EPA will scrutinize mining applications
The Obama administration on Friday stepped up its efforts to curb environmental damage from surface coal mining, announcing plans to give 79 permit applications in four states additional scrutiny.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said it wants to make certain the proposed mines won’t cause water pollution and violate the Clean Water Act before permits are issued by the Army Corps of Engineers.
Most of the permits are for mines in Kentucky, the nation’s No. 3 coal-producing state. Also on the list are operations in No. 2 coal producer West Virginia, Ohio and one mine in Tennessee.
The action targets a practice known as mountaintop removal mining. The highly efficient mining method involves blasting away mountaintops to expose multiple coal seams and, in most cases, burying intermittent streams with excess rock.
"Release of this preliminary list is the first step in a process to assure that the environmental concerns raised by the 79 permit applications are addressed," EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson stated.
Environmental groups cheered the administration, which they’ve criticized for not banning such mining altogether.
"We applaud this action," Sierra Club spokeswoman Mary Anne Hitt said.
The coal industry says the decision jeopardizes tens of thousands of jobs.
"By deciding to hold up for still further review coal mining permits pending in West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee, the agency damages a weak economy struggling to recover in the worst recession in postwar history," National Mining Association President Hal Quinn said in a statement.