The Pella Wildlife Area is undergoing a $4 million mine reclamation project that will see it transform from a former strip mine, to an area with a reconstructed prairie, oak hickory timber and wetlands that more naturally fits with the surrounding landscape. The project is expected to be completed by late 2025.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is in the early stages of a two-year project that will completely change the Pella Wildlife Area, thanks to $4 million in funding from the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS) Mine Reclamation program.

The north half of the area was closed to all public use on Oct. 1. The south half will remain open until the reclamation work begins, likely around Nov. 1, when the entire wildlife area will be closed for public use. The area will be reopened to the public after the project is completed in late 2025.

The mine reclamation program is funded by mining royalties from western states with active coal mines and the national infrastructure investment after the COVID pandemic. IDALS will oversee the project.

Located 1-1/2 miles south of Pella, the 277-acre Pella Wildlife Area is the site of a former strip coal mine active until the 1950s, when it was acquired by the Iowa DNR. The project to remake the area includes removing all trees and vegetation, draining the ponds, and then rebuilding it to more naturally fit with the surrounding landscapes and replace the invasive plant species with native species.

Preparing for the reclamation project began in 2021, when the Iowa DNR surveyed trees (primarily cottonwoods) on site then solicited bids for contractors to utilize them as part of a salvage harvest. The winning bidder removed 2,300 trees, filling 185 semi-truck loads, totaling 700,000 board feet for use as pallets. A firewood contractor then cut and removed additional trees as part of the salvage harvest.

Funds received from salvage harvests are used to support forestry improvement projects throughout the state on DNR managed lands. The salvage harvest was completed in late winter.

In 2021, Vermeer partnered with DNR to field test some of its equipment on the site, clearing 10 acres of black locust, hedge and other invasive plant species in the middle of the area. This new open space had 10,000 trees planted in 2023, thanks to a grant from Alliant Energy. A contractor planted a mix of swamp white oak, pin oak, white oak, red oak, bur oak, along with shagbark hickory and pecan. The planting will remain through the reclamation project.

“It looks messy right now but the annuals produce a lot of seeds for wildlife and provide protection to the oaks to get a head start,” said Todd Gosselink, wildlife biologist with the Iowa DNR. “The whole area will look absolutely different once this project is completed.”

The new look Pella Wildlife Area will have a 70-acre timber, 20 acres of wetlands located to filter water coming off the area, with the remainder in restored prairie with plants that are adapted for acidic soils in the mine reclamation areas. Once completed, it will support woodland species, wetland species, prairie species and edge species.

“We’re going to manage this to have something for everyone,” he said. “There will be more usable space for wildlife and for people.”