The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers today announced that it was eliminating the streamlined permitting process for surface coal-mining operations in Appalachia.
Corps officials had previously proposed this move as part of the Obama administration’s “unprecedented steps ” to reduce the environmental impacts of mountaintop removal mining.
Today’s Corps press release is available here, and I’m told top agency officials will have a media briefing on the issue later today.
Coal Tattoo readers will recall that the Corps’ proposal to do away with what it calls Nationwide Permit 21 was the subject of that nasty public hearing last October here in Charleston. We had more detailed information about what was really at issue in this process in the post, Corps MTR hearings: What they’re all about.
Today’s Corps’ annoucement said:
The suspension in Appalachia will remain in effect until the Corps takes further action on NWP 21 or until NWP 21 expires on March 18, 2012. While the suspension is in effect, individuals who propose surface coal mining projects that involve discharges of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States will have to obtain Department of the Army authorization under the Clean Water Act, through the Individual Permit process. The individual permit evaluation procedure provides increased public involvement in the permit evaluation process, including an opportunity for public comment on individual projects.
And it explained the reasoning for the decision this way:
The Corps determined after a thorough review and consideration of comments that continuing use of NWP 21 in this region may result in more than minimal impacts to aquatic resources. Activities that result in more than minimal impacts to the aquatic environment must be evaluated in accordance with individual permit procedures. Therefore, NWP 21 has been suspended in this region and coal mining activities impacting waters of the U.S. in this region will be evaluated in accordance with individual permit procedures.
A copy of the Corps’ decision document, to be published in tomorrow’s Federal Register, is posted here. (Note that after midnight, that link will go dead, and you’ll have to search for the Corps’ notice in the June 18 Federal Register).
Updated: The Corps’ Federal Register notice is here, and the agency has added some other documents about this matter to its Web site here.
As I’ve written before, U.S. District Judge Joseph R. Goodwin had already nullified the use of NWP 21 in the southern district of West Virginia prior to the Obama administration’s announced plans, and oddly enough, the administration also filed a notice that it planned to appeal Judge Goodwin’s decision.
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Well, it took long enough for the Corps to be dragged into the real world along with the rest of us – nationwide permits were never intended to be used for industrial-scale operations like mountaintop removal. That is, unless you stretched the definition of the word “minor” out of all sense of reasonableness, which is was the Corps’ Huntington office did for years and years, for reasons unknown to anyone but themselves.
What wonderful news! I was at the hearing in Kentucky, which was hostile but not violent like the one in WV. Cue the wailing and gnashing of teeth from the coal industry who’s pissed they don’t get a rubber-stamp permit anymore….
Hopefully we can now move toward dialogue and actions to build a new WV economy. New Jobs, new opportunities for coalfield residents and those that have been forced to work on these destructive mtr sites. New jobs and a real future for our kids. Coal River Mountain will be saved.
Here is a statement just issued by the National Mining Association:
“The National Mining Association is deeply concerned that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has moved forward with its previously announced intention to suspend Nationwide Permit 21 for coal mining in Appalachia over the opposition of thousands of people who voiced their comments at public hearings earlier this year. They were concerned about their jobs, their economic future and the energy security of the nation. NMA shares those concerns.
“This decision takes us in the wrong direction. The nationwide permitting system, which applies to a wide range of economic activities, provides for a more efficient permitting process. The current backlog of coal mining permits in Appalachia clearly demonstrates the consequences of eliminating this important regulatory tool.
“Today’s decision will slow job creation, add further uncertainty to the permitting process and undermine our ability to utilize the nation’s most abundant domestic energy resource—coal.
“America’s coal mining operations are dedicated to meeting the environmental expectations of the communities in which we operate. The hardworking people of Appalachian have shown their support for NWP 21 and other policies that have provided greater economic certainty for their families and their communities. We are disappointed they have been let down.”
That’s great, NMA, except NWP21 was NEVER INTENDED TO BE USED for something as massively destructive as MTR. It says right in the statute that it’s for activities that “will cause only minimal adverse environmental effects when performed separately, and will have only minimal cumulative adverse effect on the environment.” Science – and common sense – have shown us again and again that this is not the case for MTR.
On an unrelated issue, what really sticks in my craw about the NMA statement is calling coal our “most abundant domestic energy resource.” Harnessing just the most easily accessible solar and wind resources in southwestern and midwestern states would yield more than 10 times our current electricity demand (and create a lot more jobs than coal or nuclear energy at the same time). There’s not a grain of truth to the statement that coal is our most abundant energy resource — not that that has ever stopped NMA before.
Matt,
Actually, you are wrong. The best wind resources in the US are off both coasts and in the Great Lakes. Offshore wind resources dwarf any potential on land. And, offshore wind power is near most US population centers.
The vastness of land based wind power in North America is a myth that needs to be put to rest. See the Dept. of Energy wind power potential map here http://calhounpowerline.wordpress.com/2010/01/09/the-map/
well appalachia you asked for it, let the impact begin. We thought it was bad before and we are just now feeling the effects that the rest of America has felt for a while……….get ready
This is one more step in the right direction to preserve what is left.
How many more miles of stream have to be burried or poisoned?
How many more people have to be displaced from their ancestral homelands?
Only a small percentage of recoverable coal can only be extracted by surface mining. Ban MTR and when the price of coal goes up, it will be economically feasible to deep mine. Watch the jobs come back West Virginia. You can erect Judy Bond’s statue on the capital lawn!
Finally it has been done. Sure some jobs will be lost by mountain top mining removal. Coal will still be mined and is mined now by underground mines. Many of the underground mines are non-union just as Montcoal UBB was. I mean no offense to anyone by saying that, and still pray for the 29 miners’ families that were lost in that terrible mine explosion, and also Mr. Woods who still remains in critical condition. Sure it takes more miners to mine underground coal than it does with mountain top removal miners, but at least you cannot see any damage that removing the coal underground has caused.
The UMWA is connected with underground mining as well with some mountain top removal mining. So coal will still be supplied. I have no fear of my electricity being turned off. Besides, there is always gas for our heating and cooking, hot water tanks, etc.
Good luck to any miner that may lose his/her job over this decision, and now it is time for both anti-coal and pro-coal people to get together and unite for a good common cause.
The mountains look so beautiful and green now, so let’s try and keep them that way, and safe drinking water also could now become the norm. Keep up the good work Ken.
Mr webb, no one forced me or anyone else to work on a MTR site. As strange as it sounds to you and your friends I actually enjoy working on surface mines. If you and your friend succeed in driving surface mining out of wv then there are surface mines all over the world that need qualified miners. The canadian oil sands are sounding better and better. Remember this. If it can’t be grown then it HAS to be mined.
I’m curious about your statment that if it can’t be grown then it has to be mined, scott14. What, exactly, does that mean?
All that the Corps is doing with this decision is *gasp* following the law. As hard as that concept is for the NMA, FOC, WVCA and all the rest to grasp, that is all that is going on here – and it is worth noting that the Huntington Corps’ office was the ONLY one in the country that was interpreting NWP 21 in this manner. Which does make you wonder.
Laura Forman, Organizer for the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition died in front of the US Army Corps office in Huntington in December 2001 protesting the use of NWP 21 to grant permits for valley fills, claiming “minimal impact.”
Finally, almost 10 years later, Laura has been vindicated and the Army Corps has agreed to follow the law. It’s sad that it has taken our government officials this long to do the right thing.
May she rest in peace.
The above posts — all of them — reflect the wide range of attitudes that readers of this blog bring to a number of issues. The posts express strong emotions — and, yet, I detect a certain tone of mutual respect, under the seemingly strong words.
I encourage people to keep posting, and to keep expressing respect and the desire to truly communicate with and understand one another. We owe that effort to the people — like Laura Forman and the UBB miners and many more — who are not here to participate.
By the way, here’s a link to a good article on the Canadian oil sands. Thanks, Scott14, for bringing that topic up — it’s a doozy!
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2009/03/canadian-oil-sands/kunzig-text.html
Nice picture of green hills. These are like showing white beaches with a write up on the BP mess. Shame on you!
Monty, my statement “if it can’t be grown then it has to be mined” means just that. If it doesn’t grow out of the ground, then you have to dig or suck it out of the ground. Oil, iron,natural gas, gold, silver, lead, uranium, copper, titanium, alumium, borax, coal, tarona and diamonds. All require men to dig or drill into the earth. These minerals make the lifestyle we have possible. Also a note, the cell phones that most have today require a rare mineral called cobalt. This mineral is found only in a few places on earth, the Congo having the largest reserves. Most of these with the exception of diamonds are primarly mined by SURFACE miners.
Thanks Scott14 … I really do appreciate you offering your perspective.
There’s no question that the needs (and the wants) of human being involve a lot of mining … here’s just one story about the Congo:
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/24/opinion/24iht-edhochschild_ed3_.html?_r=1&scp=10&sq=congo%20cobalt&st=cse
It’s important to consider these issues in the broader context you present. It’s not as simple as anyone on any side makes it out to be.
Ken.