Last week the EPA officially published its proposal to impose over $7 billion of financial assurance requirements on the owners and operators of currently active or idle hardrock mines and mineral processing facilities. 82 Fed. Reg. 3388 (Jan. 11, 2017). These proposed requirements are intended to cover estimated response costs, natural resource damages, and health assessment costs for which an owner or operator could be liable under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) should a hazardous substance release occur. The EPA estimates that 221 hardrock mining facilities would be subject to these proposed requirements, which would be in addition to financial assurance already required by other federal or state agencies for things such as closure and reclamation. The deadline for submitting comments on the EPA’s proposal is March 13, 2017.
Continue Reading EPA Proposes to Require $7+ Billion of Financial Assurances from U.S. Hardrock Mining Industry Under CERCLA Section 108(b)
Sage Grouse Update: BLM Issues Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on Proposed Withdrawal of 10 Million Acres
On the last business day of 2016 the BLM released the DEIS on its proposed 20-year withdrawal of approximately 10 million acres of “sagebrush focal areas” (SFAs) in six western states from mineral location and entry under the General Mining Law. At the same time, the BLM temporarily “segregated” almost 400,000 more acres in Nevada that the State of Nevada has proposed as a substitute for nearly 500,000 acres within SFAs considered by the State to have high mineral potential or limited sage-grouse habitat. As described in our article last year in the American Bar Association’s mining newsletter, the BLM started this process in September 2015 as a key part of the justification for not listing the greater sage-grouse under the Endangered Species Act. (That article also describes what the BLM’s proposal means for mining on these lands in Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming, and the multiple lawsuits that have been filed challenging the federal government’s actions.)
Continue Reading Sage Grouse Update: BLM Issues Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on Proposed Withdrawal of 10 Million Acres
Congress Repeals Crude Oil Export Ban, a Legacy of 1970s Oil Embargo
Before leaving Washington, D.C. for the holidays, President Obama signed H.R. 2029 (Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016), which repealed the ban on U.S. exports of crude oil. The repeal occurred just few days before today’s 40th anniversary of President Ford signing the ban into law. According to historical data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration,
Mining on 10 Million Acres in Six States Impacted by BLM’s Proposed Withdrawal
On September 24, 2015, the federal Bureau of Land Management (“BLM”) published a Notice of Proposed Withdrawal (“BLM notice”), proposing to withdraw from mineral location and entry federal lands identified as “sagebrush focal areas” in Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Wyoming. The BLM notice commences a two-year temporary segregation period, prohibiting location and entry of new mining claims on BLM and U.S. Forest Service lands in these sagebrush focal areas. If the BLM decides to withdraw the area at the end of the segregation period, the withdrawal will last up to 20 years, but could be extended in the future. The proposed withdrawal area covers approximately 10 million acres. The map below from the BLM shows the proposed withdrawal area, and an interactive map with more detail is available here.
Continue Reading Mining on 10 Million Acres in Six States Impacted by BLM’s Proposed Withdrawal
Join the Discussion: “Sage Grouse and the Legal Landscape” in Spokane, WA
On December 5, 2012, join Stoel Rives attorneys Barbara D. Craig and Sara E. Bergan, along with several other experts, as they discuss “Sage Grouse and the Legal Landscape,” at the Northwest Mining Association conference in Spokane, Washington. Craig will moderate the panel, guiding the speakers through various topics including: Federal and State Design
Sequoia ForestKeeper v. Tidwell Subjects Mineral Exploration Within National Forests to Additional Process and Delay
Last week a federal district court in California issued a nationwide injunction that may have significant impacts on exploration activities within National Forests. For years activities that were categorically excluded from review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) were also exempt from U.S. Forest Service regulations concerning public notice, comment, and administrative appeals (36