Daniel M. Evans

FOURTH-YEAR TREE RESPONSE TO THREE LEVELS OF SILVICULTURAL INPUT ON MINED LANDS 1

There is a surging interest in restoring forests on surface mined lands in the Appalachians. Many lands reclaimed since the passage of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA) have dense ground covers and compacted soil materials, in some cases associated with unfavorable soil chemical properties. To address these concerns, three previously reclaimed mined sites were located in Lawrence County, OH; Nicholas County, WV; and Wise County, VA. At each site, Eastern white pine, hybrid poplar, and mixed Appalachian hardwoods were planted at three levels of silvicultural intensity (weed control only, weed control with soil ripping, and weed control with soil ripping and fertilization). Each combination of species and treatment was repeated three times in each of the three states for a total of 9 replications and 81 treatment plots. The OH sites were dominated by compacted siltstone backfill with a thin topsoil cap, the WV sites by shale fragments through the profile and the VA sites by mixed shale and sandstone fragments through the profile with a crushed sandstone cap. Trees were measured in October of 2007 after 4 years of growth. Across all treatments and species, Virginia had a higher survival rate, 70.7%, than West Virginia, 49.4%, and Ohio, 40.3%. West Virginia had a higher biomass index per tree, 5,673 cm 3 (cubic centimeters), than Ohio, 1,446 cm 3 Across all states and treatments, the survival rates of mixed hardwoods, 63.2%, and hybrid poplar, 55.1%, were greater than that of Eastern white pine, 42.1%. Total biomass index per tree for hybrid poplar, 10,024 cm 3 , was greater than that for Eastern white pine, 258 cm 3 , and mixed hardwoods, 138 cm 3 . Survival across all states and species was increased from 44% to 64% with ripping. Ripping plus weed control increased average biomass index from approximately 1,000 cm 3 per tree to 5,000 cm 3 per tree over weed control only. All species achieved their highest biomass values for this study on the West Virginia shale-based spoils and their highest survival rates on the Virginia sandstone-dominated spoils. When restoring forest vegetation to previously reclaimed mine sites with unfavorable soil and vegetation properties, the use of silvicultural treatments (weed control and soil ripping, with or without fertilization) can aid survival and growth.

Nitrogen Mineralization in Riparian Soils along a River Continuum within a Multi-Land-Use Basin

Nitrogen dynamics in riparian systems are often addressed within one land-use type and are rarely studied on watershed scales across multiple land uses. This study tested for temporal trends and watershed-wide spatial patterns in N mineralization and identified site factors related to N mineralization. We measured net N mineralization in situ at monthly intervals for 1 yr at 32 riparian sites along the 124-km length of the Calapooia River, Oregon. We observed seasonal trends of mean net N mineralization with relatively low rates in the fall (29.8 kg N ha ―1 yr ―1 ) and winter (30.1 kg N ha ―1 yr ―1 ) and relatively high rates in the spring (122.1 kg N ha ―1 yr ―1 ) and summer (99.7 kg N ha ―1 yr ―1 ) when conditions for microbial activity and decomposition were likely enhanced. Annual net N mineralization on an area basis ranged from ―13.5 to 234.0 kg N ha ―1 yr ―1 with a mean for all sites of 50.1 kg N ha ―1 yr ―1 . Annual net N mineralization per kilogram of soil ranged from ―16.2 to 207.1 mg N kg soil ―1 yr ―1 with a mean for all sites of 64.4 mg N kg soil ―1 yr ―1 . Regression analysis revealed hardwood basal area and coverage of grass as significant positive predictors of kilograms of N mineralized per hectare. Location along the river explained 22% of the variability of N mineralization per hectare, indicating that riparian areas may function differently along the length of the river.

Hydrologic Effects of Surface Coal Mining in Appalachia (U.S.)

Surface coal mining operations alter landscapes of the Appalachian Mountains, United States, by replacing bedrock with mine spoil, altering topography, removing native vegetation, and constructing mine soils with hydrologic properties that differ from those of native soils. Research has demonstrated hydrologic effects of mining and reclamation on Appalachian landscapes include increased peakflows at newly mined and reclaimed watersheds in response to strong storm events, increased subsurface void space, and increased base flows. We review these investigations with a focus on identifying changes to hydrologic flow paths caused by surface mining for coal in the Appalachian Mountains. We introduce two conceptual control points that govern hydrologic flow paths on mined lands, including the soil surface that partitions infiltration vs. surface runoff and a potential subsurface zone that partitions subsurface storm flow vs. deeper percolation. Investigations to improve knowledge of hydrologic pathways on reclaimed Appalachian mine sites are needed to identify effects of mining on hydrologic processes, aid development of reclamation methods to reduce hydrologic impacts, and direct environmental mitigation and public policy.

REFORESTATION GUIDELINES FOR UNUSED SURFACE MINED LANDS: DEVELOPMENT, APPLICATION AND ADOPTION 1

More than 600,000 hectares of mostly forested land in the Appalachian region were surface mined for coal under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act. Today, these lands are largely unmanaged and covered with persistent herbaceous species, such as fescue and serecia lespedeza, and a mix of invasive and native woody species with little commercial or ecological value. Some landowners and surrounding residents would like to restore native forests on some of these lands for the valuable products and services they provided prior to mining. For these lands to become productive forests, intervention is needed to loosen compacted mine soils, correct chemical or nutrient deficiencies, and replace the current vegetation. Reforestation guidelines to restore native forests on mined lands that are unoccupied, unmanaged, and unproductive were developed. Practices include land clearing, mine soil tillage, fertilization, tree planting, weed control and monitoring. The recommended practices were tested on a 35-ha mine site, originally reclaimed to grassland and bond-released in 1997. After the second growing season mean stocking of 885 ha -1 was achieved. Five of the six primary planted species (black, white, and red oak, tulip poplar, black cherry) had statistically equivalent stocking, but tulip poplar and black cherry had the highest mean height and biomass. Volunteer trees occurred on most measurement plots; most volunteer trees were native but invasive shrubs were also present. The pre-existing vegetation proved to be persistent and competitive, demonstrating the importance of vegetation control and strategic nutrient application to reforestation success. Under leadership provided by the Appalachian Regional Reforestation Initiative, a group formed by the Office of Surface Mining and seven state regulatory authorities, these procedures have been adopted and applied by watershed improvement groups, forestry and fish/wildlife agencies, coal companies, environmental groups, and an electrical generating company pursuing carbon credits.

American Chestnut Establishment Techniques on Reclaimed Appalachian Surface Mined Lands

©2012 by the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System. American Chestnut Establishment Techniques on Reclaimed Appalachian Surface Mined Lands Christopher W. Fields-Johnson (corresponding author) Virginia Tech, Department of Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences, Smyth Hall, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA, 804/239-0813, cfj@vt.edu.; James A. Burger, Virginia Tech, Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation, 228 Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, VA, USA.; Daniel M. Evans, Virginia Tech, Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation, Latham Hall, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.; Carl E. Zipper, Virginia Tech, Department of Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences, Smyth Hall, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA.

WOODY BIOMASS PRODUCTION ON POST-SMCRA MINED LANDS OVER THREE YEARS AND COMPARISONS WITH OTHER STUDIES 1

Lands mined for coal and reclaimed under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) can be used to produce woody biomass. This study evaluates woody biomass production on SMCRA-reclaimed lands after ripping to reduce soil compaction. Four species treatments were established at two planting densities on three Wise County, Virginia, mine sites. Here, we review experimental treatment effects on biomass production after three years, and we compare results to those of two other current studies that are also evaluating biomass production on post-SMCRA mined lands. After three growing seasons, black locust produced more volume and biomass than other planted species. High-density plantings produced greater per-hectare biomass than low-density plantings. For black locust, sycamore, and a hybrid poplar clone (Populus trichocarpa x P. deltoides, clone 52-225), per-tree volume growth increments were nominally greater in year three than in year two, and fertilizers applied after year two nominally increased growth. A low-density red oak planting and a mix of red oak and eastern cottonwood planted at high density produced low amounts of biomass compared to other species. The Wise County studys hybrid poplars are growing less rapidly than hybrid poplars of the same clonal variety growing on VA, WV, and OH mine sites in a multi-state study, and its black locust biomass production is comparable to the best performing of the multi-state studys hybrid poplars. In a third study, ninety-eight hybrid poplar genotypes of three taxons (P. deltoides x P. trichocarpa (DT and reciprocal), P. deltoides x P. nigra (DN), and P. deltoides x P. maximowiczii (DM)) completed two years of growth on a VA mine site. Average biomass production by the DM clones exceeded production on the multi-state trials best performing site and is comparable to the Wise County studys black locust production over comparable time periods. Within each taxon including DM, growth by the fastest growing genotypes is exceeding taxon means by factors of >2x. In both the Wise County and the multi-state study, significant effects by site and other non-species factors on biomass production are apparent, but which factors are driving performance differences is not clear. In order for biomass production on post-SMCRA mine sites to achieve commercial potential, factors causing the major growth differences observed in these studies must be understood and managed.