US Circuit Court Overturns Mountaintop Removal Mining Ban

mountaintop removal mining photo
photo: Jake McClendon via flickr

If you're a regular TreeHugger reader the odds are probably good that you're not much a fan of mountaintop removal coal mining, and neither is about two-thirds of the American public. Which makes it all the more tragic that the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Virginia has just overturned a ruling which banned the practice:

The ruling that was overturned was in a case originally filed by the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition and found in their favor back in March of 2007. The ruling originally found that the Army Corps of Engineers lacked authority under the Clean Water Act to permit discharge from fill resulting from mountaintop removal mining into stream segments in West Virginia.

Army Corps Acted Within Guidelines
Without going into a full summary of the Court's findings, suffice it to say that the Court concluded that the Corps acted within its own guidelines for assessing the situation. Those wishing to dissect the ruling, here it is: Ohio Valley v Aracoma Coal Co.

via: New Scientist

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