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ASSESSMENT OF CONDITIONS CONTRIBUTING ACID MINE DRAINAGE TO THE LITTLE NESCOPECK CREEK WATERSHED, LUZERNE COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA, AND AN ABATEMENT PLAN TO MITIGATE IMPAIRED WATER QUALITY IN THE WATERSHED Publication No. 204 July 1999 Paula B. Ballaron, P.G. Hydrogeologist, Susquehanna River Basin Commission Christopher M. Kocher, Director Rivers Program, Wildlands Conservancy Jerrald R. Hollowell, P.G. Consultant Prepared in cooperation with Thomas J. Kerr, Executive Director This report was prepared for Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Watershed Conservation, under Grant ME96114. SUSQUEHANNA RIVER BASIN COMMISSION Paul O. Swartz, Executive Director John T. Hicks, N.Y. Commissioner Scott J. Foti., N.Y. Alternate James M. Seif, Pa. Commissioner Irene B. Brooks, Pa. Alternate Jane T. Nishida, Md. Commissioner J.L. Hearn, Md. Alternate Major General Jerry L. Sinn, U.S. Commissioner Colonel Bruce A. Berwick, U.S. Alternate The Susquehanna River Basin Commission was created as an independent agency by a federal-interstate compact* among the states of Maryland, New York, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and the federal government. In creating the Commission, the Congress and state legislatures formally recognized the water resources of the Susquehanna River Basin as a regional asset vested with local, state, and national interests for which all the parties share responsibility. As the single federal-interstate water resources agency with basinwide authority, the Commission's goal is to coordinate the planning, conservation, management, utilization, development and control of basin water resources among the public and private sectors. *Statutory Citations: Federal - Pub. L. 91-575, 84 Stat. 1509 (December 1970); Maryland - Natural Resources Sec. 8-301 (Michie 1974); New York - ECL Sec. 21-1301 (McKinney 1973); and Pennsylvania - 32 P.S. 820.1 (Supp. 1976). For additional copies of this publication, contact the Susquehanna River Basin Commission, 1721 N. Front Street, Harrisburg, Pa. 17102-2391, (717) 238-0423, FAX (717) 238-2436, E-mail [email protected]. For more information concerning the Commission, visit our web site: www.srbc.net. ii CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................................................... vii INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. 1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE ........................................................................................................ 1 STUDY PROCEEDURES ....................................................................................................... 2 Global Positioning System (GPS) Procedure ................................................................. 2 MINING TECHNIQUES AND ACID MINE DRAINAGE RESPONSES .................................. 3 Impact of Coal Mine Drainage ..................................................................................... 3 EASTERN MIDDLE ANTHRACITE FIELD .......................................................................... 3 Bedrock Stratigraphy .................................................................................................. 5 Structure .................................................................................................................... 5 Anthracite .................................................................................................................. 7 Hydrology .................................................................................................................. 7 Chemical Characteristics ............................................................................................. 9 THE JEDDO TUNNEL SYSTEM ........................................................................................... 10 System Hydrology ...................................................................................................... 10 Tunnel Construction .................................................................................................... 10 Drainage Basin ........................................................................................................... 12 Surface Water Infiltration Into the Mines ..................................................................... 13 Mine Water Levels ..................................................................................................... 13 Chemical Characteristics ............................................................................................. 17 Water chemistry—Jeddo Tunnel ...................................................................... 17 “Blackwater” events ........................................................................................ 19 Water chemistry—Nescopeck Creek ................................................................ 22 WATER BUDGET ................................................................................................................. 25 Drainage Basin ........................................................................................................... 26 Precipitation ............................................................................................................... 26 Runoff ....................................................................................................................... 26 Tunnel Discharge ........................................................................................................ 30 Evapotranspiration ...................................................................................................... 34 Subbasin Contributions ............................................................................................... 34 CURRENT ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS ..................................................................... 39 CURRENT AREAS OF REMEDIATION ................................................................................ 40 iii PRIORITY OF REMEDIATION OPTIONS ............................................................................ 40 Eastern Hazleton Coal Basin—Hazle Creek Drainage ................................................... 43 Western Hazleton Coal Basin—Cranberry Creek Drainage ............................................ 45 Black Creek Coal Basin—Black Creek Drainage .......................................................... 47 Little Black Creek Coal Basin—Little Black Creek Drainage ........................................ 49 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS ....................................................................................... 50 REFERENCES ....................................................................................................................... 53 GLOSSARY OF ACRONYMS ............................................................................................... 55 APPENDIXES A. DETAILS AND COLLERY WATER QUALITY CHARACTERISTICS FOR SELECTED MINE DRAINAGE OUTFALLS IN THE EASTERN MIDDLE ANTHRACITE FIELD ............................................................................................... 57 B. RESTORATION OPTIONS FOR THE REHABILITATION OF THE JEDDO MINE TUNNEL WATERSHED ............................................................................................ 63 Eastern Hazleton Coal Basin—Hazle Creek Drainage ................................................... 65 Western Hazleton Coal Basin—Cranberry Creek Drainage.............................................. 75 Black Creek Coal Basin—Black Creek Drainage .......................................................... 87 Little Black Creek Coal Basin—Little Black Creek Drainage ........................................ 99 C. JEDDO TUNNEL OUTFALL WATER CHEMISTRY DATA ...................................... 103 D. NESCOPECK CREEK WATER CHEMISTRY DATA ................................................ 145 E. TURBIDITY DATA ................................................................................................... 171 F. PRECIPITATION DATA FROM LONG-TERM STATIONS ....................................... 183 FIGURES 1. Jeddo Tunnel Coal Basins in the Vicinity of Hazleton and Jeddo Tunnel Complex .......... 4 2. Coal Beds of the Eastern Middle Anthracite Field ......................................................... 8 3. Schematic Cross Section of the Jeddo Tunnel ............................................................... 11 4. Little Black Creek, Black Creek, Hazle Creek, and Cranberry Creek Subbasins .............. 14 5. Cross Section of Hazleton Coal Basin Showing Hazleton Shaft ..................................... 15 6. Flooded Mine Workings Underlying Hazleton Shaft, May 1, 1997, to October 23, 1998 .. 16 7. Jeddo Tunnel Water Quality Characteristics ................................................................. 20 8. Jeddo Tunnel Turbidity, November 1995 to September 1997 ......................................... 23 9. Relationship of Total Surface Flow Leaving the Basin and Jeddo Tunnel Discharge ........ 31 10. Discharge From Jeddo Tunnel, Water Years 1996-98 .................................................... 32 11. Relationship of Streamflow Entering the Mines and Jeddo Tunnel Discharge ................. 36 12. Approximate Areas Under Permit by Active Mine Operations ....................................... 38 iv 13. Future Surface Hydrology in the Hazle Creek Subbasin ................................................. 42 14. Future Surface Hydrology in the Cranberry Creek Subbasin .........................................