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• 22 . <br />PROSPECTS FOR RECLAMATION IN THE HIGH NORTHERN GREAT PLAINS <br />Assessment of limitations of reclamation potential in the high plains of <br />Montana and Wyoming has been attempted by the National Academy of Sciences <br />in its 1974 report to the Ford Foundation (loc.cit). Their report reflected <br />opinions of the study committee team assembled for the purposes. Since the <br />team members represent a wide variety of disciplines, the resultant committee <br />opinion reflects considerable differences of opinion on limitations to re- <br />habilitation of arid lands. On the question of potential reclaimability of <br />high plains sites, the report expresses an optimism that is unsupported by <br />fact. however, this attitude is frequently expressed and comprises a signi- <br />ficant input to current northern plains mining plans, impact statements, and <br />analyses (The Institute of Ecology 1973, U.S. Bureau of Reclamation 1974, <br />Stanford Research Institute 1974, Northern Great Plains Resource Program <br />1974). The Academy report concluded that reclamation may be impossible within <br />reasonable time spans where annual precipitation was less than 250 mm (10 inches), <br />and that technolog}• is currently available for rehabilitation of most of the <br />land that has been surface mined in the United States. Insufficient precipita- <br />tion data are available from the Ft. Union formation region of Montana and hyo- <br />ming to ]mow what proportion of that areas stripable coal reserves lie within <br />the area purported to be reclaimable, and it is thus difficult to establish how <br />such a conclusion could have been reached (Curry 1974). However, assuming <br />that the 250 mm figure is merely intended as a cnide index of potential reclama- <br />