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North Cumberland Wildlife Area, Sundquist Unit.
Photo by Byron Jorjorian

Protecting the Cumberlands
Lands Unsuitable for Mining Petition

On October 1, 2010, the state of Tennessee filed a Lands Unsuitable for Mining petition with the U.S. Department of Interior, Office of Surface Mining. The petition signed by Governor Phil Bredesen requests the Office of Surface Mining find ridgelines on land managed for public use on the Northern Cumberland Plateau unsuitable for coal surface mining. Much of the property covered by the petition is part of Tennessee’s landmark 2007 “Connecting the Cumberlands” conservation initiative and is located in Anderson, Campbell, Morgan and Scott counties.

 

View Lands Unsuitable for Mining Petition

 

After TDEC provided copies of the materials cited in the petition that were requested by OSM, OSM officials notified TDEC’s Water Pollution Control Mining Section on Nov. 23 that Tennessee’s Lands Unsuitable for Mining petition has been deemed complete. “We were pleased to receive this ‘completeness’ determination from OSM,” said TDEC Deputy Commissioner Paul Sloan. “This was the critical next step towards the ultimate granting of the petition.”

 

Nov. 23 Letter from Federal Office of Surface Mining

 

Read what others say about the state’s Lands Unsuitable for Mining petition:

 

10/02/10 Chattanooga Times Editorial: Protecting mountaintops

10/05/10 Memphis Commercial-Appeal Editorial: Mountaintops under siege

11/29/10 Memphis Commercial Appeal Editorial: Hope for the Mountains

12/2/10 Knoxville News Sentinel Editorial: Proposed mining ban should move forward

12/3/10 Tennessean Editorial: Ridge protection takes long view

 

The areas covered by the petition include the Royal Blue, Sundquist and New River - also known as the Brimstone Tract Conservation Easement - units that comprise the North Cumberland Wildlife Management area. The petition area also includes the Emory River Tract Conservation Easement, which is managed by Frozen Head State Park for public use. A portion of the Cumberland Trail also traverses the property.

 

If approved by the Secretary of the Interior, the petition would prevent surface mining of coal for 600 feet on each side of the ridgelines in the designated area, creating a 1,200 foot ridgetop corridor encompassing approximately 67,000 acres. This area contains most of the older growth forest that exist in the area as well as a diverse array of habitats and wildlife, some of which are considered rare or threatened. The ridgelines covered in the petition include about 40 percent of the total North Cumberland Wildlife Management Area and Emory River Conservation Easement Tract.

 

View Map of Ridges along North Cumberland WMA and Emory Tracts Conservation Easement

 

Upon receiving a complete petition, the federal Office of Surface Mining must prepare an Environmental Impact Statement. This process provides an opportunity for public input prior to a decision being made about whether to accept the Lands Unsuitable for Mining petition under provisions of the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977. The petition does not affect underground mining or permits for surface mining that have already been issued; nor does it cover any areas in which historical mining has resulted in water pollution from acid mine drainage where re-mining could help improve environmental impacts.

 

The North Cumberlands petition is similar to a Lands Unsuitable for Mining petition granted in 2000 that covers Fall Creek Falls State Park and the watersheds that flow into it. In 1990, the Office of Surface Mining also designated the Flat Fork watershed adjacent to Frozen Head State Park as unsuitable for mining, in part to protect the unique resources of the park.

 

 

 

Related searches:
mining petition surface tennessee office
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