| Contacts: | Shannon Borders, 970-240-5399 |
BLM releases Bowie coal mine lease modifications for public review (04-30-12)
MONTROSE, Colo. – On Monday, Apr. 30, the Bureau of Land Management released a preliminary Environmental Assessment and unsigned Finding of No Significant Impact for public comment regarding the proposed coal lease modifications at the Bowie mine about five miles northeast of Paonia, Colo.
The EA evaluates the continuation of mining operations adjacent to Bowie Resources, LLC existing federal coal leases. Bowie’s application consisted of adding a total of about 500 acres to leases COC37210 and COC61209 in order to prevent the bypassing of about 3.25 million recoverable tons of federal coal.
The BLM Uncompahgre Field Office in accordance with the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920, the Mineral Leasing Act for Acquired Lands of 1947 and the Uncompahgre Basin Resource Management Plan is responsible for analyzing the leasing proposal through the National Environmental Policy Act. The coal lease modifications surface area includes private and public lands in which BLM manages a portion of the surface.
The Bowie No. 2 Mine has been in operation since November 1997 and produced about 2.5 million tons of coal in 2011. Currently, the mine employs 297 employees, and the majority of these employees, as well as their families, live in communities in Delta County. Total direct economic benefits associated with the coal mines within the North Fork Valley exceed $60 million annually.
Delta County received $860,000 in tax revenues from Bowie in 2011 which was the largest revenue source for the County for the year.
To review the EA and FONSI, go to http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/BLM_Information/nepa/ufo.html.
Comments must be submitted by Wednesday, May 30, 2012, in writing to the BLM Uncompahgre Field Office, Attn: Desty Dyer, 2465 S. Townsend Ave., Montrose, CO 81401, fax 970-240-5368 or email ddyer@blm.gov.
Please note comments and information submitted regarding this project, including email addresses and street addresses of respondents will be available for public review and disclosure. Individual respondents may request confidentiality. If you wish to withhold your name, e-mail address, or street address from public view or from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, you must state this prominently at the beginning of your written comment. Such requests will be honored to the extent allowed by the law. All submissions from organizations or businesses, and from individuals identifying themselves as representatives of officials of organizations or businesses, will be made available for public inspection in their entirety.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
2465 South Townsend Avenue Montrose, CO 81401