Federal regulators on Tuesday approved a 1,900-acre addition to the Rosebud mine, unlocking 34 million tons of coal for Montana’s Colstrip power plant despite years of court fights over climate and water impacts.
Amanda Eggert reports for Montana Free Press.
In short:
- The Office of Surface Mining’s Record of Decision extends Rosebud’s lifespan by roughly 14 years, giving operator Westmoreland Mining a clear path to keep 300 local workers employed.
- New Interior Department guidance says agencies need not prepare a full environmental impact statement based on greenhouse gas emissions alone, a shift that helped the project clear its last legal hurdle.
- Environmental groups argue the mine has already damaged regional aquifers and say continued coal combustion at Colstrip worsens pollution while locking ratepayers into higher costs.
Key quote:
“The Rosebud Mine has been destroying water resources in the region for decades.”
— Anne Hedges, executive director of the Montana Environmental Information Center
Why this matters:
Coal’s share of the U.S. power mix has fallen by more than half since 2010, yet plants like Colstrip still anchor electricity grids across the northern Rockies. Approving fresh reserves keeps an aging, high-emission facility running beyond the next decade just as utilities weigh cheaper wind, solar, and battery projects. The decision also signals how the Trump administration’s pared-back environmental reviews could streamline fossil-fuel permitting nationwide, potentially muting federal consideration of cumulative climate effects. For nearby ranchers and wildlife, more strip mining means further stress on groundwater already strained by drought. And because Colstrip’s owners span three states, the plant’s sulfur and mercury emissions travel far beyond eastern Montana, drifting into populations that had begun planning for cleaner power.
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