Patriot Coal to stop mountaintop removal mining

[ashling]

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2012-11-15/patriot-coal-to-stop-mountaintop-removal-mining

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Bankrupt Patriot Coal Corp. agreed Thursday to become the first U.S. coal operator to phase out and eventually stop all large-scale mountaintop removal mining in central Appalachia under an agreement reached with three environmental groups that sued over pollution from several West Virginia operations.

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"Patriot Coal recognizes that our mining operations impact the communities in which we operate in significant ways," he acknowledged, adding that the agreement will reduce the company's environmental footprint.

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The agreement also requires Patriot to make a $500,000 donation to a nonprofit land-use organization of the plaintiffs' choosing and requires Patriot to ask the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for permission to pay the environmental group's $96,000 in legal fees.

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"Hopefully, it's now become clear that when coal companies are required to prevent illegal selenium pollution and pay the costs for cleanup themselves," Rank [West Virginia Highlands Conservancy] said, "it simply doesn't make economic sense to continue this destructive form of mining."