ACLC and Partners Win Injunction in Leeco Mines Case

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld an injunction that stalled valley fills at the proposed Stacy Branch mountaintop removal coal mine near Vicco, Kentucky. As Earthjustice explains, “The corporation behind the mine, Leeco, Inc., asked the Sixth Circuit to let it start mining in the streams before the court issues a final decision on whether the mining is legal. That could have rendered the whole lawsuit moot.” The court subsequently rejected this request for premature mining.
This is a big win for ACLC and its partners in the case – Earthjustice, Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, Sierra Club, and Appalachian Mountain Advocates. The Court’s decision to continue the injunction is important – it signals that the Court understands that devastating, irremediable impacts will occur if the mining proceeds while the Court weighs the legality of the valley fill permit issued by the Corps.
Further information regarding the decision can be found here.