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Carol Raulston

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 9, 2002

Court Decision Threatens More Than 15,000 Jobs in Central Appalachia

"The hardworking and dedicated people of Central Appalachia have once again had their future livelihoods threatened by the most recent ruling issued by U.S. District Court Judge Charles Haden in Huntington, W. V. This is a terrible human tragedy for those who, only last week, felt their jobs finally were secure," National Mining Association President Jack Gerard said today in reaction to the ruling issued yesterday afternoon.

"We are startled by the scope of this decision, which appears to call into question Section 404 of the Clean Water Act in its entirety, when the matter before the court was a single permit," Gerard stated.

Gerard also emphasized, "Over the next five years, more than 15,000 people in nine counties of West Virginia alone, could lose their jobs as Section 404 permits expire and new ones could not be issued by virtue of this decision," based on an analysis completed by Marshall University in June, 2000. The analysis, which did not access the additional impacts in Kentucky and parts of Ohio and Virginia that are also within the court's jurisdiction, indicates that the impact on funding for K-12 education in the 43 counties in West Virginia that rely heavily on special levies on coal mining would "be the single largest revenue shortfall forecast," by the Marshall study.

The parties to the case, led by the Kentucky Coal Association, have announced they will appeal the decision, and EPA has stated the agency will petition for a stay pending an appeal of the decision. "We are hopeful these actions will result in some degree of assurance for the employees directly hit by this most unfortunate and troubling decision."

The court's ruling came less than a week after the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finalized work that had begun during the Clinton administration and announced a single definition of "fill material." Despite these historic definitional differences, permitting policies for the last 30 years had consistently authorized the use of valley fills for the permanent placement of excess rock and soil generated by mining and other operations in the region.

With respect to the mining industry, the definition governs the permanent placement in carefully constructed valley fills of excess native rock and soil from surface mining operations in the rugged terrain of Central Appalachia. The definition also has broad applications for road construction, housing developments and other commercial activity in the area. Section 404 permits are required for valley fills because streams temporarily form in the valleys when it rains. In addition to the Corps permitting authority, EPA has oversight responsibilities and state water quality standards also must be met.

Beyond the thousands of jobs that will be lost, Central Appalachia is one of the nation's major suppliers of coal for electricity -- supplying millions of homes in the East and 99 percent of the electricity generated for West Virginians.

"We are deeply concerned about the impact of this ruling on the well-being of the people of Central Appalachia, the potential effect on the overall economy of the region, and the region's role as a major supplier of electricity for homes and businesses in the East. We remain hopeful the this latest and most regrettable action by Judge Haden can be resolved quickly and conclusively and certainty can be restored," Gerard concluded.