Residents opposed to the development of a coal mine near Sutton have filed a citizens’ complaint with the Department of Natural Resources.
The letter was brought to DNR commissioner Dan Sullivan’s office in late November, claiming that Usibelli Coal Company, which is engaged in coal exploration activities at Wishbone Hill, has not been operating with a valid permit.
Jaime Duhamel is a spokesperson for the Mat Valley Coaltion, which opposes the mine at Wishbone Hill. Duhamel says that the letter was filed by the legal firm Trustees For Alaska on behalf of the members of the Mat Valley Coalition. Duhamel says the complaint has caught the attention of the Federal Office of Surface Mining.
Listen for the full story
APTI Reporter-Producer Ellen Lockyer started her radio career in the late 1980s, after a stint at bush Alaska weekly newspapers, the Copper Valley Views and the Cordova Times. When the Exxon Valdez ran aground in Prince William Sound, Valdez Public Radio station KCHU needed a reporter, and Ellen picked up the microphone.
Since then, she has literally traveled the length of the state, from Attu to Eagle and from Barrow to Juneau, covering Alaska stories on the ground for the AK show, Alaska News Nightly, the Alaska Morning News and for Anchorage public radio station, KSKA
elockyer (at) alaskapublic (dot) org | 907.550.8446 | About Ellen
