WATER QUANTITY, QUALITY, AND POTENTIAL USAGE FROM UNDERGROUND MINES IN THE ANTHRACITE REGION—WESTERN MIDDLE AND SOUTHERN FIELDS, EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA

Executive Summary:
The objective of this project is to determine the immediate and long-term availability (water quantity and water quality) of mine-water resources in the Western Middle and Southern Anthracite Fields of Eastern Pennsylvania. The project involves the compilation, evaluation, and synthesis of data on the hydrogeology of flooded underground mines. Information maintained in paper files by State and Federal authorities will be digitized and combined with other available data to develop a comprehensive Geographic Information System (GIS) data base containing the locations, topographic elevations, water-level elevations, flow rates, and water quality in wells, boreholes, abandoned mine drainage (AMD) sources, and associated stream reaches throughout the region. Additional data on the locations of coal outcrops, barrier pillars, and mine boundaries will be included in the GIS data base. These data will be evaluated to delineate horizontal and vertical boundaries and to estimate corresponding flooded volumes for the major mine pools (multicolliery hydrogeologic units). The associated recharge area(s) and primary discharge points for each of the major mine pools will be identified considering digital topographic, mine map, and AMD location data. For selected units where large pumping wells are in place or could be considered to extract water from the mine pool(s), ground-water modeling will be used to estimate hydrological properties including the recharge, discharge, hydraulic conductivity, and storage in the mine pool. The modeling will enable estimation of the drawdown area of influence from large pumping wells, the sustainable discharge volume (specific yield), and the potential effects on associated AMD discharge rates and stream base-flow volumes. Considering the effects of different variables (hydraulic conductivity, recharge rate, pumping rate) and corresponding outcomes (mine pool water levels, AMD flow rates, AMD chemistry), the modeling results will help guide the collection of new data in areas where adverse effects could result. The results of the GIS and ground-water resources analysis will be displayed as maps that identify the quantity and quality of the mine-pool water resources. The maps will be useful to guide land-use managers and private interests concerned with water availability and economic redevelopment in the Anthracite Region.

Progress Reports: