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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 11, 2001

MINE WASTE REGULATION MUST REMAIN SITE-SPECIFIC, INDUSTRY SPOKESPERSON SAYS

Washington -- State-imposed mine waste regulations, because they are based on the unique environmental and geological conditions at a particular mine, set more appropriate environmental standards than a one-size-fits-all classification according to Washington, D.C., attorney Steven Barringer in testimony given today in Milwaukee.

At a hearing on proposed legislation to classify mine tailings as "hazardous" before the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Environmental Resources, Barringer testified on behalf of the Nicolet Minerals Company and the National Mining Association.

"Every time the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or other federal agencies has looked at the issue of regulating mining wastes, they have concluded that such regulations must be site-specific and not prescriptive" said Barringer.

Imposing hazardous waste management requirements on mining operations would strike a "crippling blow," explained Barringer. "The Federal Government made a decision over twenty years ago to give mining wastes special status under the Resource Conservation Recovery Act (RCRA), concluding that they pose fewer risks than hazardous wastes and they must be approached on a site-by-site basis."

In support of his testimony, Barringer presented a chronology of agency and Congressional actions dealing with the mining waste classification issue. For example, an EPA study to determine whether mine wastes should be regulated as "hazardous" concluded that classifying mine waste as hazardous would "not be appropriate because it would be technically infeasible and economically impractical."

The EPA study also recommended that mine waste regulatory programs "rely heavily upon state laws and regulations already in place and working well."

"Wisconsin is closing its doors to the mining industry," Barringer concluded. "Citizens of this state and all Americans must face the reality that if we are willing to use and depend on minerals and products made from them, we also should be willing to support the production of the minerals domestically, as long as it can be done while protecting the environment."

The U.S. mining industry produces coal, metals, building materials, and many other essential minerals that define the daily lives of 267 million Americans. The mining industry generates over $500 billion in total economic benefit each year and helps to sustain nearly 3 million U.S. jobs.