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The Bridger Coal Company of Point of Rocks, Wyoming (Permit No. 338) has applied for Chapter 15 Phase 1 (60%) bond release from the Land Quality Division of the Department of Environmental Quality for the State of Wyoming. This permit was originally approved on May 22, 1974. The coal mining permit area is in: T20N, R100W and R101W; T21N, R100W and R101W and T22N, R100W and R101W, Sweetwater County, Wyoming. The area is approximately 7 miles NE of Point of Rocks, Wyoming. This area can be found on the Ten Mile Rim, Black Rock South, Bitter Creek NW, and Point of Rocks USGS quadrangle maps. The parcels to be released from bond are located in Sections 7, 18, 19, 20, and 21 in T21N, R100W and Sections 2, 11, 12, 13, and 14 in T21N, R101W. This bond release request includes 162.92 acres. The total bond requested for release is $387,586.68. The reclamation of the Phase 1 parcels occurred in 2022 and 2023. The parcels qualify for Phase 1 release as they have been contoured, had soil replaced, farming completed, and passed the required verifications.
Information regarding the mining operation, reclamation procedures and areas proposed for release may be reviewed in the Office of the Land Quality Division of the Department of Environmental Quality in Cheyenne and Lander, Wyoming. Written objections to the proposed bond release request must be received by the Administrator of the Land Quality Division, Department of Environmental Quality, 200 W. 17th Street, Suite 10, Cheyenne, WY 82002 before the close of business on December 2, 2024. Objections may also be submitted by the same deadline via the Land Quality Division’s electronic comment portal at https://lq.wyomingdeq.commentinput.com/. If written objections are filed, and a public hearing is requested, the Environmental Quality Council (Council) shall hold a public hearing within sixty (60) days after the final date for filing objections unless a different period is stipulated to by all parties. The Council shall publish notice of the time, date, and location of the hearing in a newspaper of general circulation in the locality of the proposed operation once a week for two (2) consecutive weeks immediately prior to the hearing. The hearing shall be conducted as a contested case in accordance with the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act (W.S. §16-3-101 through §16-3-115), with a right of judicial review as provided in that act. Without prejudice to the objector or applicant’s right to a hearing before the Council, the Administrator may hold an informal conference to resolve written objections after notification to all parties. The Administrator shall make a record of the conference unless waived by all parties, which shall be accessible to all parties. The Administrator shall furnish all parties of the conference with a written finding of the Division based on the conference, and the reasons for the finding.
Para español, visite deq.wyoming.gov. Americans with Disabilities Act: special assistance or alternative formats will be made available upon request for individuals with disabilities. Please provide at least fourteen (14) days before the close of the public comment period for such requests.
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