Corps approves permit for controversial mine

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineeers issued a new permit for a controversial Kentucky coal mine yesterday, one day after the federal Environmental Protection Agency announced concerns about how mining in the Appalachian Mountains was affecting water quality. And Kentucky environmentalists say they want to know why. On Tuesday, the EPA put the corps on notice that it wanted to work closely with corps officials on the permits they issue that allow companies to fill streams with waste rock. Then yesterday, the corps in Louisville said it had granted a permit to do just that -- without first consulting with the EPA -- in an Eastern Kentucky case that had been held up by litigation and an internal review for more than a year. "Maybe they (corps officials) didn't get the memo," said Tom FitzGerald, a Louisville attorney and director of the Kentucky Resources Council. On Tuesday, FitzGerald called the EPA's moves under President Barack Obama a strong signal of change from the Bush administration's more lenient mining policies. The permit -- which was revised from one approved in early December 2007 -- was for a company that had been seeking to expand a Leslie County mine by about 1½ square miles. The Kentucky Waterways Alliance and the Sierra Club sued the corps shortly after the original permit was issued, prompting the federal agency to pull the permit and order the company to stop mining in the new areas. It was the first time that the corps' Louisville office had done that. Corps spokesman Ron Elliott said it wasn't necessary to notify the EPA that the permit was being granted for the International Coal Group's Thunder Ridge Mine because the EPA expressed no interest last year in commenting on the permit. Because of that, and the fact that the new permit assures a smaller environmental impact than the original one that was the subject of the December 2007 lawsuit, corps officials didn't feel they needed to coordinate its decision with the EPA, Elliott said. However, last year, the EPA was run by the Bush administration, which had been more friendly to the mining industry. EPA officials could not be reached last night. The International Coal Group's permit has been watched closely by environmental and mining interests. Elliott said the corps sought additional information from ICG and, as a result, one valley fill and one sediment control pond have been eliminated from the company's original proposal. Bruce Scott, a board member of the Kentucky Waterways Alliance, said he has a number of questions about the new permit, including whether eliminating a sediment control pond is a good idea. Elliott said there was no connection between the EPA's announcement earlier this week and the corps' decision yesterday to approve the permit. He said it would allow the company to proceed with the mining. FitzGerald, however, predicted more legal wrangling and said the EPA still has the authority to veto the permit if it disagrees with its provisions. "ICG has worked with the corps over the past 15 months to address questions that led to the suspension of the permit in December 2007," company spokesman Ira Gamm said, adding that the company conducted thorough environmental studies. Bill Caylor, president of the Kentucky Coal Association, said the corps' decision on the permit was long overdue. He said he hopes it clears the way for a backlog of valley fill permits that have been waiting in queue behind the IGC permit. Also yesterday, Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear requested "clarification" on EPA's announcement that it would step up scrutiny of mining permits. A spokesman for Beshear said two statements the EPA issued Tuesday conflicted with each other.