Best Practices in Mine Reclamation

Overview

The "Best Practices in Mine Reclamation" International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) brought together five Mongolian members of parliament and one member of the executive branch in order to discover how U.S. institutions work to ensure effective mine reclamation, learn how these institutions work together to develop and implement environmental and land legislation, and observe how American mining rehabilitation provisions work in practice. The week-long project began in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where the participants were greeted by the programming team at GlobalPittsburgh (the Community Based Member based in Pittsburgh, PA). Their program there gave them the opportunity to visit with the Alleghany County Executive and included a visit to the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden, which was built on a reclaimed mining site. The group then travelled to Harrisburg to speak with Representatives who sat on the Pennsylvania State Senate Coal Caucus and staff members from the Department of Environmental Protection.

From Harrisburg, the group moved on to Denver, Colorado where they had meetings with officials from the U.S. Department of the Interior, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement; members from the Colorado Senate Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Energy Committee; and staff from the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining, and Safety. Highlights from the Mongolian program included visits to mine reclamation sites in both Denver and Pittsburgh, and a meeting and reception with the Honorary Consulate of Mongolia in Colorado.

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