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Wyo Ben Inc. out of Greybull, Wyoming, was the recipient of
the 1999 Wyoming Game and Fish Department Mine Reclamation and Wildlife
Stewardship Award. The award is presented to a mining company that goes the
"extra mile" to reclaim mined land for fish and wildlife habitat. The
criteria include the contribution of stewardship to maintain, restore, or
enhance wildlife or fish populations or habitat. Also included is the
cooperative nature of the stewardship efforts, the extent to which the efforts
were "above and beyond" normal regulatory requirements, the quality of
the nomination package, and includes a field evaluation.
Wyo Ben has been mining bentonite in the Big Horn Basin for
over 40 years. They have continually been leaders in reclamation practices in
the industry, and their techniques have all been extremely innovative and
original.
The area receiving this award was mined in 1984. It was
reclaimed by 1987 and included an 11.7-acre-foot reservoir covering 40 acres.
The reservoir drains three ephemeral drainages and is designed to hold runoff
from a two-year, six-hour event before discharging into the overflow channel.
Periodic flushing helps to maintain water quality, thereby supporting a variety
of wildlife species. Mallards, pronghorn antelope, mule deer, and blackbilled
magpies all frequent the reservoir. Other species that have been observed
include desert cotton-tail, prairie rattlesnake, bullsnake, lizards, coyote,
turkey vulture, marsh hawk, eastern and western kingbirds, golden eagle, teal,
and other native nongame birds.
Because of the stable shoreline, vegetation has had an
opportunity to become established as well as many small cottonwood trees. Wyo
Ben has continued to monitor and maintain the reservoir. The reclamation efforts
represent a first class example of restoring mined land to a beneficial use.
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