FOREWORD

by

U.S. Rep. Morris K. Udall, Chairman

House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee

January, 1990

[Congressman Morris (“Mo”) Udall, tireless champion of the federal strip mining laws, passed away on December 12, 1998. This foreword, which first appeared in the 1980 edition of this book, is included in its entirety as a tribute to Mo and to his extraordinary efforts to protect the public and the environment from the ravages of strip mining.]

    In the 1960's and early 1970's coal strip mining quickly overwhelmed underground mining as the dominant mining method. But the new mining methods brought ravaged hillsides and polluted streams to the once-beautiful landscape. State governments proved ill-equipped to pre­vent the severe environmental degradation that this new mining method left in its wake. From our rivers, forests and Appalachian Mountains in the East, to our prime farmlands of the Midwest, to our prairies and deserts of the great West, stories abound during this time of reckless coal operators devastating landscapes, polluting the water, destroying family homes, churches and cemeteries, and threatening fragile ecosystems. Perhaps the most tragic case of abuse came on February 26th, 1972, at Buffalo Creek in Logan County, West Virginia, when a crudely constructed coal waste dam collapsed causing a flood that killed 125 people, left scores of others homeless, and caused millions of dollars in property damage. Something had to be done.

    I was proud to stand in the White House Rose Garden on August 3rd, 1977, to witness the President sign into law a bill that I sponsored — the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA). That Act was passed after years of struggle by people in the coalfields — people who had lived with the mutilated mountainsides, spoiled streams, land­slides and destruction of their homes. The voices of those people were heard on that August day.

    SMCRA was written to ensure that coal is mined under stringent public safety and environmental protection standards, and that all mined lands must be fully reclaimed to their pre-mining productivity. It also established a strong state/federal regulatory authority with vast enforce­ment powers to compel operator compliance. To help make sure this happened, the public was provided sweeping citizen rights to participate at every level of mining. Consequently, the Act was, and is, more than a piece of legislation; it is a vehicle of hope for those who live in America's coalfields and their children.

    Unfortunately, this Act has not accomplished all that we had hoped. Overall the law has produced a vast improvement in mining methods and reclamation compliance in much of the coalfields. Nevertheless, in some regions — too often the very regions which compelled the passage of the law — abuses continue at an alarming rate.

    There are many reasons for this. Clearly, in recent years the federal government and certain states have not fulfilled their mission under the law. They have lacked the political will to stand up to irresponsible mining, and use their enforcement tools to bring it to an end. This is not a problem with a law that is flawed or is too weak; it is a resistance to enforce it.

    Regrettable as this is, it was not unforeseen. Congress envisioned that the regulatory authorities could not always be counted on to enforce this law. More than any other reason, this is why Congress provided the public with sweeping citizen rights. I believe that SMCRA's accompanying House Report sums this up best:

The success or failure of a national coal surface mining regulation program will depend, to a significant extent, on the role played by citizens in the regulatory process. The State or Department of Interior can employ only so many inspectors, only a limited number of inspec­tions can be made on a regular basis and only a limited amount of information can be required in a permit or bond release application or elicited at a hearing. While citizen participation is not, and cannot be a substitute for governmental authority, citizens' involvement in all phases of the regulatory scheme will help ensure that the decisions and actions of the regulatory authority are grounded upon complete and full information. In addition, providing citizens access to administrative appellate procedures and the courts is a practical and legitimate method of assuring the regulatory authority's compliance with the requirements of the act. Thus in imposing several provisions which contemplate active citizen involvement, the committee is carrying out its conviction that the participation of private citizens is a vital factor in the regulatory program as established by the act. (H.R.95-218)

    No regulatory law, in of itself, will resolve a problem. It is only a tool to be used. If we are ever to rid ourselves of irresponsible mining practices in this country, citizens must learn to use this law to that end.

    I am delighted that the Environmental Policy Institute (EPI) is pub­lishing this handbook so that coalfield citizens will better understand and exercise their rights under SMCRA. I commend Mike Clark, EPI President, and Jim Lyon, Director of EPI's Citizens Mining Project for envisioning the need and making the commitment to produce this book. I also commend the book's author, Mark Squillace, for his hard work, talent and com­mitment to the coalfields that he so ably demonstrates through this publication.

    EPI has a long history of working on this issue. They were with me in the 1970's as we worked for years to get this law passed. Afterwards, in the spirit of this law, EPI set up a citizen watchdog project to work with citizens in monitoring SMCRA's implementation and enforcement.

    The Strip Mine Handbook is a natural extension of EPI's work. It translates key components of the law into easy to understand language. In addition, it explains the rights and remedies people can utilize when faced with a mining or regulatory problem.

    Make good use of this book. By doing so, together we will continue to fight to curb the ravaging of the coalfields, and help preserve the beauty that distinguishes these areas of our nation.

PREFACE

    This book grows out of a very simple idea — that citizens have the right to engage their government to enforce environ­mental laws that are supposed to protect their communities, the land, and the environment from adverse impacts of surface coal mining. In order for citizens to exercise that right effectively, they need a clear understanding of the law and the tools available to them to enforce that law. This handbook is designed to meet that need.

    The Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 gave unprecedented powers to citizens to play an active role in the implementation and enforcement of the law. For more than 30 years, citizens groups around the country have demanded that the promises of the law be fulfilled. Too often the state and federal agencies responsible for carrying out the law resisted their efforts and allowed coal companies to engage in unlawful or questionable practices with severe adverse consequences for the environment. The fight for equitable enforcement has not been easy and is far from over.

    By using this book, you can help keep pressure on public officials to protect citizens and their communities and ensure sure that public officials are accountable for their actions. There is no getting around the fact that the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act is complicated. But citizens should not have to depend upon a lawyer, mining engineer, or scientist to have the law enforced.

    This handbook is designed to demystify the law, to explain mining techniques, to identify typical mining abuse problems, to translate into everyday language the law's many provisions and requirements, and to explain how citizens can use the law to stop mining abuse.  And for the first time, this new edition will be available on-line on the Red Lodge Clearinghouse Website [ www.rlch.org ]. Not only will this make the handbook more readily available, it will provide a forum for interacting with other citizens engaged in the struggle to enforce the law. Working together, citizens can gain the knowledge and experience to take on the coal mining industry effectively and restore the promise of the Surface Mining Act envisoned by two of the real heroes of the law – Mo Udall and John Seiberling. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR