Ehrenfeld Coal Refuse Pile Removal

The Cambria County Conservation and Recreation Authority is partnering with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation on this $26.1 million dollar project. A 3.2 million ton coal refuse pile will be removed within a 3 year time period; the project is expected to be completed by the spring of 2019. 63 plus acres will be reclaimed in Croyle Township and Ehrenfeld Borough. This project will provide work for over 48 recently laid-off Rosebud Mining Company Miners. The Community Foundation for the Alleghenies presented the Cambria County Conservation and Recreation Authority with a $25,000 check to help fund the project. Removal of the coal pile will improve health and safety issues in Ehrenfeld, along with eliminating acidic runoff into nearby waterways.

The $13.4 million project is the first in Pennsylvania to receive funds from the 2016 Abandoned Mine Lands (AML) Economic Revitalization Pilot Program Grant. Once the 62 acres of barren undevelopable land have been restored, over 250 American Chestnut trees will be planted and re-established in the same area. The Department of Environmental Protection, The Community Foundation for the Alleghenies, The CCCRA, along with several other local and state partnering agencies, have helped to finance and contribute to this project.