According to The Associated Press, the BLM will put out to bid nearly 2,000 acres just west of Black Thunder mine in southern Campbell County. The coal lease is expected to be bought by Arch Coal’s Black Thunder mine, which applied for the tract in 2005. The BLM said the lease should extend the life of the mine about 1.6 years. The agency estimates that without additional coal leases, Black Thunder mine would run out of coal in about 10 years. The BLM’s decision is the fourth approval in the past year for coal leases in the PRB. The approvals are being contested by environmental groups.
