Photo essay illustrates Voinovich School, AEP partnership advancing acid mine drainage restoration efforts

According to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, 1,300 miles of Ohio streams are impacted by acid mine drainage. The Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs is working toward remediating this problem in Southeast Ohio with the help of a $250,000 grant from The American Electric Power Foundation.

Since the grant was awarded in the summer of 2010, the School's Water Quality Program has undertaken research they hope will serve as a model for the restoration of watersheds affected by acid mine drainage throughout the country.

Today, the work continues at Hewett Fork, a watershed that has served as a case study for research.

The School has been closely monitoring water chemistry and biological indicators at Hewett Fork in its ongoing efforts to perfect the model.

Darcy Holdorf, a 2010-11 and 2011-12 Photojournalism Fellow with the Voinovich School, has created a photo essay highlighting the restoration efforts at Hewett Fork. Darcy has a master's degree in photography and multimedia storytelling from the School of Visual Communication at Ohio University and has produced multimedia stories documenting the Voinovich School's impact on local communities.

Click to view the photo essay illustrating the progress at Hewett Fork [PDF]

Please be patient as the large file loads [PDF]