The West Virginia Coal Association issued the following statement regarding yesterday’s (7/16/15) release by the federal Office of Surface Mining of the revised Stream Buffer Zone Rule.

“The unrelenting assault on coal by the Obama Administration continued today, with the issuance by the federal Office of Surface Mining (OSM) of new revisions to the existing Stream Buffer Zone (SBZ) rule,” said Jason Bostic, vice president of the West Virginia Coal Association.  “The OSM claims this new rule provides ‘regulatory certainty.’ How can a 1200-page rule that blurs different statutes offer clarity or certainty?”

The federal Office of Surface Mining (OSM) published a draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on its proposed revisions to the federal stream buffer zone rule, referred to now as the “stream protection rule” (SPR).  A copy of the 1,267-page draft EIS is available at http://www.osmre.gov/programs/RCM/docs/sprDEIS.pdf   

The official Federal Register notification of the draft EIS follows the pre-publication release of the proposed SPR by OSM and the Department of the Interior.  While the actual proposed regulatory changes have not yet been published in the Federal Register, an agency copy of the 1,238-page SPR proposal is available at http://www.osmre.gov/programs/RCM/docs/SPRProposedRule.pdf

Congressman David B. McKinley, P.E., (WV-1) was named chairman at the inaugural meeting of the Congressional Coal Caucus for the 114th Congress. As the incoming chairman of the bipartisan group, Rep. McKinley will ensure Congress is aware of the impact federal regulations are having on coal miners, their families, and their communities. 

“The American families who rely on coal for affordable, reliable energy and good-paying jobs deserve to have their voice heard in Washington. The bipartisan Congressional Coal Caucus will be that voice. We will re-energize the debate about our energy future and stand up for those families devastated by President Obama’s War on Coal,” said McKinley.

The West Virginia Coal Forum – an organization representing both labor and management in the coal industry – in conjunction with the Greater Bluefield Chamber of Commerce, will host a forum to highlight the challenges and opportunities facing the coal industry from 9 a.m. to noon July 23^rd at the Quality Hotel & Conference Center in Bluefield. 

Media are encouraged to attend and there is no cost to attend the event. 

The previously published rules, PPL P15-IV-01 “Examination of Working Places 30 C.F.R. §§56/57.18002”, have been withdrawn with a republished and availability at a later date.  This short notice was received by WVCA on July 15 with no further explanation.