Our Facilities

Gilberton Power and Schuylkill Energy are able to fully reclaim abandoned strip-mining pits by using discarded anthracite waste coal, or culm, as the their fuel source and by utilizing alkaline ash resulting from the cogeneration process. The waste coal removal is only one part of the environmental benefit. These highly acidic abandoned pits cause great threats to the public safety, and contribute to acid mine drainage (AMD) much like the coal refuse piles themselves. Using the PADEP certified beneficial use alkaline ash resultant from the cogeneration process, the acidic pits are filled in to restore the topography. Then, the pits are capped with soil and re-vegetated with grasses and trees. This process helps return the environment to its pre-mined condition.  The coal refuse removal, coupled with the reclamation activities of the placement of beneficial use ash, restore the landscape, greatly improve downstream water quality, and result in dramatic reductions in acidity, iron, aluminum, and manganese.