New EPA Rules Would Permit Mine Waste Dumping

Date: April 25, 2002

Source: News Room

The Environmental Protection Agency has drafted new rules that would let mining companies dump waste from mountaintop coal mining operations into rivers and streams, according to a recent Washington Post report. The proposed rules are aimed at lifting regulations prohibiting mining companies from disposing of material considered waste, including rock and dirt, in the nearby waterways. Mountaintop coal mining has been limited by federal rules and court challenges aimed at restricting how much of the waste from these operations can be dumped in waterways. According to a draft "final rule" prepared jointly by the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers, the administration would eliminate that "waste exclusion," the report said.

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