Wednesday webinar will introduce new tool that tracks reforestation on old surface coal mines in Appalachia

Appalachian Voices, Skytruth and other regional partners will hold a free webinar at 11 a.m. ET Wednesday, May 26, to discuss a new tool that tracks reforestation of reclaimed surface coal mines.

The Central Appalachian Mine Reforestation Assessment tool "makes use of satellite imagery to monitor and characterize the state of reclamation and vegetation recovery on surface coal mines in Central Appalachia from 1984 to the present," Jamie Goodman reports for Appalachian Voices. "During the webinar, we will release a report months in the making that examines the state of mine recovery in the Central Appalachian region. Links to the data used, the algorithms used to produce the data, and a webmap for the general public to use will also be made available."

The data set and tool are funded through a National Geographic Society grant. Click here for more information about the webinar or to register.