EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson today announced proposals to strengthening the environmental controls that mining companies must follow when extracting coal through mountaintop and other surface coal mining techniques in the Appalachian region. "This is not about ending coal mining," Jackson said. "This is about ending coal mining pollution."

The agency proposals would restrict the amount of water pollution permitted in streams impacted by mountaintop mining projects. Under that mining process, large volumes of waste are often dumped into adjacent streams and can pollute local waterways. Agency officials said the new proposals, issued under the Clean Water Act, would ensure that future mining will not harm the environment, water quality or human health. The agency also released scientific reports detailing the water pollution impacts of mountaintop mining.

The announcement came a week after the agency proposed to veto a permit for a massive mountaintop mining project by Arch Coal in West Virginia. The EPA veto would overturn a 2007 Army Corps of Engineers' permit for the mine. The Clean Water Act gives agency officials the ability to veto Army Corps permits for surface coal mining, but EPA has never sought to use that authority to block an existing permit.

Jackson said the new guidance documents identify more environmentally friendly mining practices and set the ground rules for future mining projects. "The people of Appalachia shouldn't have to choose between a clean, healthy environment in which to raise their families and the jobs they need to support them," Jackson said. "That's why EPA is providing even greater clarity on the direction the agency is taking to confront pollution from mountain top removal."

The agency action was praised by environmental activists. "The new policy represents the most significant administrative action ever taken to address mountaintop removal coal mining," said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune. "If effectively implemented and vigorously enforced, this policy will largely prevent coal companies from dumping mining waste into streams."

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