Officials: Controls Will Be in Place

Patriot Mining: Have dealt with issues for years

Morgantown Dominion Post
27 June 2010
By David Beard

While Cassville-area residents express concerns about the proposed expansion of Patriot Mining Co.’s surface mine, Patriot and the state both claim measures are in place to address their concerns.

Those measures cover dust, fly ash and blasting, they said.

Patriot has a permit application for a 225-acre expansion of its New Hill West Mine pending with the state Department of Environmental Protection.

Residents, led by John and Petra Wood, expressed their concerns at a May 26 public meeting hosted by the DEP’s Mining and Reclamation Office. Petra Wood amplified the concerns — the mine’s impact on the environment and the community — in a Friday story published in The Dominion Post.

“The issues mentioned by some of the residents are generally common to earth-disturbing activities such as surface mining or highway construction and have been successfully managed by Patriot over the years,” general manager Vaughn Miller said. “We believe that the combination of a carefully designed and thoroughly reviewed mine permit application and the conscientious implementation of the approved plan will allow the mine project to coexist peacefully with the local community.“

Clarence Wright, DEP senior engineer and application review team leader, said state law permits blasting only from sunup to sundown, so residents won’t need to worry about nighttime blasting.

Miller said each blast is designed to prevent adverse impacts to the nearest structure, “which means each blast is progressively smaller as the mining activity approaches homes or other protected structures.”

No mining, he said, is allowed within 300 feet of an occupied house without the owner’s consent.

Information obtained about the use of fly ash at mine sites for Friday’s story was not totally relevant to this situation.

Wright said fly ash is trucked to surface mines from Morgantown Energy Associates’ power plant for mine reclamation — to prevent acid mine drainage. This is an ongoing process while the mine is worked.

Miller said the ash is conditioned to minimize dust, transported in fully enclosed trucks from the power plant to the mine site.

Ash is placed in the mine pit before overburden — broken up rock mixed with ash to keep it pH neutral — is returned to the mined area.

“Patriot continues to monitor the transport and placement of ash and will take appropriate measures to reduce or eliminate sources of fugitive dust,” Miller said.

Wood said she is concerned about the metalrich ash leaching into waterways, causing pollution and endangering wildlife.

Wright said fly-ash testing plans are covered in the permit application.

Ash must be tested before it comes to the site, and once it’s on the site, testing is required twice a month at the outlets that receive mine runoff. The ash and runoff must meet DEP standards.

Patriot also has measures in place to minimize dust in the air, Miller said.

Patriot hauls coal over its private gravel road, which it waters as needed to control dust.

“We also provide dust control measures on the public road, including operating a sweeper/vacuum truck,” Miller said. “Patriot has been surface mining in this area for over 10 years and has developed effective mining techniques to manage its impact on the local community, including the generation of fugitive dust.”

DEP had told The Dominion Post earlier that it was awaiting missing information before moving ahead with its review of the application. Miller said that information was supplied Wednesday.

Wright acknowledged the information was received and the application under review. It may require additional corrections, but once the review team signs off on it, it goes to DEP’s Charleston office for the final decision.

“Patriot has been mining in the area since 2000,” Miller said, “and has worked with neighbors, landowners and the highway department on specific issues as they come up. Patriot and its 50-plus employees will continue to be a responsible neighbor and contributor to the community.”