OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY
For Release   April 25, 1990
Steve Goldstein (202) 343-6416 (0) (202) 887-5248 (h)

Secretary of the Interior Manuel Lujan today announced the final
decision designating 5,250 acres in Morgan County, Tennessee, as
unsuitable for surface coal mining.

The designation rules cut surface coal mining operations in 8.2
square miles of mountainous terrain, but all~ continued use of an
existing coal haulage road outside Frozen Head State Park and
Natural Area.  The road provides critical access to the coal
resources from outside the ar~a designated unsuitable for surface
mining.

Harry M. Snider, Director of Interior's Office of Surface Mining
(OSM), said, "It is important to safeguard sensitive land and
protect our waters.  This decision clearly demonstrates the kind of
balance that can be reached between the protection of
environmentally sensitive areas and the recovery of valuable
resources. 

The affected area is part of the Flat Fork and Mud Creek
watersheds. A portion of the Flat Fork watershed drains into,
Frozen Head State Park. The unsuitability decision supports a 1985
petition from individuals and environmental organizations seeking
to safeguard the locality's land and

Under the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation A~t, anyone with
an interest that could be adversely affected can petition for land
to be designated unsuitable for surface coal m~g.  The Flat Fork
petitioners said reclamation in that area would not be
technologically and economically feasible, and surface mining there
would also be compatible with state and local land use programs. 
They said surface mining in the Flat Fork area, beside having the
water supply, would damage historic, cultural, scientific, and
aesthetic values and natural systems.

Before reaching a decision, OSM evaluated the petitioners, claims,
conducted technical investigations, issued reports, gathered public
comment, held a public hearing, and published a final Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS) on the subject in March 1990.

Secretary Lujan announced the preferred alternative in the EIS
while in Knoxville, Tennessee, March 22, addressing the 1990 Annual
Academic Achievers Banquet.