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Indian Lands Program

Regulation of Coal Mining and Reclamation Operations on Indian Lands

OSMRE is the regulatory authority on all coal mining and reclamation operations located on Indian Lands. Indian Lands means all lands, including mineral interests, within the exterior boundaries of any Federal Indian reservation, notwithstanding the issuance of any patent, and including rights-of-way and all lands including mineral interests held in trust for or supervised by an Indian tribe. 

Currently, OSMRE is the regulatory authority on coal mining and reclamation operations located on the Crow, Hopi, Navajo and Ute Mountain Ute reservations and all lands supervised by those tribes.  As the regulatory authority, OSMRE is responsible for:

  • The review of applications to conduct mining and reclamation operations
  • Inspection of coal mining and reclamation operations to ensure public and environmental health protection
  • Ensuring the full reclamation of the site before the lands are returned to the tribes

The Indian Lands Program is responsible for administering permitting activities associated with properties across the nation.  

Four of these properties currently involve active mining and reclamation operations, while the remaining four no longer are being disturbed and involve only reclamation activities.

To ensure the protection of public and environmental health, OSMRE works in partnership with tribal governments, other federal agencies, such as: the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), Bureau of Land Management (BLM), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers. More information on this federal partnership with BIA and BLM can be found in Attachment G of the Onshore Energy & Mineral Lease Management Interagency Standard Operating Procedures.pdf

For more information on OSMRE's Indian Lands Program, contact  Mychal Yellowman at myellowman@osmre.gov 

Reclaimed landscape at McKinley North Mine on the Navajo Nation
Reclaimed land at McKinley North Mine on the Navajo Nation

 

Photo showing where the coal conveyor belt line was with a mostly cloudy sky with sunbeams shining down behind the coal silo.
Kayenta Mine coal conveyor belt has been removed and its corridor has been reclaimed

N9 Phase I Public Meeting: October 24, 2024, Kayenta Chapter House

The U.S. Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, Western Region (OSMRE) will hold an in-person public meeting to discuss a proposed Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) performance bond release application. The bond release application submitted by Peabody Western Coal Company (PWCC) request the release of Phase I bond and liability on 661 acres in the N9 coal resource area within the Kayenta Mine located in northern Navajo County, Arizona.

Copies of the bond release applications are available for public review at the following.

locations:
· The Navajo Nation Minerals Department, Office of Surface Mining, Window Rock, AZ 86515

· Forest Lake Chapter House Navajo Route 41, 14 Miles North of Pinon, Pinon, AZ 86510

· PWCC’s Kayenta Mine Mesa Central Warehouse Office Complex, 8 miles from Hwy 160 and

· Route 41 Junction, Kayenta Arizona 86033

· OSMRE website: shown below 

On October 24, 2024, 9:00 AM -12:00 PM (Mountain Daylight Time), OSMRE will hold an in-person meeting on PWCC’s N9 application for Phase I bond release at the Kayenta Mine, SMCRA permit AZ-0001. The meeting will take place at the Kayenta Chapter House. The Kayenta Chapter House is located 1 mile North of US Highway 163 in Kayenta, Arizona. A Navajo Language interpreter will be available during the meeting to interpret the presentation, questions, or comments. Questions on the public meeting should be addressed to Amy Ryser, OSMRE, One Denver Federal Center, Building 41, Lakewood, CO 80225 or emailed to aryser@osmre.gov.

N9 Phase I Bond Release Application Announcement

Peabody Western Coal Company (PWCC) has filed an application with the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSMRE) for bond release on a portion of the lands in the N9 Coal Resource Area (CRA) within the Kayenta Mine Permit AZ-0001F. PWCC is seeking a release of Phase I bond liability for a portion of the N9 area currently under bond with Zurich American, Liberty Mutual, and SiriusPoint America Insurance and one Letter of Credit with Goldeman Sachs Bank, USA. PWCC is seeking a reduction in bond of $17,015,867 under the Phase I application. The total combined bond for Kayenta Mine is $107,171,138.

The Phase I bond release application consists of information currently contained in the AZ- 0001F permit application package (PAP) approved October 3, 2017. The PAP outlines PWCC’s reclamation operations on Permanent Program Lands. The total area in N9 requested for Phase I release is 661 acres. Reclamation was completed between 2012 and 2024. Reclamation activities were completed in accordance with the approved PAP and included backfilling, grading, mitigation of unsuitable material, drainage control construction, and replacement of suitable soil or plant growth media. The Kayenta Mine permit for the release area is under Navajo Tribal Coal Lease 14-20-0603-9910 and operates pursuant to Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Title 30; Subchapter E, Part 750; Subchapter G, Parts 773 and 774; and Subchapter K, Parts 810 and 816. 
This notice is hereby given that:

1. The name and business address of the applicant is:

Peabody Western Coal Company, Kayenta Mine 
P.O. Box 650 
Kayenta, AZ 86033

2. The mine permit area is located approximately 18 miles south southwest of Kayenta, Arizona. The permit area for the Phase I bond release area is in USGS 7.5-minute quadrangle map “Long House Valley” within the following lands of Navajo County, Arizona that are described relative to the Gila and Salt River Base Meridian as: 
A total of 661 acres of land located within the N9 CRA. The computer-generated centroid location is Latitude 36° 34’ 14.6” N and Longitude 110° 24’ 50.7” W.


3. Locations of where copies of the application and permit are available for public review and/or inspection are: 

The Navajo Nation Minerals Department
Office of Surface Mining
Window Rock Boulevard
Window Rock, AZ 86515
 

Forest Lake Chapter House 
Office of Surface Mining Navajo Route 41 
Window Rock Boulevard 17 Miles North of Pinon 
Window Rock, AZ 86515 Pinon, AZ 86510

Peabody Western Coal Company:
Kayenta Mine Mesa Central Warehouse Office Complex 
8 Miles from Hwy 160 and Route 41 Junction 
Kayenta, Arizona 86033

OSMRE website and listed below

4. The name and address of the OSMRE-WRO representative where written comments, objections, requests for a public hearing, or requests for an informal conference may be submitted on or before 5:00 p.m., September 9, 2024, thirty (30) days after the last publication date are:

Ms. Amy Ryser 
Western Region Office 
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation & Enforcement 
P. O. Box 25065 
One Federal Center, Building 41 
Lakewood, CO 80225-0065 
WR Permitting Information Line, 1-866-847-7362

5. Interested persons may obtain more information concerning the bond release by 
contacting Marie Shepherd, Senior Manager Environmental for PWCC at 928.280.7091.

6. The application has been filed with OSMRE and will be acted upon pursuant to the Permanent Regulatory Program (30 CFR Parts 750 and 774) approved by the Secretary of the Interior under Title V of the Surface mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977.

Materials Related to N9 Phase I Application: 

Kayenta Mine Complex Story Map

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/eb1a9eaa0db1467dabfe616f02c1a53c

Reclaim Restore & More Podcast with Mychal Yellowman on the Kayenta and Black Mesa mine sites

Photograph looking down on heavy machinery demolishing and removing the Black Mesa Preparation Plant buildings and facilities.
Black Mesa Preparation Plant - Heavy machinery demolishing and removing  buildings and all associated facilities. 

The Black Mesa Preparation Plant is located on Hopi and Navajo land.  No coal was mined within its 40 acre footprint, but it was used by the Black Mesa Mine. The Black Mesa Preparation Plant is under full reclamation. 

For more information on the Black Mesa Preparation Plant, contact OSMRE Mine Team Leader, Amy Ryser at aryser@osmre.gov

 

Photo of reclamation activities at the Navajo Mine. The photo has undisturbed badlands in the background and then different phase of reclamation in the foreground. The phase show fully reclaimed to newly topsoiled land.
Navajo Mine - Background shows undisturbed natural badlands with reclaimed land in foreground

The Navajo & Pinabete Mines are located on the Navajo Nation near Fruitland, New Mexico. The Navajo & Pinabete Mines are surface mining operations and are the only active mining operations on the Navajo Nation. 

For more information on the Navajo & Pinabete Mines, contact Acting OSMRE Mine Team Leader, Flynn Dickinson at fdickinson@osmre.gov

View the Navajo Mine Storymap

 

Photo of hand gently holding a horned toad lizard at the McKinely Mine on the Navajo Nation
"Cheii" (horned toad lizard) that has made its home on reclaimed land at the McKinley North Mine on the Navajo Nation

The McKinley North Mine is located on the Navajo Nation near Tse Bonito, New Mexico.  The McKinley Mine only had reclamation activities. 

For more information on the McKinley North Mine, contact OSMRE Mine Team Leader, Alex Birchfield at abirchfield@osmre.gov

 

Photograph showing the low-cover crossing at King II Mine. The low-cover crossing is a structure composed of corrugated metal tunnels buried underground to connect underground workings.
King II Mine - Construction of the low-cover crossing to connect areas of the underground coal mine

The King II Mine is an underground mine that is partially located under private land owned by the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. The mine is near Hesperus, Colorado. 

For more information on the Kind II Mine, contact OSMRE Mine Team Leader, Jeremy Spangler at jspangler@osmre.gov

 

Photograph showing various stages of reclamation at the Absaloka South Mine on Crow Land. From background to foreground it shows undisturbed trees, re-vegetation, topsoil laydown and graded spoil on a hill landscape.
Absaloka Mine - Various stages of reclamation from fully seeded in background to topsoil distribution and re-grading of spoil to approximate original contour in the foreground. 

OSMRE's Casper Field Office is the regulatory authority for the Absaloka South Mine.  The Absaloka South Mine is located on Crow Tribal Surface.  

For more information on the Absaloka South Mine, contact OSMRE Mine Team Leader, Frank Bartlett at fbartlett@osmre.gov 

OSMRE's Tulsa Field Office is the regulatory authority for the McCurtain Mine. The McCurtain Mine is located within the external boundaries of the historic Choctaw Nation Reservation in Oklahoma.  

For more information on the McCurtain Mine, contact Brian Hicks at bhicks@osmre.gov.

Farrell-Cooper Mining Company has applied to OSMRE for a permit to mine coal by underground methods. Under the federal Indian lands program, permit OK-042F-CC essentially would be a reissue of permit 4285F that had been issued by the Oklahoma Department of Mines in March 2012.

Any person whose interest may be adversely affected by the reissuance of the permit may make written comments to the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, 501 Belle Street, Suite 216, Alton, IL 62002.

Comments, objections, or request for an informal conference must be submitted by October 1, 2022.