Dear Mr. Gavette, Please accept these comments on Peabody Western Coal Company's recent mine application to the Office of Surface Mining. I urge you to treat Peabody's request as a new permit application, instead of a revision because of the adverse impacts it will have on the land, water, and cultures of Black Mesa. Peabody's application is incomplete and must be subject to a new Environmental Impact Statement and Endangered Species Act review. Furthermore, Peabody must carry the burden of establishing that their application is in compliance with all federal, state, tribal, and local regulatory programs. Despite substantial evidence that proves the negative impacts of Peabody's pumping from the N-Aquifer and in the face of public demand that pumping from the Navajo Aquifer stop by the end of 2005, Peabody insists on using the N-Aquifer through 2008, in not indefinitely. Additionally, Peabody seeks to tap into another fresh water source, the Coconino Aquifer, for transporting and washing coal. The use of drinking water for this purpose is unacceptable. The federal government has a special trust responsibility to Native American tribes. I urge you to live up to this responsibility and deny Peabody's request."
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