Top Democrats in Kentucky,a key coal mining state,are urging EPA to block a controversial Interior Department (DOI) regulation that allows mining companies to dump thousands of tons of mine waste in streams-a disposal practice that industry says is needed for mountaintop removal mining. Kentucky's Gov.Steven Beshear (D) and Attorney General Jack Conway (D),as well as Democratic Reps.Ben Chandler and John Yarmuth have written letters to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson urging him to refrain from granting a concurrence on the DOI rule when the agency issues its final decision next month.The Blue Grass State officials charge that the DOI proposal will undermine water quality.They also argue that the proposal is arbitrary and could be applied unevenly,possibly causing regulatory uncertainty for industry.
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