Today, WORC and Powder River Basin Resource Council (PRBRC) filed a formal citizen complaint requesting inspection and enforcement of financial bonds guaranteeing reclamation at Arch’s huge Wyoming mines. At stake is Arch’s $457 million reclamation liability that covers both its Black Thunder … Continued
A new report released yesterday sheds light on the hidden costs of coal production, which the Department of the Interior (DOI) should take into account if it wants to modernize the federal coal program and earn “fair market value” for taxpayers, as required by … Continued
WORC helped lead an effort urging members of Congress this week to refrain from weakening the proposed Stream Protection Rule pending before the Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation Enforcement. Coal-state members of Congress are trying to halt the long awaited … Continued
A troupe of WORC members and staff attended two packed days of meetings in Washington, D.C., on November 18 and 19. The meetings brought participants face-to-face with federal decision makers to hear their demands on coal leasing, mining, and reclamation policy. Unlike … Continued
Alongside member groups Powder River Basin Resource Council, Northern Plains Resource Council, and Dakota Resource Council, WORC submitted substantive written comments today on the federal Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement’s proposed Stream Protection Rule. Read WORC’s comments here. … Continued
WORC and Northern Plains Resource Council won an important victory when Federal Magistrate Carolyn Ostby supported their claims that the federal Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement failed to consider the slow pace of reclamation at the Spring Creek Mine … Continued
On July 8, 2015, Secretary of Interior Sally Jewell followed up on her earlier call for an “honest and open conversation” on the coal leasing program by announcing five listening sessions in late July, early August. In response, WORC helped … Continued
In June, WORC released a new report covering the need for greater oversight and enforcement in order to protect large tracts of strip mined land that has been surface mined in Western states. Undermined Promise II found that reclamation bonds … Continued