April 17 – The State of Wisconsin Division of Hearings and
Appeals will hold a prehearing conference on the matter of the
application of Flambeau Mining Company for issuance of a Certificate of
Completion of Reclamation at 1 p.m., in the County Board Room of the
Rusk County Courthouse, 311 Miner Ave., Ladysmith.

The purpose
of the prehearing conference will be to identify all parties to the
proceeding, to simplify the issues which will ultimately be contested
at the hearing and to establish appropriate schedules for the
submission of documentary evidence and for prehearing discovery. No
testimony will be heard at the prehearing conference; however, a date
will be set for the hearing on the merits at the conference. The Matter
Flambeau Mining Company filed a Petition for Issuance of a Certificate
of Completion (COC) of Reclamation on Jan. 11, 2007.

The Petition, in
part, sought to reduce the company’s reclamation bond to twenty (20)
percent of the cost of reclamation of the entire mining site, pursuant
to Wis. Admin. Code § 132.13. On Feb. 15, 2007, the Department of
Natural Resources issued a “Determination of Compliance with the
Wisconsin Environmental Protection Act: Flambeau Mine Certificate of
Completion.” The DNR concluded that the application for the COC should
be treated as a Type IV action under Wis. Admin. Code § NR
150.03(8)(e)(2), and did not require an Environmental Analysis under
the Wisconsin Environmental Policy Act (WEPA), § 1.11, Stats.

Issuance
of a COC and the corresponding reduction in the amount of the
Reclamation Bond will not cease or initiate any actions or activities
at the Flambeau Mine site. As such, the DNR determined that a COC
decision and a reduction of the reclamation bond will not affect
critical resources or create a substantial risk to human life, health
or safety. People may submit written comment on the Issuance of a
Certificate of Completion by sending comments by April 17, 2007 to
Philip Fauble, Wisconsin DNR Bureau of Waste and Materials Management,
PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707-7921. A Class 1 contested case public
hearing will be set after the prehearing conference. For information
contact Philip Fauble at - (608) 267-3538.

Location(s)