MONTGOMERY– Secretary of Labor Fitzgerald Washington has announced that the Alabama Department of Labor’s Abandoned Mine Land Program (ADOL AML) will take applications for a fourth round of $10 million in grant funding available for AML-related economic and community development projects. Applications will be accepted from March 1, 2021 through June 1, 2021. Applications received after close of business (4:00 p.m. CST) June 1, 2021 will not be considered.
The economic / community development projects must be located on or adjacent to coal mine sites that ceased operations prior to the signing of the Surface Mine Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) on August 3, 1977. Proposed sites must contain AML features that degrade the quality of the environment, prevent or damage the beneficial use of land and water resources, or endanger the health or safety of the public. This grant opportunity would allow reclamation of the safety hazards in conjunction with robust economic / community development of sites, thereby assisting these communities with the influx of jobs and opportunities. Lands previously reclaimed by the ADOL AML are also eligible. Counties eligible for projects include Bibb, Blount, Cherokee, Cullman, DeKalb, Etowah, Fayette, Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Lamar, Madison, Marion, Marshall, Shelby, St. Clair, Tuscaloosa, Walker, and Winston.
Pilot Program guidance / requirements from the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of Surface Mining, Reclamation, and Enforcement (OSMRE), and grant applications from ADOL AML, which contain additional information on the grant funding, can be found on the ADOL website at https://www.labor.alabama.gov/
The funds are to be used to accelerate the remediation of AML sites with economic and community development end
uses. Proposals should include information about the project’s purpose, AML features, proposed cost, partnerships and/or leveraged funds, and any evidence of community development or improvement. All proposals will be considered by the ADOL AML Pilot Selection Committee before recommended projects are sent to the federal OSMRE for vetting and a final selection.
Since 2017, a total of $30 million dollars in grant funding through this program has been made available to the impacted communities of the coal fields of Alabama. This has included projects in Bibb, Jefferson, Shelby, and Walker counties and include:
- The Southern Museum of Flight’s relocation to the Grand River Technology Park situated near Barber Motorsports and The Bass Pro Shop near Leeds;
- A commercial and community park development in Helena;
- The expansion of the City of Vestavia Hills, Alabama’s Sicard Hollow Athletic Complex;
- The reclamation of a dangerous highwall and recreational improvements on public lands located in the Cahaba National Wildlife Refuge; and
- The proposed development of a multi-purpose site development on the I-22 corridor.
Fitzgerald Washington
These projects are expected to provide thousands of new jobs and generate an economic impact of millions of dollars annually for state and local communities. Additional applications for the 2019 AML Pilot Grant funds are currently under review by the ADOL AML Pilot Selection Committee and OSMRE.
According to ADOL Secretary Fitzgerald Washington, “The AML Reclamation Program has long made a significant impact on protecting the safety of the citizens of Alabama and now, with these ongoing Pilot Program Funds, is providing opportunities to transform abandoned mine lands into sites of lasting economic opportunity for the future. This impact is needed desperately in these communities that formerly centered around the coal mining industry.”
The grant funding is provided by the federal government and administered by ADOL AML. All funding must be approved by the OSMRE.
Media Release/Alabama Department of Labor
