EPA, Corps of Engineers to Consider Stream Function in Surface Mine
Permitting Decisions
Environmental group: This ends the practice of replacing
streams covered by fill with drainage ditches.
The State Journal
30 July 2010
By Pam Kasey
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of the
Army issued a joint memorandum late July 30, clarifying regulations
that affect permitting of surface mines.
The memorandum, addressed to Army Corps of Engineers offices and EPA
regional offices, aimed to clarify regulatory requirements for
determining “the nature and degree of effect that the proposed
discharge will have … on the structure and function of the aquatic
ecosystem and organisms.”
The Corps issues permits for valley fills, and the EPA issues
guidelines establishing the standards to be applied in the Corps’
review of such permits.
Highlighted in the memorandum is a provision of EPA guidelines dealing
with stream structure and function, with an emphasis on the importance
of function.
“In conducting future determinations under the guidelines associated
with high-gradient streams in Appalachia, the permitting authority
should initiate an evaluation of ecosystem functions and structure
using available, scientifically valid direct indicia, including an
effects-based assessment of the short- and long-term functions of the
stream,” the memorandum reads.
Other statements in the memorandum stress the importance of stream
function as well.
The nonprofit environmental law firm Earthjustice issued a statement
applauding the action, saying that it would prevent the future use of
constructed drainage channels as replacement for streams buried by fill.
The West Virginia Coal Association could not be reached for comment.