HARRISBURG – State Rep. Camille “Bud” George, D-74 of Clearfield County said Friday that a 9-acre abandoned mine in Knox Township will be reclaimed at no cost to taxpayers.
The state Department of Environmental Protection’s Moshannon District Office awarded the no-cost contract to the Waroquier Coal Co. of Clearfield to reclaim the former Jones Coal Co. site along State Route 2015, about one mile north of the village of Oak Ridge.
Waroquier will recover remaining coal reserves at the site, which is in the Upper West Branch watershed and was last mined in the 1950s.
George said the site, which includes spoil material, 2,090 feet of highwall and a water-filled pit, will be regraded close to original contours and lime will be applied. Although blasting will be permitted, no reprocessing of coal will be allowed at the site. The reclamation work is valued at $125,000.