Birmingham field OFFICE

The Birmingham Field Office (BFO) is responsible for coordination between OSM, State Regulatory Authorities, citizens, industry and environmental concerns in the States of Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi.   State coal programs and abandoned mine land programs are monitored to ensure that surface coal mining operations and the surface effects of underground coal mining, along with the reclamation of abandoned mine lands, are conducted in an environmentally sound manner in accordance with the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA).

The BFO Program staff is responsible for gathering data about coal mining and reclamation operations, assisting States in improving inspection and enforcement activities, and recommending actions needed to address State program deficiencies. The accomplishment of this work will assist State’s in the implementation of their programs and ensure proper reclamation of the land.  Additional responsibilities include:

• Reviews and analyzes proposed State program amendments, monitors, and evaluates State regulatory programs, cooperative agreements and abandoned mine land (AML) reclamation programs.
• Assists in resolution of identified program issues within each of the states.
• Works with each State to develop annual performance agreements which define the oversight and assistance activities for the current year.
• Solicits stakeholder comments on oversight.
• Conducts performance reviews; inspects mines in accordance with OSM policies, citizen concerns or concerns from routine document review; and participates in bond release inspections.
• Provides technical assistance or access to technical assistance on issues relating to mine permitting, compliance monitoring, mitigation, AML issues, or reclamation decisions.
• Reviews grant documents and assures programmatic compliance with all grant conditions.
• Assists the States in aggressively pursuing reclamation of the most serious and high priority nonemergency AML reclamation.
• Participates in technical forums, meetings, and conferences to maintain technical expertise and stay abreast of developments in mining and reclamation technology.