Climate Change Dispatch by Penny Starr on Jul 23, 2020
President Donald Trump is trying to keep his promise to help the American coal industry, but Democrats in four states hope to thwart that effort by filing a lawsuit that claims environmental concerns should halt leases on public land.
Xavier Becerra in California, Hector Balderas in New Mexico, Letitia James in New York, and Bob Ferguson in Washington state
filed the lawsuit in federal court on Monday.
The lawsuit calls for an environmental review before any mining could begin,
the Hill reported:
The states take issue with the government reviewing four newer coal leases, saying more of the approximately 300 existing leases should have been examined. It also said that the government’s Final Environmental Assessment (EA), issued by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) this year, did not look at these four leases thoroughly enough.
“[The] Final EA ignores many of the impacts and concerns that warrant consideration in an updated environmental review of the program, such as harm to public lands and wildlife from coal mining, air quality impacts from coal transport and combustion, the disposal of coal ash, which contains hazardous constituents, as well as environmental justice impacts related to such activities,†their lawsuit argues.
“Further, the Final EA’s failure to consider any alternatives other than its so-called ‘no action’ alternative or the proposed action … violates NEPA’s mandate to consider a reasonable range of alternatives and is arbitrary and without basis in fact,†it continued, referring to the National Environmental Policy Act.
The Northern Cheyenne Tribe also sued Monday, with similar environmental charges.
More:
https://climatechangedispatch.com/democrat-ags-sue-trump-for-trying-to-help-coal-industry/
