Awards & Scholarships

Ziemkiewicz received a B.S. in biology and an M.S. in range ecology from Utah State University. He received a Ph.D. from the University of British Columbia in forest ecology in 1978. From 1978-1987, he worked for Alberta Energy in Edmonton, AB Canada securing funding for, organizing, directing and conducting mine reclamation and other energy and environmental research programs. He currrently holds the positions of director of the National Mine Land Reclamation Center and director of the West Virginia Water Research Institute at West Virginia University. His responsibilities focus on acid-mine drainage research and technology-transfer programs relating to the coal industry. He has also served in a regulatory capacity with government agencies and developed regulatory and R&D policy. He currently serves on state and federal policy advisory committees focusing on reclamation and acid-mine drainage. He provides technical support to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency toward developing new regulatory guidance for the use of coal-combustion wastes in coal mines. Ongoing remediation projects include Monday Creek, Kettle Creek, Lick Run, the Appalachian Clean Streams Initiative, the Pittsburgh Basin Mine Pool Flooding project and acid-mine drainage training workshops. He is certified with OSHA in hazardous waste operations and emergency response.