The US Interior Department said that it would immediately strengthen oversight of surface coal mining programs and draw up new regulations to protect streams polluted by mining operations.
The action comes after a US court in August blocked an attempt by the Obama administration to overturn a Bush administration rule that made it easier for coal mining companies to dump mountaintop debris into valley streams.
The court said the department should have followed certain procedures, including collecting public comments, before trying to repeal the government regulations.
The department said that it will now move as quickly as possible under the law to gather public input for a new rule, based on sound science that will govern how companies handle fill removed from mountaintop coal seams.
Wilma Lewis assistant secretary for land and minerals management said that "Until we put a new rule in place, we will work to provide certainty to coal operations and the communities that depend on coal for their livelihood, strengthen our oversight and inspections, and coordinate with other federal agencies to better protect streams and water quality.”
The department is publishing an advance notice of proposed rulemaking regarding the protection of streams from the adverse impacts of surface coal mining operations.
The notice requests comments on alternatives for revising the current regulations, which include the stream buffer zone rule issued by the Bush administration in December 2008.
(Sourced from Reuters)
