Congressmen to EPA: New Guidance for Permits is Wrong Approach, New Guidance for Permits, Environmental Protection Agency

PR Newswire | 08 May, 2010
U.S. Representatives Nick J. Rahall (D-WV), Alan B. Mollohan (D-WV) and Rick Boucher (D-VA) have called upon the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to withdraw the Guidance it issued on April 1 regarding coal mining permits in Appalachia. The lawmakers expressed their concern with EPA's use of a conductivity standard and the inequitable treatment of Appalachian coal mining in the Guidance in a May 5 letter to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson.

"We applaud the members of Congress for publicly identifying the same faults with the EPA's new Guidance on water quality standards that most residents of the affected states see," said Bryan Brown, West Virginia state coordinator for the FACES of Coal campaign. "There are serious scientific doubts about using conductivity as a water quality standard but beyond that, only enforcing those standards in 6 states of a 50 state country is prejudicial, economically devastating and just plain wrong."

The April 1st Guidance announcement came days after the EPA began the veto process for an already approved permit for the Spruce No.1 mine in Logan County, WV. The EPA has only used this veto authority 12 times in 38 years, and has never used its authority to veto an existing permit. A public hearing on the potential veto will take place in Charleston, WV on May 18th.

"I think the EPA will get a good understanding of how concerned West Virginians are about jobs leaving this state because of unfair permitting practices and, worse, the reopening and potentially vetoing of approved permits," continued Brown. "We want and deserve what we have asked forâ€”a fair and clear processes for permitting. EPA's April 1st Guidance is nothing more than a means to end coal mining in this region."

The Federation for American Coal, Energy and Security (FACES of Coal) is an alliance of more than 60,000 people from all walks of life who are joining forces to educate lawmakers and the general public about the importance of coal and coal mining to our local and national economies and to our nation's energy security. In addition to keeping tens of thousands of people employed in good-paying jobs, coal is the lifeblood of our domestic energy supply, generating nearly half the electricity consumed in the United States today.