Feds seek public input on Spring Creek mine plan

Burning coal (Photo by Ray Hornsay/via Flickr, CC-BY-SA 2.0)

WASHINGTON – The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement is inviting public comment on the Spring Creek Mine Federal Mining Plan Modification Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The 45-day public comment period will open when the draft EIS is published in the Federal Register.

The office prepared this environmental impact statement to further analyze the environmental impacts of a proposed mine plan modification at the Spring Creek Mine, operated by the Navajo Transitional Energy Company. OSMRE had previously prepared an environmental assessment in 2016 for this mining plan modification, which the District Court of Montana found inadequate in 2021.

The mine is located in Big Horn County, Montana, about 32 miles north of Sheridan, Wyoming. The operator’s proposed mine plan modification would involve disturbance of an additional 162.5 acres to produce an additional 39.9 million tons of federal coal. The draft EIS analyzes three alternatives in addition to the operator’s proposed action; the Forest Service chose Alternative 3 as its proposed alternative in its Record of Decision.

In addition to the 45-day public comment period, OSMRE will hold a public meeting at the Big Horn County Courthouse, Hardin, Montana, from 5 to 8 p.m., on Sept. 24 to receive comments on the draft EIS. Instructions and deadline to submit public comments will be available in the Federal Register notice.

Following the close of the 45-day comment period, OSMRE will prepare the final EIS .

For more information on the project, visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/project/custergallatin/?project=61385 .