Director, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement

Lanny E. Erdos is the Director of the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE). As Director, Mr. Erdos provides executive leadership and direction for the implementation of the requirements of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (SMCRA).

Under the Surface Mining Act, OSMRE is responsible for working cooperatively with coal-producing states and tribes to ensure coal mining and reclamation activities are conducted in an environmentally sound manner that protects citizens and the environment during mining, and to mitigate the effects of past mining through the reclamation of abandoned mines.

Mr. Erdos joined OSMRE in September 2019 after a 31-year plus career in the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, last serving as its Chief of the Division of Mineral Resources Management. As Chief, Mr. Erdos carried out a broad range of responsibilities including management, regulation and utilization of Ohio’s coal, and aggregate resources, as well as management of the Division’s Abandoned Mine Land and Mine Safety programs.

Before taking over as the Chief of the Division, Mr. Erdos served four years as Deputy Chief, administering Ohio’s Statewide Coal, Industrial Minerals, and Mine Safety Programs. In that capacity, he managed the State’s inspection & enforcement, permitting, blasting, bonding, safety training, and the underground and surface mining certification programs.

Mr. Erdos has worked with many of OSMRE’s stakeholders in the past, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the National Association of Abandoned Mine Land Programs, the Interstate Mining Compact Commission, as well as industry representatives and citizens’ groups interested in achieving a workable balance between coal production and environmental protection.