Changes

On August 1, 2012 a Federal District court judge in Washington, D.C. ruled against environmental groups WildEarth Guardians, the Sierra Club and the Powder River Basin Resource Council’s challenge to the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) 's decision to lease more than 400 million tons of coal to [[Cloud Peak Energy]], the current operator of the [[Antelope Coal Mine]] in Wyoming.

The case is was the first in a series of legal challenges lawsuits brought by the conservation groups over BLM’s coal leasing program in the Powder River Basin. The groups were disappointed with the decision but vowed to continue legal and other efforts to challenge BLM’s coal leases.<ref>[http://ecowatch.org/2012/court-rejects-coal/ "Federal Court Rejects Challenge to 400 Million Ton Coal Lease on Public Lands"] EcoWatch, August 1, 2012.</ref>