*You=the many national coal mining concerns making up this blog's readership.
*Liberty=Your (see above) ability to do whatever you want without any major public scrutiny.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, under direction from the presidential administration, is proposing to eliminate the issuance of Nationwide Permit 21 in the Appalachian region. And yes, I was not entirely sure what that was when I first got the press release.
[Note for other uninformed readers: NWP 21 basically streamlines the process an applicant has to go through to conduct surface mining (local relevance: mountaintop removal and mountainside stripping for coal mining). Once you get the permit, that's it. You're set for wherever you want to cut a mountain in half. NWP 21 received some major criticism in 2007 when it and all other NWPs were last reviewed, but it was extended until 2012.]
What the Corps proposes in prohibiting NWP 21 in Appalachia would force each new mining applicant in the region to obtain an individual permit for every mining project it wants to do, which would obviously lend the whole process a lot more transparency. The prohibition would continue until NWP 21 expires in March 2012 (see note above).
Next month, the Corps will be conducting a series of meetings in the region seeking comment from the public. And, hey, they'll be in at the Knoxville Convention Center's Lecture Hall on Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. Here for more details.
*Liberty=Your (see above) ability to do whatever you want without any major public scrutiny.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, under direction from the presidential administration, is proposing to eliminate the issuance of Nationwide Permit 21 in the Appalachian region. And yes, I was not entirely sure what that was when I first got the press release.
[Note for other uninformed readers: NWP 21 basically streamlines the process an applicant has to go through to conduct surface mining (local relevance: mountaintop removal and mountainside stripping for coal mining). Once you get the permit, that's it. You're set for wherever you want to cut a mountain in half. NWP 21 received some major criticism in 2007 when it and all other NWPs were last reviewed, but it was extended until 2012.]
What the Corps proposes in prohibiting NWP 21 in Appalachia would force each new mining applicant in the region to obtain an individual permit for every mining project it wants to do, which would obviously lend the whole process a lot more transparency. The prohibition would continue until NWP 21 expires in March 2012 (see note above).
Next month, the Corps will be conducting a series of meetings in the region seeking comment from the public. And, hey, they'll be in at the Knoxville Convention Center's Lecture Hall on Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. Here for more details.
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