The state Department of Environmental Protection announced Tuesday that the approximately 100-acre project would address dangerous high walls and acid mine drainage at the abandoned Huling Branch mine.

Under the project’s plan, about 6000 linear feet of dangerous highwall, as high as 70ft, and one adjacent spoil area will be backfilled. The spoil material will be graded into the pits to return the surface mine site to its original contour, DEP said.

Also, 370,000 tons of alkaline material will be purchased using state “Growing Greener” funding to neutralize acidic mine spoil, including about 15,000 tons of coal refuse material improperly placed within pit areas throughout the site.

About 137,000 tons of crop coal around the perimeter of the reclamation area will be removed, along with 17,500 tons of buried coal refuse along sections of the existing highwall. The DEP said that any revenue generated from the recovery of crop coal be credited toward the overall project cost.

The reclamation work, which will be done by LR Costanzo Co will begin around September 4 and be completed by the same date next year.

DEP deputy secretary for active and abandoned mine operations, John Stefanko, said that area is part of the Bureau of Forestry’s Whiskey Springs all-terrain vehicle trail system and riders will have to relocate to other trails during the repair period.

“The highwalls are a dangerous hazard to these riders and other forest visitors, and DEP clearly understands the need for their removal,” Stefanko said adding that the project will reconstruct about 8,500 feet of the Whiskey Springs trails.

The 305,450-acre forest also is home to the nearby 39-mile Bloody Skillet ATV Trail, which the department is urging riders to use while the project is underway.

“Preliminary plans call for the western half of the Whiskey Springs ATV trail to remain open, but in a diminished capacity for the length of the remediation project,” said DCNR Acting Secretary Ellen Ferretti.

“As Huling Branch construction intensifies, the safety of all will be paramount and the bid to lessen ATV-heavy truck and equipment traffic conflicts will be pronounced,” Ferretti said.

“For these reasons, we foresee Whiskey Springs evolving as a ‘local use’ trail, with the nearby Bloody Skillet ATV Trail emerging as the alternative for riding.

“ATV enthusiasts -- particularly those traveling long distances and trailering machines -- will find much more satisfying experiences on the Bloody Skillet ATV Trail than at Whiskey Springs for the next several years.”

The acting secretary noted future trail inactivity would better enable the Bureau of Forestry to complete much-needed trail rehabilitation work, such as improved erosion and sedimentation controls, and trail surface restoration.

The summer riding season will end on July 30 for the next two years to address these enhancements.