Project Gallery
Bear Fork Surface Mine and Cattle Farm
Client: Premier Elkhorn Coal Company—Pike County, Kentucky
Premier Elkhorn Coal Company executed a surface lease agreement with the Johnson family that would
enable them to develop a large eastern Kentucky surface mine in Pike County. The lease required Premier
Elkhorn Coal Company to create the maximum extent of gently sloping functional pasture land. Upon
evaluating Premier’s production and operational needs and the functional needs necessary to support
the owner's herd, Summit Engineering, Inc. developed a mine plan to facilitate the desires of both. The
key component of the plan was the variance from the approximate original contour that permitted spoil
material to be placed in valley fills, in lieu of stacking the spoil material on the mine bench.
Summit obtained all the state and federal permits necessary for a successful project. All requirements
of the Kentucky Division of Mine Permits and Army Corps of Engineers concerns for Clean Water Act
were satisfied. The mining and reclamation plan and the 404 permit application adequately addressed
the dual purpose of mining and creation of pastureland. A backfill plan was devised that placed as
much spoil material as possible on the mine bench, while still providing a sufficient acreage of gentle
sloping pasture land to meet the needs of the Johnson family. Stream impacts were minimized by
effectively utilizing previously impacted areas for valley fills and by developing innovative techniques
to mitigate unavoidable stream impacts. 404 permits for mine sites that allow a variance for the post
mining configuration to vary from the approximate contour are somewhat rare. Summit was successful
in this endeavor and the 404 permit for this site was issued. This mine site will provide 860,000 tons of
mineable coal reserves
