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Mine Permit Suspended

By Debra Mccown
Published: May 08, 2009

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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has suspended the valley fill permit for a controversial surface mine proposed for Ison Rock Ridge in Wise County.

The permit authorized A&G Coal, the company seeking to mine the 1,300-acre site, to dump mining waste into the adjacent valley and streams, which the company said is necessary to make the operation cost-effective.

When the permit was issued in 2007, the Corps expected A&G to quickly get a permit from the state to mine the site, according to a May 6 letter from the Corps to A&G Coal Co., but significant time has passed and that has not happened.

“Suspension will also afford us an opportunity to fully evaluate concerns raised by the Environmental Protection Agency,” the Corps’ letter states.

The EPA, in an April 3 letter, laid out a list of concerns about the damage the project could do to the environment and asked the Corps to revoke the permit.

“I am happy that the Corps has suspended the permit,” said Kathy Selvage, vice president of Southern Appalachian Mountain Stewards, based in Big Stone Gap, Va. “I think that this will mean so much to the quality of life for the people in the surrounding communities.”

Over the past two years, Selvage is among many near the permit area, just outside the town limits of Appalachia, who have raised their voices in legal challenges and petitions to prevent the ridge from being mined. She said their work has raised awareness in Washington, D.C., of the need to review the scope of environmental damage taking place in the Appalachian region. She also said Thursday’s action will make it much more difficult for A&G to get approval for mining Ison Rock Ridge.

“It would be wonderful if this could set the precedent for other cases where streams are being destroyed and buried and drinking water’s being polluted and entire communities are disappearing,” Selvage said.

A woman who answered the phone at A&G Thursday said no one was available to comment.

Meanwhile, the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy has until today to decide whether to issue a separate mining permit for the project; spokesman Mike Abbott said a decision had not yet been made Thursday.

“If we were to issue the permit … we could issue our permit with what we call terms of issuance, which would essentially state that they could not conduct any mining activity in any areas covered by the [Corps] permit,” Abbott said. “The company will still be required to obtain their [valley fill] permit from the Corps.”

dmccown@bristolnews.com | (276) 791-0701