Hydrogeologic Parameters Of Reclaimed Coal Strip Mines From Borehole Geophysical Surveys

Two nuclear methods were used to quantify hydrogeologic parameters in the<br>unsaturated zone of a reclaimed and revegetated coal strip mine spoil pile in Clarion,<br>Pennsylvania. These investigations were part of an ongoing acid mine drainage<br>abatement demonstration project. Quantitative descriptions of physical properties<br>affecting fluid flow in deep strip mine spoil piles were previously unavailable. In<br>order to quantify moisture content, bulk density, porosity, and unsaturated hydraulic<br>conductivity, six 6.4 m seamless aluminum neutron access tubes were installed in<br>boreholes at the site. These were probed with Am-Be (neutron) and Cs-137 (gammagamma)<br>probes on 7 different dates.