Gosar criticizes environmental regulations for potential effects on coal industry

U.S. Rep. Paul A. Gosar (R-AZ) recently criticized several proposed environmental regulations for their potential effects on the coal industry after taking part in committee hearings on the rules.

Gosar said that a measure proposed by the Office of Natural Resources Revenue (ONRR) would impact the valuation of federal onshore oil, natural gas and coal royalties.

“The Office of Natural Resources Revenue’s proposed rule is a bureaucratic nightmare that will make it impossible to produce coal on federal lands, including tribal land,” Gosar said. “If implemented, this fundamentally flawed new regulation will kill jobs, result in an unconstitutional tax on coal exports and bankrupt even more American energy companies.”

Gosar also discussed the proposed changes to the Stream Protection Rule, which would create a wider margin between streams and mining operations.

“The Department of the Interior’s new stream buffer zone rule is even more troubling and will negatively affect both surface and underground coal mines,” Gosar said. “This terrible new regulation is projected to sterilize between 27 percent and 64 percent of recoverable reserves. The associated decline in annual coal production will have a direct impact on employment and risks killing between 112,757 and 280,809 mining-related jobs."