CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A notice issued by federal coal mining regulators today outlines the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection’s failures to address persistent problems at a set of South Fork Coal Company mines and directs state regulators to address the issues and report back.

The West Virginia DEP has failed to identify patterns of violations and has allowed violations to remain unaddressed beyond lawful deadlines, in some cases by months or even years, on nine of South Fork Coal Company’s mining permits in Greenbrier County, West Virginia. This is according to a Jan. 8 notice issued by the federal Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement. The notice instructs DEP to investigate the information in the notice, take appropriate enforcement action and respond to OSMRE within 10 days.

South Fork Coal Company’s mines and associated haul roads cover 3,849 surface acres in Greenbrier County near its borders with Pocahontas and Nicholas counties. The permits surround the South Fork of Cherry River headwaters, just upstream of the town of Richwood. The company has come under fire from environmental groups in recent years for failing to control sediment and other pollutants entering the Cherry River and its tributaries (which support native brook trout and the endangered candy darter), for failing to meet reclamation standards and for illegally trucking coal through the Monongahela National Forest.

The OSMRE notice came in response to a citizen complaint filed by the Allegheny-Blue Ridge Alliance on behalf of the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy on July 24, 2024. The notice reflects the issues described in that complaint and cites additional violations of water quality and mine clean-up requirements, some of which are the subject of a lawsuit filed against South Fork Coal Company in December by the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy and Appalachian Voices.

“Downstream communities depend on the Cherry River, and they depend on DEP and OSMRE to enforce the law,” said Willie Dodson, Coal Impacts Program Manager at Appalachian Voices. “Richwood in particular benefits from visitors from near and far coming in to fish in the Cherry River, but DEP has failed to keep South Fork Coal from repeatedly violating rules related to sediment and pollution that can affect the native brook trout, and make the river a less attractive place to visit.”

In December, 11 organizations sent a letter to OSMRE Deputy Director Sharon Buccino, asking her to shut down South Fork Coal Company’s Haulroad #2, which is currently transporting coal through the Monongahela National Forest in violation of federal law. Some violations on Haulroad #2 are discussed in the Jan. 8 notice, but the communication does not address the issue of illegal coal hauling in the national forest.

Among the issues listed in OSMRE’s notice are:

• DEP issued a violation on May 8, 2020, against the Blue Knob Surface Mine for failures to control sediment and off-site disturbance. DEP extended the abatement period a total of 17 times. South Fork Coal failed to address the issues until Oct. 5, 2023, more than three years after the initial violation was documented. (Notice of Violation 10, permit number: S300511)
• DEP issued a violation on February 15, 2019, against the Blue Knob Surface Mine for failing to complete reclamation contemporaneous with mining. DEP extended this abatement period a total of 26 times. South Fork Coal failed to comply until Sept. 28, 2023, more than four and a half years after the initial violation was issued. (Notice of Violation 7, permit number: S300511)
• On Sept. 2, 2021, DEP issued a violation against the Lost Flats #1 Surface Mine for failing to control sediment causing off-site impacts. DEP extended the abatement period on 14 occasions with no documentation of efforts to correct the underlying issues. The violation remained in effect until Dec. 6, 2022, more than a year after the initial violation was issued. (Notice of Violation 37, permit number: S013878)
• On May 21, 2021, DEP issued a violation against the Pretty Ridge Surface Mine for failing to maintain sediment control causing off-site disturbance. DEP extended the abatement period six times before South Fork Coal addressed the underlying issues and the violation was terminated on Dec. 14, 2022, more than a year and a half after the initial violation was documented. (Notice of Violation 19, permit number: S300219)

The other operations implicated in OSMRE’s notice letter are the Rocky Run Surface Mine, Lost Flats #2, Laurel Creek Contour Mine #1, South Fork Deep Mine #2, Haulroad #1 and Haulroad #2.