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Author

Carl E. Zipper

Other affiliations: Illinois Natural History Survey
Bio: Carl E. Zipper is an academic researcher from Virginia Tech. The author has contributed to research in topics: Coal mining & Surface mining. The author has an hindex of 31, co-authored 156 publications receiving 3136 citations. Previous affiliations of Carl E. Zipper include Illinois Natural History Survey.


Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Reclamation of coal mines using the FRA is expected to restore these lands’ capabilities to provide forest-based ecosystem services, such as wood production, atmospheric carbon sequestration, wildlife habitat, watershed protection, and water quality protection to a greater extent than conventional reclamation practices.
Abstract: Surface coal mining in Appalachia has caused extensive replacement of forest with non-forested land cover, much of which is unmanaged and unproductive. Although forested ecosystems are valued by society for both marketable products and ecosystem services, forests have not been restored on most Appalachian mined lands because traditional reclamation practices, encouraged by regulatory policies, created conditions poorly suited for reforestation. Reclamation scientists have studied productive forests growing on older mine sites, established forest vegetation experimentally on recent mines, and identified mine reclamation practices that encourage forest vegetation re-establishment. Based on these findings, they developed a Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) that can be employed by coal mining firms to restore forest vegetation. Scientists and mine regulators, working collaboratively, have communicated the FRA to the coal industry and to regulatory enforcement personnel. Today, the FRA is used routinely by many coal mining firms, and thousands of mined hectares have been reclaimed to restore productive mine soils and planted with native forest trees. Reclamation of coal mines using the FRA is expected to restore these lands’ capabilities to provide forest-based ecosystem services, such as wood production, atmospheric carbon sequestration, wildlife habitat, watershed protection, and water quality protection to a greater extent than conventional reclamation practices.

273 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A review of the current state of passive mine drainage treatment can be found in this article, where the authors provide guidance for sizing and effective operation, as well as a comparison of different passive treatment technologies.
Abstract: When appropriately designed and maintained, passive systems can provide long-term, efficient, and effective treatment for many acid mine drainage (AMD) sources. Passive AMD treatment relies on natural processes to neutralize acidity and to oxidize or reduce and precipitate metal contaminants. Passive treatment is most suitable for small to moderate AMD discharges of appropriate chemistry, but periodic inspection and maintenance plus eventual renovation are generally required. Passive treatment technologies can be separated into biological and geochemical types. Biological passive treatment technologies generally rely on bacterial activity, and may use organic matter to stimulate microbial sulfate reduction and to adsorb contaminants; constructed wetlands, vertical flow wetlands, and bioreactors are all examples. Geochemical systems place alkalinity-generating materials such as limestone in contact with AMD (direct treatment) or with fresh water up-gradient of the AMD. Most passive treatment systems employ multiple methods, often in series, to promote acid neutralization and oxidation and precipitation of the resulting metal flocs. Before selecting an appropriate treatment technology, the AMD conditions and chemistry must be characterized. Flow, acidity and alkalinity, metal, and dissolved oxygen concentrations are critical parameters. This paper reviews the current state of passive system technology development, provides results for various system types, and provides guidance for sizing and effective operation.

266 citations

01 Jan 2005
TL;DR: The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) is a method for reclaiming coal-mined land to forest under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA).
Abstract: The Forestry Reclamation Approach (FRA) is a method for reclaiming coal-mined land to forest under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA). The FRA is based on knowledge gained from both scientific research and experience (Photo 1). The FRA can achieve costeffective regulatory compliance for coal operators while creating productive forests that generate value for their owners and provide watershed protection, wildlife habitat, and other environmental services.

100 citations

Book ChapterDOI
25 Apr 2014
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present guidance for the design of passive acid mine drainage (AMD) treatment systems, and describe the mechanisms governing these sys-tems' treatment effectiveness and performance.
Abstract: Acidic mine drainage (AMD; also called “acid rock drainage” or “acid drainage”) is an environmental pol-lutant that impairs water resources in mining regions throughout the world. Where such treatment is required legally, treatment must be efficient and continual. Treatment methods are commonly divided into either “active,” meaning reliance on the addition of alkaline chemicals to neutralize the acidity, or “passive.” The term “passive treatment” means reliance on biologi-cal, geochemical, and gravitational processes. Passive treatment does not require constant care or the chemi-cal reagents that characterize “active” AMD treatment. This publication presents guidance for design of pas-sive treatment systems for AMD. Our emphasis is to describe clearly the mechanisms governing these sys-tems’ treatment effectiveness and performance. Parties intending to construct passive treatment systems may refer to other sources that include more detailed design and construction guidance, including those listed as “Design Guidelines” in the references below. Articles by Skousen and Ziemkiewicz (2005), and Skousen (1996), contain photographs that illustrate many of these concepts.

90 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, brush removal, deep tillage, planting native trees, fertilizer, and herbicide applications were used to speed restoration of 35ha of previously reclaimed and abandoned surface mine-lands in southwestern Virginia, USA.

86 citations


Cited by
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01 Jan 2015
TL;DR: The work of the IPCC Working Group III 5th Assessment report as mentioned in this paper is a comprehensive, objective and policy neutral assessment of the current scientific knowledge on mitigating climate change, which has been extensively reviewed by experts and governments to ensure quality and comprehensiveness.
Abstract: The talk with present the key results of the IPCC Working Group III 5th assessment report. Concluding four years of intense scientific collaboration by hundreds of authors from around the world, the report responds to the request of the world's governments for a comprehensive, objective and policy neutral assessment of the current scientific knowledge on mitigating climate change. The report has been extensively reviewed by experts and governments to ensure quality and comprehensiveness.

3,224 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors summarize the recent literature about controls on dissolved organic matter (DOM) concentrations and fluxes in so-called "soil degraded organic matter" (SOCOM).
Abstract: Dissolved organic matter (DOM) in soils plays an important role in the biogeochemistry of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus, in pedogenesis, and in the transport of pollutants in soils. The aim of this review is to summarize the recent literature about controls on DOM concentrations and fluxes in soi

2,138 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
22 Nov 2007-Nature
TL;DR: It is shown that rising trends in DOC between 1990 and 2004 can be concisely explained by a simple model based solely on changes in deposition chemistry and catchment acid-sensitivity, and that the rise in DOC is integral to recovery from acidification.
Abstract: Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain recent, widespread increases in concentrations of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in the surface waters of glaciated landscapes across eastern North America and northern and central Europe. Some invoke anthropogenic forcing through mechanisms related to climate change, nitrogen deposition or changes in land use, and by implication suggest that current concentrations and fluxes are without precedent. All of these hypotheses imply that DOC levels will continue to rise, with unpredictable consequences for the global carbon cycle. Alternatively, it has been proposed that DOC concentrations are returning toward pre-industrial levels as a result of a gradual decline in the sulphate content of atmospheric deposition. Here we show, through the assessment of time series data from 522 remote lakes and streams in North America and northern Europe, that rising trends in DOC between 1990 and 2004 can be concisely explained by a simple model based solely on changes in deposition chemistry and catchment acid-sensitivity. We demonstrate that DOC concentrations have increased in proportion to the rates at which atmospherically deposited anthropogenic sulphur and sea salt have declined. We conclude that acid deposition to these ecosystems has been partially buffered by changes in organic acidity and that the rise in DOC is integral to recovery from acidification. Over recent decades, deposition-driven increases in organic matter solubility may have increased the export of DOC to the oceans, a potentially important component of regional carbon balances. The increase in DOC concentrations in these regions appears unrelated to other climatic factors.

1,622 citations

Book ChapterDOI
01 Jan 1976
TL;DR: A positive temperature coefficient is the term which has been used to indicate that an increase in solubility occurs as the temperature is raised, whereas a negative coefficient indicates a decrease in Solubility with rise in temperature.
Abstract: A positive temperature coefficient is the term which has been used to indicate that an increase in solubility occurs as the temperature is raised, whereas a negative coefficient indicates a decrease in solubility with rise in temperature.

1,573 citations