DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING OF AN INJECTION WELL FOR THE SUBSURFACE DISPOSAL OF ACID MINE WATER

Special Research Report SR-60 The following conclusions have been made, based on the information presented in this report: 1. No positive statements regarding subsurface disposal as a method of reducing stream pollution caused by acid mine water can be made at this time, as adverse geologic conditions affected the well to the extent that no acid water was injected. 2. The disposal well described in this report was able to take short periods of fresh water injection at a rate sufficient to dispose of the proposed acidic discharge. 3. Most available subsurface geologic information on western Pennsylvania should be accepted as only a general indication of the actual stratigraphy and lithology of a specific area. 4. Considerable disagreement can exist between laboratory and field measurements of identical rock properties for the same formation. 5. Full-scale injection tests are the best method for evaluating a disposal well, 6. If minimal geologic data are available and favorable, the most economic method of establishing a disposal well is to initially drill and case the well and then conduct injection tests. 7. The presence of natural gas and oil bearing strata in the vicinity of a disposal well can be a cause of concern.