Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program History, Mine Closures and Historic Preservation in Utah lecture given by Steve Fluke and Seth Button

Park City Museum and the Friends of Ski Mountain Mining History will host a lecture called Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program History, Mine Closures and Historic Preservation in Utah given by Steve Fluke and Seth Button on Wednesday, February 15 from 5-6 p.m. at the Park City Museum Education and Collections Center located at 2079 Sidewinder Drive. More information can be found at www.parkcityhistory.org.

The Utah Division of Oil, Gas and Mining (DOGM) Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program (AMRP) is charged with the reclamation and closure of abandoned mines in the state of Utah. There are an estimated 17,000 abandoned mines in Utah. AMRP works to protect the public and environment from the degradation and dangers of abandoned mines that include coal waste piles, impacted stream channels, hazardous structures, coal fires, and hazardous openings. Hundreds of acres of land have been reclaimed and over 6,000 mine openings have been closed during the program’s 39-year existence.

Steve Fluke, AMRP Administrator, will present the program history and mine reclamation and closure techniques. Seth Button, Program Archaeologist, will discuss the current AMRP processes for recording and preserving historic cultural resources during the reclamation process. Seth will also discuss a few of the most important technical innovations at Park City mines, and some of the challenges of securing, preserving, and interpreting some of those “monuments” that embody the spirit of Utah miners’ ingenuity and technical innovation.

Steve Fluke graduated with a B.S. in geology from the University of Texas and an M.S. in geology from Western Washington University. He worked as an environmental and water resource consultant in Salt Lake City and Park City for ten years before moving on to the Division of Oil, Gas & Mining. At the Division, Steve worked as a hydrogeologist in the coal regulatory program and then as a project manager in the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program. He has been the Program Administrator since 2014.

Seth Button obtained his B.A. from Dartmouth College in Hanover, N.H. and M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He has worked in Utah archaeology since 2010 and has extensive experience with historic mine sites throughout the Intermountain West. Since 2017 he has worked for the Division of Oil, Gas & Mining in the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Program as the Program Archaeologist.