Score another significant victory for the coalfields of southern West

Virginia and neighboring Southwest Virginia. A U.S. District Court judge for

the District of Columbia has ruled that the federal Environmental Protection

Agency was overreaching its authority under the federal Clean Water Act.

The ruling was in response to a lawsuit filed by U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin,

D-W.Va., when he was governor of the Mountain State. The federal court ruled

that the EPA had exceeded its authority in interfering with the West Virginia

Department of Environmental Protection’s process of authorizing mining permits.

The EPA’s actions had blocked mining operations from going forward in West

Virginia and Kentucky, according to Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin.

Manchin’s lawsuit specifically targeted the EPA and its administrator, Lisa

Jackson, who has been at the forefront of the war on coal since she was

appointed by Obama four years ago.

“As governor, I sued the EPA because this bureaucratic agency was taking the

wrong course,” Manchin said. “I remain hopeful that this could court decision

will put us on the path of getting the permits that we need to provide energy

and jobs not just for West Virginia, but for this entire country.”

Manchin correctly argues that the EPA needs to work as an ally, and not an

“adversary” to the Mountain State.

U.S. Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., added the ruling was evidence that the EPA had

acted unlawfully, and overstepped its authority with respect to coal mine

permitting in West Virginia and throughout the Appalachian region.

“I’m glad to see that it’s unlawful,” U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., added.

“Like so many other permits issued under the Clean Water Act, these

conductivity requirements were reckless regulations that served only as a

threat to businesses in the Ninth District. The EPA should abandon its war on

coal and redirect its energies to looking at scientific data that might lead

to solving real problems for people living near mines.”

Although the ruling is a significant and symbolic victory against the Obama

administration-led EPA, there is some question as to whether it will help

stalled mining permits move forward.

“We would like to think so,” Bill Raney, president of the West Virginia Coal

Association, told the Register-Herald in Beckley. “But if experience is any

measure, the EPA doesn’t pay any attention to court cases. They just adjust

their behavior to do what they want to do instead of what the courts suggest

they do.”

Raney said he wouldn’t be surprised if the EPA appeals the federal court

ruling.

“I wish they would take a hint that it’s time to let the state get back to the

business of regulating its industry, because it knows how to do it better than

anyone in Washington or Philadelphia does,” Raney added.

We agree. Supporters of the coal industry will be watching closely to see how

Obama and Jackson respond to this significant ruling.

In an election year where every vote counts, it will be interesting to see if

Obama and Jackson will adhere to the decision of the federal court — or

appeal the ruling.

The smart thing to do would be to honor the federal court’s ruling, and to

allow West Virginia, Virginia and other coal-producing states across

Appalachia to get back to mining coal and creating desperately needed jobs.

But nothing this president, and this EPA, has done over the past four years

would suggest we could expect such a common-sense response.

(c) 2012 the Bluefield Daily Telegraph (Bluefield, W.Va.)

Visit the Bluefield Daily Telegraph (Bluefield, W.Va.) at bdtonline.com

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