Supervises Revegetation Efforts : Mines Committed to Land Reclamation, She Says

The best part of Michele Mitchell’s job is watching the grass grow.

The worst part, she says, is the time she must spend satisfying federal and state inspectors that she is doing it right.

Mitchell is environmental coordinator at the Absaloka Mine 50 miles southeast of Billings. She is directly responsible for the reclamation of land disturbed by coal mining.

Each year, 23 million cubic yards of dirt are dug up at the Absaloka. Strip pits are about 1,500 feet wide. The depth depends on the coal seam, which begins about 100 feet below the surface.

Now, 1,500 acres owned by Westmoreland Resources Inc. are affected by strip mining at the Absaloka. Of that, 414 acres have been reclaimed since mining began in 1974.

Paper Work for Permits

Mitchell also processes all federal and state paper work needed to get mining permits, which depend in part on the mine’s reclamation results.

A 1976 graduate of Michigan State University with a degree in wildlife biology, Mitchell, 34, has worked at the mine nine years.

She wears heavy boots to slog through snow in winter and mud in spring. Her uniform is blue jeans and casual shirts. In the field, her long dark hair is always covered by a hard hat.

She says she believes that the mining industry is committed to reclaiming the land that it has gouged open to get to the coal.

“Our entire office works on reclamation,” Mitchell said. “There are technical people, draftsmen and mining engineers, as well as me, all working on better ways to do it.

“I spend about 50% of my time making sure we are in compliance with reclamation regulations, and 10% accompanying inspectors around the mine.”

Rankled by Inspections

There are 12 complete inspections and another dozen partial checks annually. They rankle Mitchell.

“That’s too much, as far as I’m concerned,” she said.

Mitchell is responsible for creating the master revegetation plan, then making sure that it succeeds. That means knowing about topography, geology, hydrology, biology and such things as the browsing habits of deer and the growth rate of weeds. She does not drive the tractor or fill the seeding machine, but she supervises the people who do.

Working with seed companies throughout the region, Mitchell has refined her plantings to suit the climate of southeastern Montana. The area gets only 14 to 15 inches of moisture a year, with temperatures reaching as high as 100 in summer and as low as 20 below zero in winter.

One seed company that specializes in reclamation sales is 50 miles south of the Absaloka Mine.

Seed Business

Tom Adsit, 69, and his wife, LaRena, 65, have lived near Decker, Mont., all their lives. They reared six children on their cattle ranch. Today they raise crops with names like Rozana western wheat grass, Critana thick spike and Whitmier beardless wheat grass.

“We got into the seed business by accident 40 years ago,” Adsit said. “I wanted to plow up some sagebrush land and plant it in grass because it took 100 of my acres to support each cow when it was left natural.

“I sent for some seed and planted it, and it was no good. It turned out that 22% of the seed mix was really weeds. I went hunting for cleaner grass, and the fellows over at Montana State University suggested I grow my own seed. I’ve been doing it ever since, and that was in 1948.”

Adsit Farm and Ranch Services began selling seed commercially in the early 1950s. Today all his seed is certified, meaning that the foundation crop came from state supplies and is of high quality.