The Highvale mine, located 65 km west of Edmonton along the south side of Lake Wabamum, produces approximately 12 m1llion tons of coal per year as fuel for the Sundance and Keephills generating plants.
Soils in the pre-mined area are predominantly thin Black Solodized Solonetz and Gleysols developed on residual sodic clay shale bedrock. Following mining, TransAlta reclaims the disturbed land by replacing salvaged topsoil and subsoil. Their reclaimed land is then managed as farmland using agricultural management practices similar to those used by neighboring farmers.
Some of the problems encountered in the reclaimed land included: soils that puddled and were slow to dry after rainfall: soils that had poor trafficability when moist or wet: soils that were cloddy and crusted, requiring excessive cultivation to prepare a seed bed and control weeds: and uneven germination and patchy crops. These problems were considered to be the result of poor surface soil tilth and subsurface compaction incurred during subsoil and topsoil placement. In September 1986, TransAlta Utilities initiated a study to investigate the long term effectiveness of deep ripping and organic matter additions in the form of peat and manure to improve subsoil drainage, alleviate compaction and improve topsoil tilth in reclaimed fields.