re: To reintroduce elk here or not?

The Kentucky elk herd was reestablished in an area that has a LOT of reclaimed strip mines (mountain top removal). The proponents of elk restocking there are proud of the fact that tourists visit the area and take pictures and videos of the elk and spend money. No problem with that, either. However, those reclaimed strip mines are essentially HUGE meadows of grassland for the elk to graze. Without substantial grasslands (meadows) here, what will the elk eat? They are grazers like cattle and not browsers like deer. At least, that's my understanding. Without a lot of open grazing area, will elk be able to flourish in, what seems to me, to be an unsustainable habitat? I wonder what kind of habitat the original Eastern elk required before they were wiped out by the settlers?