eh, who needs water...

[Guest guest]

t r u t h o u t | Statement

Daniel Rosenberg

Natural Resources Defense Council

 

NRDC Denounces EPA Decision to Allow Industry to Dump in Waterways

 

" The mining industry and scores of other industrial polluters received a gift

today from the Bush administration at the expense of our nation's waterways. The

administration reversed a 25-year-old Clean Water Act rule that flatly

prohibited disposal of mining and other industrial solid wastes into the

nation's waters. To avoid a citizen lawsuit aimed at protecting Appalachian

residents and the environment, the administration has declared that all waters

across the country are now open to industry for waste disposal. This single act,

described by the Environmental Protection Agency with Orwellian perfection as a

'clarification' that will 'enhance environmental protection of our wetlands and

streams,' is the most significant weakening of Clean Water Act rules since the

act was passed in 1972. "

 

The Natural Resources Defense Council is a national, non-profit organization of

scientists, lawyers, and environmental specialists dedicated to protecting

public health and the environment. Founded in 1970, NRDC has more then 500,000

members nationwide, served from offices in New York, Washington, Los Angeles,

and San Francisco. More information is available through NRDC's Web site at

www.nrdc.org.

 

 

 

 

 

Text Of EPA Announcement :

 

CORPS AND EPA CLARIFY CLEAN WATER ACT DEFINITION;

NEW ENVIRONMENTAL IMPROVEMENTS ALSO

TO BE MADE IN APPALACHIAN MINING RULES

 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

today announced that they are taking action to better coordinate federal

programs affecting protection of wetlands and streams. Completing a regulation

proposed by the Clinton Administration in 2000, the Army Corps of Engineers is

adopting EPA's approach to the Clean Water Act's definition of " fill material, "

which has been in place since 1977. The regulation will not only remove

ambiguity from Clean Water Act's regulations, but also enhance environmental

protection of our wetlands and streams by prohibiting the dumping of trash or

garbage in them.

 

In addition, the agencies will apply new conditions to permits issued to

regulate the placement of dirt and rock from mountaintop mining in streams. The

Department of Interior is also developing regulations intended to improve

environmental protection by reducing the volume of mining discharges in streams.

EPA and the Corps, working with the Department of Interior's Office of Surface

Mining and Fish and Wildlife Service and the State of West Virginia, are

preparing an Environmental Impact Statement evaluating the impacts of

mountaintop removal mining in Appalachia and developing recommendations for

further improvements in the agencies programs regulating this practice.

 

" We are committed to working with the affected States to reduce mining-related

environmental impacts, while providing the nation with the advantages of cleaner

burning coal, " EPA Administrator Christie Whitman said.

 

" Mountaintop mining is a long-established practice in Appalachia, and this

Administration is committed to working with the affected states to strengthen

the environmental safeguards governing this practice. We are working to

establish a regulatory environment that is clear, predictable, fair and fosters

good environmental stewardship, " said Undersecretary of the Army Les Brownlee.

 

The Corps and EPA will publish in the Federal Register a rule to harmonize

differences between existing EPA and Army Corps of Engineers regulations by

adopting EPA's effects-based approach to the definition of the term " fill

material. " The final rule is substantially identical to the rule proposed in

2000, but includes additional environmental protections. For example, under the

new rules, garbage or trash will not be permitted in the nation's waters.

 

As a result of improvements already implemented in West Virginia by the agencies

and the State in 1998, there have been 30 percent fewer valley fills and a

reduction in the overall stream impact of almost 25 percent from these fills.

These improvements are now being applied elsewhere in Appalachia and we

anticipate similar reductions in mining related impacts.

 

The Administration is also undertaking several related actions to further

bolster protection of Appalachian watersheds impacted by mining.

 

The Corps is taking steps now to put tougher new restrictions on mining

activities that can be permitted by establishing limits on the size of valley

fills that can be built in Appalachian streams. The Corps is also requiring more

effective mitigation to compensate for environmental impacts. The Office of

Surface Mining will be proposing changes to its regulations intended to ensure

that mining discharges in streams are reduced in both size and number. OSM's

changes will also require that better information is provided by permit

applicants regarding their projects so that adverse environmental impacts can be

more effectively addressed.

 

EPA, the Corps, Office of Surface Mining, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and

the State of West Virginia are currently preparing a joint Environmental Impact

Statement that evaluates the environmental impacts of mountaintop coal mining

and provides recommendations for improving Federal regulatory programs

responsible for the review of proposed mining operations. The draft Statement

will be released later this summer for public review and comment.

 

The Office of Surface Mining is responsible for developing the rules that govern

mountaintop removal coal mining under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation

Act. Most Appalachian states administer these rules through programs delegated

to them by OSM.

 

EPA is responsible for the development and approval of the standards, criteria,

and effluent guidelines that govern impacts to the Nation's waters under the

Clean Water Act. EPA approves state water quality standards in accordance with

the Act, which are achieved primarily through programs administered by the

states. EPA also fosters the development of state wetlands programs, as well as

provides environmental standards and oversight for the administration of the

wetlands permit program under section 404 of the Act.

 

The Corps regulates the discharge of rock and dirt into wetlands and streams

from mining operations under the section 404 permit program of the Clean Water

Act. Discharges under the permit program may only be authorized in compliance

with environmental standards that include mitigation for unavoidable impacts to

the aquatic environment.