Washington, DC – Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet today urged Interior Secretary Sally Jewell to use any and all tools at her disposal to help save over 200 mining jobs in Moffat County, Colorado. A recent court ruling called into question the environmental assessment completed to approve Colowyo’s mining plan in Moffat County. The ruling gave the Interior Department’s Office of Surface Mining (OSM) 120 days to correct the deficiencies in its analysis.
In a letter to Secretary Jewell, Bennet wrote, “The Colowyo Mine provides jobs to 220 people and the facility is a significant contributor to the local tax base in Moffat and Rio Blanco Counties. Given the importance of the jobs and economic development derived from this mine for rural Colorado, I hope you will take all appropriate actions to remedy this situation as soon as possible. If necessary, I encourage OSM to petition the court for an extension of the time period granted to complete the supplemental environmental review needed to bring OSM’s analysis into line with the law.”
Bennet is seeking resolution to save these jobs and the most effective way to do that is pushing the Interior Department to swiftly address the deficiencies in OSM’s original assessment. In this case it is unlikely that OSM will appeal the decision and as precedent, Bennet’s office works to avoid any interference with ongoing legal proceedings.
Full Text of the Letter:
May 21, 2015
Dear Secretary Jewell:
I write to express my concern regarding a recent court ruling that has the potential to leave more than 200 Coloradans unemployed. As you may know, a federal District Court judge ruled earlier this month that the Department of the Interior’s Office of Surface Mining (OSM) failed to complete an adequate environmental assessment when approving the Colowyo mining plan in Moffat County, CO. The judge gave OSM 120 days to correct the deficiencies in its analysis.
Obviously, compliance with our environmental laws should be taken very seriously, but I am gravely concerned about the repercussions that the closing of this mine would have on the economy of northwest Colorado and the livelihoods of many families in my state. The Colowyo Mine provides jobs to 220 people and the facility is a significant contributor to the local tax base in Moffat and Rio Blanco Counties. Given the importance of the jobs and economic development derived from this mine for rural Colorado, I hope you will take all appropriate actions to remedy this situation as soon as possible. If necessary, I encourage OSM to petition the court for an extension of the time period granted to complete the supplemental environmental review needed to bring OSM’s analysis into line with the law. Additionally, I hope that the Department will take all necessary measures and exercise all applicable flexibility, to ensure that these Colorado jobs are not lost.
Thank you for your consideration and for your prompt attention to this important matter. I look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Michael F. Bennet
U.S. Senator
# # #