WASHINGTON (AP) — The Obama administration wants to reverse a last-minute Bush-era rule that allows mountaintop mining waste to be dumped near streams.
Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said Monday that the administration will ask the courts to abandon a rule that made it easier for coal mining companies to dump waste near streams. Prior to President George W. Bush's change, regulations since 1983 have barred mining companies from dumping waste within 100 feet of streams if the disposal would diminish water quality or quantity.
The action is the latest by the Obama administration to address mountaintop removal for coal. Last month, the Environmental Protection Agency announced it was cracking down on mountaintop removal by taking a closer look at some 150 to 200 permits.
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