DEP Reacts to 10-day Notice on Calvin Run
Washington PA Observer
Reporter
14 January 2011
By Bob Niedbala, Staff writer
niedbala@observer-reporter.com
The state Department of Environmental Protection has now determined a
mining permit revision is required by AMD Reclamation Inc. and Dana
Mining Co. to drill boreholes into the Humphrey Mine at Calvin Run to
pump the mine water to AMD's Steele Shaft treatment plant.
DEP made the new determination responding to a 10-day notice issued by
the U.S. Office of Surface Mining that questioned why the project was
allowed to proceed without a mining permit revision.
A consent order between DEP and Dana, included with the response,
allows Dana to continue with the project, which involves pumping water
from Humphrey in order to lower the mine pool level sufficiently for
Dana's 4 West Mine to continue mining operations.
The consent order further requires the company to obtain a permit
revision and imposes a penalty of $1,000 a month until it receives
permit approval, a process expected to take about four months.
In its letter to OSM, DEP said it would allow the project to continue
because Dana's mining operations are being adversely affected by rising
water levels and existing boreholes into Humphrey at Watkins Run
provide inadequate flow.
Dana is mining Sewickley seam coal above the Pittsburgh seam once mined
by the closed Shannopin and Humphrey mines.
If the project were halted, Dana would be unable to meet its
contractual commitments to supply coal to customers and would have to
furlough workers, DEP said.
In addition, DEP said, Dana had proceeded with the Calvin Run project
believing it had the required permit. "Dana Mining had understood,
based on communications with the department, that no permits were
needed from the department to develop and operate the Calvin Run site,"
the consent order states.
With that understanding, Dana applied for and received an earth
disturbance permit for the work from the Greene County Conservation
District.
"This shows the need for federal oversight by OSM," said Kurt Weist, an
attorney for PennFuture, which had contacted OSM about work at the site.
DEP told the company a mining permit was unnecessary in spite of the
fact permit revisions had been required for Watkins Run as well as
earlier for the Calvin Run site, he said.
DEP issued a permit revision for Calvin Run in November 2009. It
revoked the revision in February 2010 after PennFuture and Friends of
Dunkard Creek filed an appeal questioning, among other things, DEP's
failure to provide public notice of the permit revision application.
Weist said he can't understand how anyone at DEP could allow the
company to proceed with the project without a legal opinion on the
permit issue from DEP counsel.
PennFuture and Friends of Dunkard Creek opposed the permit revision
saying the project would allow AMD to discharge additional polluted
water high in total dissolved solids into Dunkard Creek.
Learning several weeks ago that work had started at Calvin Run,
PennFuture and Friends of Dunkard Creek contacted state and federal
regulatory agencies, which resulted in OSM's issuance of the 10-day
notice.
DEP had decided a mining permit revision was not needed for Calvin Run
based on a legal analysis and discussions between DEP's district office
and Harrisburg office, said Bill Plassio, DEP district mining manager.
The company did obtain the earth disturbance permit. "We felt at that
time it (the Calvin Run project) was covered under that type of
approval," Plassio said. DEP viewed the operations as a water treatment
plant rather than as a mining operation, he said.
Speaking of DEP's new determination that a mining permit revision is
needed, Plassio said that following further analysis of the matter "we
came to a different conclusion."
OSM is currently evaluating DEP's response to the 10-day notice, said
Chris Holmes, OSM spokesman.
OSM has several options. If it agrees with DEP's evaluation there will
be no further action, he said. If it disagrees with DEP's response the
matter will continue through the 10-day notice procedure, he said.
A third option also is available. Under the Surface Mining Conservation
and Reclamation Act, OSM may "if eminent harm is determined to exist,"
waive further action under the 10-day notice and issue a cessation
order halting the work, Holmes said.