The River of Promise project site is located in the upper one mile of the Sovern Run watershed. Acid mine drainage flows from an abandoned Upper Freeport mine into a small pond and down a slope into Sovern Run. This mine contributes about one third of the acid load to Sovern Run. In 1995, researchers from the National Mine Land Reclamation Center filled the portal with 120 tons of limestone in an effort to treat the acid flow. The limestone portal drain effectively treats low flows of acid mine drainage (below 10 gpm) but cannot handle the high flows seen in the Spring and Fall. For this reason the River of Promise Technical Committee sought a new approach.

The National Mine Land Reclamation Center and Triad Engineering of Morgantown, West Virginia designed a structure that will cost effectively treat all acid mine drainage from this mine. The project consists of raising the level of the current pond by 7 feet to flood the mine portal and install a 650 foot Open Limestone Channel. The new pond will control the flow that enters the limestone channel. Additional storm water diversions will divert high storm water flows into the channel to flush any precipitated metal and sediment out of the system. The West Virginia Division of Environmental Protection Abandoned Mine Land group with funding through the Appalachian Clean Streams Initiative are currently designing projects for the other seeps in the headwaters of Sovern Run. A large catchment structure for collecting all metal precipitates so that they do not wash downstream into the Big Sandy, is being considered.

The River of Promise Project will be constructed by Grafton Coal Co. at a cost of $23,225.00. The project is funded by Friends of the Cheat, Inc. through a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The National Mine Land Reclamation Center and Triad Engineering have donated design services to the project.

For additional information E-mail Rick Buckley at rbuckley@osmre.gov