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Groups sue BLM

Three environmental groups are hoping a lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management could put a hold on some additional coal mining in the Powder River Basin.

The Sierra Club, WildEarth Guardians and Defenders of Wildlife last week filed a suited against the agency in federal court in Washington, D.C., claiming the B-L-M failed to consider the true extent of environmental damage posed by both mining and burning coal. Steve Thomas, an organizer with the Sierra Club in the west, estimates that coal from the two leases would release more than 640 million tons of carbon dioxide.
 

"You know, what we're saying is the agency, BLM, failed to take into consideration the environmental impacts of burning coal - not just the mining impacts but the environmental impacts of burning it elsewhere. We think that's part of what the agency should at least consider when they're developing the permitting process."
 

But mining industry advocates like Wyoming Mining Association executive director Marion Loomis say the B-L-M is not required by law to consider possible environmental impacts related to carbon dioxide emissions.

The latest lawsuit opposes leases sold in July and August of this year in Campbell County to subsidiaries of Peabody Energy and Alpha Natural Resources which contain an estimated 350 million tons of coal.