Coal Companies Bound to Pay $2.5 Million Water Pollution Penalty

Southern Coal Corp. and Premium Coal Co. Inc. must comply with a consent decree requiring them to pay $2.5 million for violating a water pollution agreement with the federal government, the Fourth Circuit ruled Tuesday.

“The district court properly recognized the absurdity of Southern Coal’s position that it could simply allow its permits to lapse to avoid obligations under the decree,” a split panel on the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit wrote.

The federal government, along with Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia, claimed that Southern Coal and Premium Coal, and more than 30 other mining-adjacent companies, discharged ...