Strip-mine agency's latest rulemaking has a much quieter 'hearing' process; industry objects

Following contentious hearings last fall on tighter rules for mountaintop-removal coal mining, federal officials have altered the format for public comment on proposals to tighten water quality standards for Appalachian surface mines. This week in southeastern Kentucky, "People on both sides of the issue were invited to stop by between 3 p.m. and 9 p.m. at Hazard Community College, but there were no microphones or podiums," The Associated Press reports. "They just wanted them submitted quietly, either in writing, dictated to a court stenographer or through email," Ivy Brashear of The Hazard Herald reports, in a story rich with interviews from people on both sides. (Brashear photo)

"We didn't want this to become a riot," John Craynon, chief of the regulatory division of the federal Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, told AP. "Some of the previous meetings have turned into quite rowdy events, where folks on all sides of the issue felt threatened or intimidated. We wanted to set up an environment where we could actually hear from the people." AP adds, "Craynon said this series of meetings, which began last week and includes stops in West Virginia and elsewhere this week, were the first he knew of in which the agency opted for a walk-in open house rather than a full-blown public meeting."

Despite the different format, the turnout at Hazard was the largest of the five hearings so far, Craynon told Brashear. But coal-industry supporters, who dominated last fall's meetings, took issue with the change. "By not having a public hearing, I think we lose a lot in the process of what democracy and free speech is all about," Bill Bissett, president of the Kentucky Coal Association, told AP. "Sending an e-mail is not going to have a proper effect or representative effect." But even under the new format, environmentalists were outnumbered at the Hazard event, AP reports. (Read more)