartz

Yoder

et al. 2014

Hydrological Processes

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“…Similarly, Hoomehr et al . () studied rainfall runoff characteristics of young Tennessee mine soils that had been reclaimed using grading techniques intended to minimize soil compaction as a means of preparing the mine site for reforestation. They found less runoff than predicted by models developed from conventional mine reclamation with smooth grading and compacted soils despite the low levels of vegetative cover on these young mine soils.…”

Section: Hydrologic Flow Paths On Mine Sitesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydrologic Effects of Surface Coal Mining in Appalachia (U.S.)

Evans

Zipper

Hester

et al. 2015

J American Water Resour Assoc

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Surface coal mining operations alter landscapes of the Appalachian Mountains, United States, by replacing bedrock with mine spoil, altering topography, removing native vegetation, and constructing mine soils with hydrologic properties that differ from those of native soils. Research has demonstrated hydrologic effects of mining and reclamation on Appalachian landscapes include increased peakflows at newly mined and reclaimed watersheds in response to strong storm events, increased subsurface void space, and increased base flows. We review these investigations with a focus on identifying changes to hydrologic flow paths caused by surface mining for coal in the Appalachian Mountains. We introduce two conceptual control points that govern hydrologic flow paths on mined lands, including the soil surface that partitions infiltration vs. surface runoff and a potential subsurface zone that partitions subsurface storm flow vs. deeper percolation. Investigations to improve knowledge of hydrologic pathways on reclaimed Appalachian mine sites are needed to identify effects of mining on hydrologic processes, aid development of reclamation methods to reduce hydrologic impacts, and direct environmental mitigation and public policy.

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Surface runoff from an area undergoing soil rehabilitation after bauxite mining in southeastern Brazil

et al. 2021

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Changing hydrological processes and soil characteristics are of major environmental concern in surface mining. Runoff may be the best factor for determining the efficiency of rehabilitation after this type of mining, and needs more in-depth studies, but the environmental factors require more attention in order to control that runoff.The objective of this study was to compare the runoff during post-mining rehabilitation after the extraction of bauxite with that before mining, and to identify the factors that most affect it. Runoff from before the mining operations and during the rehabilitation after those operations were collected in seven plots in the area of a bauxite mine in southeastern Minas Gerais State, Brazil. The physical-environmental and anthropic factors interfering with the runoff were characterized for both periods, and their results were submitted to principal component analysis to define the parameters, which most demand attention in the mining rehabilitation stage. This study provides the first records of runoff in the field in areas rehabilitated after surface mining in Brazil, where the runoff decreased (1.75-times or 42.79%) from 0.76 to 0.30% of the precipitation during rehabilitation, compared to the reference area.The total porosity, density, and resistance of the soil, associated with the maintenance of slope, surface roughness, and vegetation cover, are the factors demanding more attention during the rehabilitation stage of surface mining in order to minimize runoff.

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Curve Numbers for Low-Compaction Steep-Sloped Reclaimed Mine Lands in the Southern Appalachians

Cited by 15 publications

References 24 publications

Erodibility of low‐compaction steep‐sloped reclaimed surface mine lands in the southern Appalachian region, USA

Erodibility of low‐compaction steep‐sloped reclaimed surface mine lands in the southern Appalachian region, USA

Hydrologic Effects of Surface Coal Mining in Appalachia (U.S.)

Surface runoff from an area undergoing soil rehabilitation after bauxite mining in southeastern Brazil

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