A unit of Lasting Forests evolving since March 30, 1999
A Total Forest Management Plan and Wildland Management Decision Support System
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Pastures on Abandoned Surface Mined Areas

Bob Downing, US Fish and Wildlife Service, developed the idea that destroying vegetation having grown naturally on strip-mined benches of Appalachia may not be in the best interest of economic needs or wildlife. To destroy the work of nature of 20 years may not be readily reproduced or surpassed by intensive planting and restoration efforts and investment. We developed the Big-R index.

The Reclamation Decision

Based on entries you provided and the reclamation guide that when Big-R is 1.0 or greater, you should reclaim the unit within this area as suggested in the table below: Table format only:

Big R Index
Unit Number	Community Growth Rates
	0.2	0.3	...1.5	...3.0
1	0.0	0.1	2.2	4.7
...15	0.0	0.6	8.6	18.6

The Trevey cannot tell you the actual growth rate without costly studies. You can estimate or gain a feel for such rates from the above table. Even when the the Big R is 0.8 or 0.9, reclamation is appropriate if

• many other benefits can be gained or
• if the multiplier effect might have been too conservatively estimated.

The Surface

A surface or working platform is needed on which human objectives may be achieved. This may be merely to stop losses or costs, but it typically will include a desire for wood products, wildlife, agriculture, or even a site for a pond or facility of some kind. A slope that will be sufficient is needed. This usually requires, as an outside limit, one that will grow plants. Abandoned mines produce and average of 360 tons of silt per acre per year (890 tons per hectare per year) as compared to 1.8 tons per acre per year (4.5 tons per hectare per year) from undisturbed lands. To be developed (format shown)

Unit Number	Area			Perimeter or Edge
	Acres	Hectares	Percent of Total	Feet	Meters	Percentage of Total Edge

The percent of area involved is a gross index of the importance of the unit for gaining reclamation action.

The perimeter is an index of edge effect generally valuable to many faunal species.

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This Web site is maintained by R. H. Giles, Jr.
Last revision February 16, 2003.