Delta County rejects solar proposal that would generate millions in tax revenue
On March 2, the Republican-controlled Delta County Board of Commissioners rejected a proposed 80-megawatt solar project on private land that would have supplied the Delta-Montrose Electric Association with renewable energy. The 472-acre solar farm, creating enough local energy to power 18,000 homes annually, also would have generated an estimated $13 million in tax revenue over 15 years. This baffling decision was unsupported by law or fact, and flies in the face of energy independence, local control, private property rights, and other of their touted principles.
HCCA’s West Elk Coal Mine Advocacy Succeeds
As you may recall, in 2020 Mountain Coal Co. bulldozed a road into the Sunset Roadless Area to facilitate mine expansion, resulting in (amongst other things) a State-issued Cessation Order. On January 12, 2022, the Colorado Division of Reclamation, Mining, and Safety (DRMS) lifted that Cessation Order, but at the same time noted that Mountain Coal no longer has approval to construct roads under its state permit! If Mountain Coal sought such approval in the future, it would have to request a technical revision, a process that involves public notice and engagement opportunities
Sargents mine pollution raises worries
A mining company plans to propose that water quality standards on a creek near Sargents be lowered, a move that could allow more radioactive material to enter the Gunnison River watershed.
Coal mine commits to flaring methane under settlement
Mountain Coal Co. has committed to burning off methane and toxic pollutants through flaring at its West Elk Mine in the upper North Fork Valley while it pursues pollution permits, according to a lawsuit settlement approved by a federal judge Tuesday.
The consent decree was approved by U.S. District Judge Raymond P. Moore and requires the company to control its methane and volatile organic compound pollution using flares, and in the meantime, obtain legally required pollution permits, conservation groups said in a news release. The agreement will expire after Mountain Coal, a subsidiary of Arch Resources, complies with the terms of its pollution permits for two years.
Judge sides with conservation groups on stormwater
In a decision hailed by conservation groups as a win for water quality, a court has upheld a state decision to regulate a Gunnison County coal mine’s outlets as storm water drainages.