Keep updated on the proposed Otter Creek coal mine and Tongue River Railroad.

1. Inside
Coal Industry
News
Important Updates
on the proposed
Otter Creek coal
mine and Tongue
River Railroad
Environmental and
Health impacts of
coal mining
Tongue River &
Otter Creek
News
COMMUNITY NEWSLETTER
Lastest news on the proposed Otter Creek coal mine and Tongue River Railroad
May 2013

2. Arch Coal likes to
pretend that the
Otter Creek coal
mine is a done deal.
Click here to learn
why it will never be
built.
On April 13, 2013 the state of Montana
sent Arch Coal a 41-page permit defi-
ciency notice. What this means is that
Arch Coal’s permit application that they
submitted to has a myriad of problems
that they must fix before the DEQ will
accept the permit application.
Arch Coal submited incomplete data,
changed Montana’s administrative
rules to meet their own needs and
didn’t include entire sections that are
required by Montana law.
“It appears that in some instances,
OCC (Otter Creek Coal Co.) recites
the applicable rule verbatim, and in
other instances, modifies or omits
rule language. “
DEQ also states, “It is DEQ’s opinion
that after eight years of mining at 20
million tons per year, OCC will have a
large area of disturbance and little or
no reclamation.”
There are a number of major issues
with their permit as indicated by the
letter.
• Arch Coal changed the language
of the state of Montana’s laws and
codes throughout the application
to lessen their commitment re-
quired by the rules.
• They did not include a Cultural Re-
sources Mitigation Plan which is
requried by Montana Law.
• They did not include a Reclamation
Plan. DEQ states that they must
“commit to plans and actions, not
state what is required.
• They did not include a Fish and
Wildlife Conservation Plan.
• They did not submit liability insur-
ance.
• They did not submit company
ownership information.
• They did not submit the Mine Safe-
ty and Health Administration num-
ber.
• In some cases, Arch Coal adds the
words “where feasible” to Mon-
tana’s regulations. DEQ states that
OCC has again added the qualifi-
er, ‘where feasible’ to the permit
language in the following para-
graph (17.24.631(3)(b). OCC’s
version of ARM 17.24.631 is not
acceptable and must be modi-
fied: there is no ‘where feasible’
provision in the rule.”
• Arch Coal ignored other water re-
search done by experts in the Otter
Creek valley.
This is just a small sample of the major
problems found in Arch Coal’s permit
application.
If you would like to read through the
entire permit you may download a
copy at this web address: http://deq.
mt.gov/ottercreek/default.mcpx
Arch Coal has a lot of work to do in or-
der to follow Montana laws concerning
mining and reclamation.
Arch Coal’s Permit
Application Deficient
The State of Montana returns Arch Coal’s Otter Creek’s permit application to
the coal company citing 41 pages of Deficiencies.
A 2010 study by the
Clean Air Task Force
estimated that air
pollution from
coal-fired power
plants accounts for
more than 13,000
premature deaths,
20,000 heart at-
tacks, and 1.6 mil-
lion lost workdays
in the U.S. each yr
costing over $100
billion annually.
did you
know
that ?
2 Protecting the historic, cultural and environmental resources of southeastern Montana.

3. Arch Coal, the company who is proposing the Otter Creek mine and who is a co-owner of the Tongue River Railroad Com-
pany is in the news a lot lately. It is worth knowing more about the company who is trying to set up shop in Montana:
their financial situation, their record on labor issues and their environmental practices. Just click on the headline to be
taken to the news article.
Arch Coal Loses $70 Million in First Quarter
Arch Coal Agrees To $575,000 Fine After Clean Water Act Violations
Mine Workers Plan to Protest Arch Coal’s Meetings
Arch Coal Loses Widen
Montana regulators want more information on Arch coal mine proposal
Scheme? Patriot Coal Mess
Arch Coal: Walking Dead
Faltering China Demand Hangs over Asian Coal
Studies show a correlation between coal-related air pollutants and stroke. Coal pollutants also act
on the nervous system to cause loss of intellectual capacity, primarily through mercury. Research-
ers estimate that between 317,000 and 631,000 children are born in the U.S. each year with blood
mercury levels high enough to reduce IQ scores and cause lifelong loss of intelligence.
For the full report by the Physicians for Social Reponsibilty go here: http://www.psr.org/coalreport.
The More You Know
ARCH COAL
“Arch Coal’s balance
sheet is highly
leveraged and much
of its cash flows over
the next several years
will likely have to be
diverted to service its
crushing debt load.”
- Morning Star
Financial Report,
March 2013
did you
know
that ?
3

4. The TRR has been hanging
over the heads of southeastern
Montana residents for over 30
years now. The railroad was a
bad idea when it was first pro-
posed and is a bad idea now.
People have spent decades
of their lives fighing this rail-
road. They have sacrificed
their health, time with their
friends and family and experi-
enced increased stress worry-
ing that their livelihoods, his-
tory, culture and environment
will be damaged irreversibly.
Tribes and landowners are
being asked to participate in
the same process that has nev-
er worked for them or treated
them as equal to the railroad.
If the public process worked,
this proposal would have been
dead and buried long ago.
The Failure of
theTongue River
Railroad’s Public
Process
It’s also important to know who is trying to build a coal train through the Tongue Rive Valley,
across important historical and cultural sites, wildlife habitat and bisecting farm and ranch land.
The More You Know
Tongue River Railroad Co.
(i.e. BNSF, Arch Coal and Forrest Mars)
Click Here For Full Article
Excerpt: “But Buffett has a problem—a coal problem. In addition to its
solar and wind operations, MidAmerican Energy Holdings relies on coal for
roughly half of its 18,000-megawatt generating capacity. Buffett’s BNSF
Railway Company derives a quarter of its $20 billion in annual revenues
from transporting coal, and it lobbies aggressively on the industry’s behalf.
Berkshire Hathaway is one of the very few major U.S. companies that don’t
disclose their greenhouse gas emissions, and it has opposed shareholders
who ask it to do so.
Nowhere is Buffett’s green reputation taking more of a beating, though, than
in a remote and sparsely populated corner of southeastern Montana. Ranch-
ers, Native Americans, and Amish farmers there are fighting to preserve
their livelihoods and landscapes, which are threatened by what, if developed,
would be one of the biggest coal strip mines in the West. And shipping all
that coal to West Coast ports would be Warren Buffett’s BNSF Railway.”
Click here to read about
Warren Buffett’s Coal Problem
by Marc Gunther.
4 Protecting the cultural, historica and environmental resources of southeastern Montana

5. During the three-day meeting, Tribal repre-
sentatives from the Northern Cheyenne, Ogla-
la Lakota, Rosebud, Yankton, Standing Rock,
Cheyenne River, Crow Creek and Crow dis-
cussed their concerns about how the Tongue
River Railroad will impact thier cultural and
historic resources in the Tongue River Valley.
Tribes agreed that they would like to extend
the timeframe of the Draft Environmental
Impact Statement, and want to conduct their
own TCP study of the region that would be
funded by the project proponents indepen-
dently of the hired consulting firm, ICF Inter-
national.
Monthly consultation calls are held with
Tribes, landowners, government agencies and
historic preservation experts.
If you would like more information on how
to get involved in the Section 106 process.
Please email ecocheyenne@gmail.com.
Coal Industry
News
Section 106 Consultation
Process onTongue River
Railroad
On April 16 -18, 2013, the Surface Transportation Board held the first face-
to-face Consultation meeting with Tribes who have cultural and historic
resroources in the path of the Tongue River Railroad.
From around the country
Officials with the Surface Transportation Board in-
formed participants of the meeting that they were
trying to get the Draft EIS done by the Fall.
This timeframe is completely unrealistic since
survey work just started recently. Any wildlife
biologist will tell you that they need at least two to
three years to accurately measure wildlife popula-
tions in a region. In addition, hundreds of thou-
sands of acres burned in southeastern Montana
last fire season. Wildlife data collected this spring
and summer will not be an accurate reflection of
the species density or type. STB needs to work
on their own timeline and not be pressured by the
Tongue River Railroad Company.
Fast Tracked Timeline for the Tongue
River Railroad Draft EIS!
Haystack Coal Mine Shuts Down
Citing poor market demand for coal, the
new Haystack Coal Mine project north
of Evanston, Wyoming has been shut
down — even before it, or the road un-
der construction to reach it — could be
completed. - Unita County Herald
L.A. City Council Votes to move
Los Angeles Away from Coal Power
In a major step toward ending the city’s
reliance on coal by 2025, the Los Angeles
City Council on Tuesday approved a far-
reaching plan to amend its agreement
with the Intermountain Power Project in
Utah to convert it to renewable energy.
- Daily News
The decline of U.S. Coal
A recent report from the Energy Infor-
mation Administration found that U.S.
plant owners and operators are getting
ready to retire 27 gigawatts’ worth of
coal generation. - Washington Post
Arch Coal Set Back in Fight Over Mine
A three-judge panel at the U.S. Court
of Appeals for the District of Columbia
Circuit unanimously said the Environ-
mental Protection Agency could revoke
a permit for the mine, known as Spruce
No. 1 - Wall Street Journal
5 Protecting the historic, cultural and environmental resources of southeastern Montana

6. Environmental Protection Agency Approves
Northern Cheyenne TribalWater
Quality Standards
On March 21, 2013, the Environmental Protection Agency approved the
Northern Cheyenne Tribe’s request to implement Tribal Surface Water Quality
Standards. This is a first for any tribal nation in the country. Northern Cheyenne
standars are seperate and more stringent standards than the state of Montana or
Federal standards. This process took years to get through but they were finally ap-
proved by the EPA last month.
This is an important step in protecting the water resources
of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe. For a copy of the Surface
Water Quality Standards, please go to:
http://www.cheyennenation.com/water.html.
No Coal Gathering
For more information, please email ecocheyenne@gmail.com
Over 250 people showed up to the Boys and Girls Club in Lame Deer, MT on March 20,
2013 to voice their opposition to the development of the Otter Creek coal tracts and
Tongue River Railroad. Tribal dignitaries from the Yakama Nation, Southern Cheyenne,
Oglala Lakota, Northern Cheyenne and Fort Berthold spoke of how coal and energy
development is impacting their land and culture and statements of solidarity were read
from the Coast Salish Gathering.
A traditional Cheyenne meal was served. Partipants plan to come together again soon
to create a strong alliance between the Northwest Tribes who are fighting coal exports
and the Northern Cheyenne and allies fighing for the homelands.
6

7. photo by Paul K. Anderson
photo by Paul K. Anderson
photo by Paul K. Anderson
photos by Paul K. An-
derson 7

8. What’s Next?
Both the Tongue River Railroad Company and Arch Coal
are trying to acquire permits from the government to
move forward with their projects.
It is important to remember that neither company has a
permit. And even if they get one, it doesn’t mean that the
mine or railroad will be built.
Upcoming Activities:
Monthly ecoCheyenne meetings in Lame Deer.
District Meetings about the social, environmental
and cultural impacts of coal development.
Field Trips to the Otter Creek valley.
Solar Photovoltaic Training in Lame Deer
Tabling at community events
Please email ecocheyenne@gmail.com to learn
more and get on a mailing list.