Reconnaissance of Stream Geomorphology, Low Streamflow, and Stream Temperature in the Mountaintop Coal-Mining Region, Southern West Virginia, 1999-2000

Wiley, Jeffrey B.; Evaldi, R.D.; Eychaner, James H.; Chambers, Douglas B.

doi:10.3133/wri20014092

Cited by 8 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 10 publications

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“…Geomorphic field studies on MTR/VF affected areas have been limited by property access (Jaeger, 2015). Wiley et al (2001) observed a higher percentage of sediment grains <2 mm in diameter and a lower median grain size in West Virginia streams with valley-filled headwaters compared to those without. Fox (2009) found enhanced bank erosion in streams with valley-filled headwaters using carbon isotopes as tracers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Field and LiDAR data observations of erosion on anthropogenic valley fills and associated landscape produced by mountaintop removal/valley fill coal mining in Central Appalachia

Reed¹,

Kite²

2019

Preprint

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Mountaintop removal/valley fill coal mining (MTR/VF) in Central Appalachia has buried an estimated 4000 km of headwater streams, but the geomorphic implications of the constructed anthropogenic valley fills and associated mined landscape have been studied very little. This landscape requires no maintenance in perpetuity once reclamation is considered to be complete. The first ever field-based study of erosional landforms on this type of mined landscape allowed for the subsequent classification of gullies and landslides within nine regional LiDAR datasets in a transect from eastern Kentucky to central West Virginia. Field observations indicate that gullies are associated with the overtopping of or intentional discharge from drainage systems. Nine-hundred ninety-one manually identified gullies were observed on 375 km2 of mined landscape covered by the LiDAR datasets. Gullies were predominantly associated with the perimeter of the mined landscape, and the perimeter explained much of the variance within the number of gullies (R-squared = 0.72). Landslides were more abundant by a factor of 13 in a Kentucky dataset examined for landslides occurring along the perimeter of the mined landscape when compared to a West Virginia dataset. In all nine datasets, 21 landslides were observed within fully reclaimed valley fills, which was previously undocumented phenomenon. Previously measured regional differences in the angle of friction of mining spoils may explain the abundance of gullies and landslides in eastern Kentucky relative to West Virginia. Observations of erosion on the regional extensive MTR/VF landscape warrant further field and modeling studies to better ascertain future impacts.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Field and LiDAR data observations of erosion on anthropogenic valley fills and associated landscape produced by mountaintop removal/valley fill coal mining in Central Appalachia

Reed¹,

Kite²

2019

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Peripheral gully and landslide erosion on an extreme anthropogenic landscape produced by mountaintop removal coal mining

Reed

Kite

2020

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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Mountaintop removal/valley fill coal mining (MTR/VF) in central Appalachia has buried an estimated 4000 km of headwater streams, but the long‐term geomorphic consequences of the anthropogenic valley fills and associated mined landscapes are poorly understood. These anthropogenic landscapes are not intended to be maintained in perpetuity once reclamation is complete. Here we present the first ever field‐based study of erosional landforms on this type of mined landscape paired with the subsequent examination of 10 regional LiDAR (light detection and ranging) datasets for gullies and landslides in a transect from eastern Kentucky to central West Virginia. Field observations indicate that overtopping of or intentional discharge from drainage systems and overtopping of valley fill terraces can initiate gullying. We manually extracted 1328 gullies from 512 km2 of mined landscape within the LiDAR datasets. Gullies are predominantly located along the perimeter of the mined landscape with the majority of gullies associated with drainage systems. The number of gullies linearly scales with mined area (R2 = 0.66). We observed 387 landslides along the perimeter of MTR/VF. Within the datasets, landslides per km2 ranged from 0.1 to 3.9. We observed 34 landslides within fully reclaimed valley fills, a heretofore undocumented phenomenon. Over 90% of these landslides were in Kentucky datasets, which covered only 47% of total mined area analyzed. Previously measured regional differences in the angle of friction of mine spoils or construction practices may explain the abundance of gullies and elevated level of landslide occurrence in eastern Kentucky valley fills relative to West Virginia. Observations of erosion on regionally extensive MTR/VF landscapes warrant further study to better ascertain ecological impacts. Large‐scale alteration by surface mining in steep landscapes may generally lead to peripheral gully erosion. © 2020 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Impacts of surface mine valley fills on headwater floods in eastern Kentucky

Phillips

2004

Environmental Geology

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Reconnaissance of Stream Geomorphology, Low Streamflow, and Stream Temperature in the Mountaintop Coal-Mining Region, Southern West Virginia, 1999-2000

Cited by 8 publications

References 10 publications

Field and LiDAR data observations of erosion on anthropogenic valley fills and associated landscape produced by mountaintop removal/valley fill coal mining in Central Appalachia

Field and LiDAR data observations of erosion on anthropogenic valley fills and associated landscape produced by mountaintop removal/valley fill coal mining in Central Appalachia

Peripheral gully and landslide erosion on an extreme anthropogenic landscape produced by mountaintop removal coal mining

Impacts of surface mine valley fills on headwater floods in eastern Kentucky

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