Allegheny River Headwaters Watershed Conservation Plan

Allegheny River Headwaters Conservation Plan
Chapter 2. Land Resources
Development
Development occurs, and is needed to some extent, to enhance the quality of life within the
watershed. The key is effectively managing development activities as identified in county, municipal, and
multi-municipal planning documents. As discussed in the Project Area Characteristics chapter, land-use
plans and regulation ordinances protect communities from unwanted development and land uses.
Existing development is located around the population centers, such as Bradford and Coudersport.
However, the majority of existing development—77 percent—is rural residential development, also
termed open-space development. Low intensity development consists of small towns and villages, such as
Turtlepoint and Oswayo; they make up 16 percent of the project area’s development. Medium intensity
development would be a mid-sized borough, such as Port Allegany and Smethport. These mid-sized,
medium-intensity development areas account for six percent of the developed area of the watershed,
leaving one percent of high-intensity residential population centers.
Mining
Mining is the extraction of minerals, such as coal, limestone, sand, and gravel from underground.
These materials are then brought to the surface. There are two methods of recovering the minerals—
surface mining and subsurface mining. Strip mining, quarrying, open-pit mining, and mountain top
removal are examples of surface mining techniques used to reach mineral resources underground. In these
methods, the land surface and bedrock above the minerals is stripped off to provide access to the
minerals. Subsurface or underground mining requires the digging of tunnels or shafts into the earth’s
surface to remove minerals. Longwall mining, room and pillar, drift mining, slope mining, and shaft
mining are examples of underground mining techniques.
Within the Allegheny headwaters, mining is not a major land use. In fact, mineral extraction and
barren areas account for less than one-half percent of land use within the project area. The removal of
minerals is classified into two categories for management and oversight—coal and non-coal mining.
Non-Coal Mining
Non-coal mining is the extraction of non-fuel or industrial minerals, such as aggregate, shale, and
crushed stone. It is estimated that industrial mineral production generates $1.25 billion annually and
provides jobs, taxes to local municipalities, and supports local business. Pennsylvania is among the top 10
states for producing aggregate and crushed stone (DEP 6 ).
Home and roadway construction, agriculture, landscaping, and industrial processes utilize a variety
of mineral resources. Concrete—made from aggregates, such as sand, gravel, or limestone—is used for
constructing building foundations and bridges. Lime is added to agricultural fields to raise the pH of
acidic soils. Crushed stones and minerals, such as bluestone, flagstone, and shale, are used in landscaping.
Non-fuel minerals are used as abrasives, binders, or additives in industrial processes or in the treatment of
air or water as a part of the manufacturing process. There are 57 active industrial mining permits within
the municipalities that comprise the Allegheny headwaters watershed. See Appendix E for a listing of
these quarries.
Coal Mining
Coal is found in flat layers between veins of non-fuel minerals, such as sandstone, shale, and
limestone, which are referred to as overburden in the coal mining process. Within Pennsylvania there are
40 layers of coal, varying in thickness from inches to over eight feet. The majority of it is located within
the Pittsburgh, Upper Freeport, Lower Freeport, Upper Kittanning, and Lower Kittanning coal seams
(DEP, 2005; DEP 7 ).
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