Extension of the Period for Preparation of the Clean Water Act Section 404(c) Final Determination and Consultation Concerning the Spruce No. 1 Mine, Logan County, WV

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On September 24, 2010, the EPA Region III Regional Administrator signed a Recommended Determination, under Section 404(c) of the Clean Water Act, recommending withdrawal of the specification embodied in DA Permit No. 199800436-3 (Section 10: Coal River) of Pigeonroost Branch and Oldhouse Branch as disposal sites for discharges of dredged and/or fill material associated with construction of the Spruce No. 1 Surface Mine in Logan County, West Virginia. The transmission of the Recommended Determination to EPA Headquarters initiated a 60-day period for the Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water to review the recommendation of the Regional Administrator. As part of this review period, EPA has also notified the Department of the Army, the State of West Virginia, Arch Coal, Inc. (the permittee), and the landowners of record as to the Recommended Determination, and has notified these groups that they have 15 days in which to notify the Assistant Administrator for the Office of Water of their intent to take corrective action to prevent the unacceptable adverse impacts to wildlife detailed in the recommendation. In response, attorneys for the permittee have requested a 30-day extens