Fisher Mining Company Expansion Proposal

January 31, 2022

Another issue getting attention recently has been the proposed expansion of the Fisher Coal Mining Company’s strip mining activities in the State Game Land No. 75, Lycoming County – in the upper Little Pine Creek region.

Fisher Coal Mining Company Proposed Expansion Next to Buckeye Run

This information comes from a PA Game Commission (PGC) draft agenda that was dated January 29, 2022. One thing to note is that the PA Game Commission did not have a quorum and therefore could not hold the meeting or take action on the items outlined in the draft agenda. We are not sure when the next PGC meeting will be when a quorum will be present as it will depend on when the Governor makes appoint/s and the commissioner/s are confirmed. Please check directly with the PGC if you are interested in knowing when the next meeting will take place.

Item F. on the draft the agenda was a proposed lease agreement with Fisher Mining Company (FMC) for an additional 115.9 acre area to continue its strip mining operation. The proposed area would cross over Barrens Road which would be rerouted.

Susquehanna Trout Unlimited has written a letter detailing their concerns with this proposal recently. It seems that there have been environmental regulations violations with Fisher Mining Company regarding this site. There is mention of using an alkaline material to be used on the ‘pit floor’ and back-filled in some locations to address water quality. I do not see where this would be an ongoing activity or if water quality would be monitored on a regular basis to determine if additional treatment would be necessary. Additionally, this action has not addressed if it will actually cause any harm rather than it’s intended benefit.

If anyone wants more information or you have questions regarding the Susquehanna TU letter, feel free to contact them at susquehannatu@gmail.com.

For inquiries about the mining operations contact Mike DiMatteo – PGC, at mdimatteo@pa.gov.

And for leaving formal concerns or comments about the proposed mining lease on PA State Game Lands contact Executive Director PGC, Bryan Burhans at bburhans@pa.gov.