Previously, in May of 2002, the Bush administration published a final rule that grants the Corps new discretion to approve dumping in river valleys -- virtually inevitable in mountaintop mining -- under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. However, only a day earlier, U.S. District Judge Charles Haden found that Section 404 does not permit such dumping for the sole purpose of waste disposal, throwing the administration’s action into doubt (Kentuckians for the Commonwealth v. Corps of Engineers, S.D. W.Va., No. 2:01-0770, May 8, 2002).
On January 29, the U.S. 4th Circuit Court in Richmond, Va., reversed Haden, allowing implementation of the rule to move forward and clearing the way for mining companies to dump in the nation’s rivers and streams.
"While the judges and lawyers argue the technicalities and interpretations of the law, strip mining is destroying our mountains and streams and taking away a future for our children," said Patty Wallace of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, which initiated the litigation against the Corps.