Who are we?
Bull Mountain Land Alliance (BMLA) is one of the founding affiliates of Northern Plains Resource Council, and was formed in 1969 after a small group of landowners organized to protect their family farms and ranches from the threat of coal mining. In the 1970’s we helped pass state and federal landmark reclamation laws. We are made up of ranchers, landowners, and residents of the Bull Mountains and Roundup. Over the years, we have acted as a watchdog over agencies to safeguard our land, air, and water from the impacts of underground mining in the Bull Mountains, which in recent years, has been run by Signal Peak Energy, LLC (SPE). We believe that the Bull Mountains are worth protecting. The abundant wildlife, rugged hills, and expansive grasslands have sustained generations of Montanans who live, ranch, and recreate here. We want this to continue.
Who is Signal Peak Energy?
SPE is the operator of the Bull Mountain Mine No. 1, Montana’s only underground coal mine. According to the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, SPE produced around 7.25 million tons of coal in 2021, making it the seventh largest underground coal mine in the United States by production. For reference, this is about one million more tons of coal than the Westmorland Rosebud Mine in Colstrip produced that year. In 2021, 95% of SPE’s coal was exported across the Pacific to countries such as Japan, South Korea, and China according to the Montana Department of Commerce. SPE is made up of three parent companies; Gunvor Commodities Trading, FirstEnergy Corp, and Boich Companies. If you’d like to find out more about SPE and its parent companies, check out articles in the resource tab of this webpage.
What is the purpose of this community resource page?
Between now and around 2030, SPE’s mining activity is getting closer to an increasing amount of landowners and residents of the Bull Mountains. SPE has also begun the early steps of seeking a permit expansion, which would mean mining after 2030. Folks in the Bull Mountains who have already been undermined have faced immense impacts, especially to their water, and it’s been very difficult to get SPE to abide by their legal responsibilities as a neighbor and repair damage. Often times, this is because it’s difficult for people to prove that SPE was responsible for damage without having the right baseline water data, or knowing what their rights are. We want to ensure that our neighbors have the information needed to protect themselves and their water in the event of damage from mining activity. Learn more by watching “The Neighbor Beneath.”
Subsidence cracks can impact springs and wells, damaging water resources. Bodies of water such as ponds can disappear into cracks in the earth caused by subsidence, and mining can reduce or eliminate groundwater supplies feeding springs and wells.
Watch “Your Water is at Risk” to learn more about the impacts of longwall mining on water.
Water Quantity in Wells
- Click here to look at the standard operating procedure to measure the static water-level measurement in wells. On the last page of the document, you can find the field form to fill out. If mining activity is over two miles away from your well, we recommend conducting this procedure and filling out the field form quarterly at a minimum. If mining activity gets closer to your well, we recommend increasing the frequency of testing.
- Bull Mountain Land Alliance has an electric tape that they will use to conduct the test for Bull Mountain neighbors. If you are interested participating in this free community monitoring, our members will work with you to collect this data. To ensure that there are second copies of all of the data in one central location, copies should be sent each time to watermonitoring@northernplains.org. The first entry should also include a copy of the initial well log from your well driller if you have it.
- If you make a mistake as you fill out the form, do not erase. Just cross out the mistake and initial it.
- To ensure that there are second copies of all of the data in one central location, copies should be sent each time to watermonitoring@
northernplains.org. If you don’t have a way to scan or fax the filled out form, you can just email a picture of it. - If you are interested in participating in this free community monitoring program for your well, please email watermonitoring@northernplains.org.
- Watch “The Process of Measuring your Water” video for more information on how the process for testing static water level in your well works.
Well Discharge
- While measuring water quantity should be your number one priority, it also is a good idea to measure the flow of water from your well. In the event that your well is damaged and needs replacement, knowing water discharge will help your case to ensure you get adequate water replacement. This will also help you more quickly determine whether there’s a drop in your water levels. The suggested frequency for doing this is the same as for the static water level; however, the more often you can do this the better. There are a few methods for this; one is to purchase a water gauge.
- Watch the “Monitoring Water Use with a Water Gauge” video of Bull Mountains resident, Mike Dubin, explaining how his water gauge works
- You can also simply use a bucket and stopwatch method if your well allows. The equipment, supplies, and procedure will look similar to the Standard Operating Procedure for springs, which you can find below. Click here for the Standard Operating Procedure form for testing water discharge.
- Please send copies of your data each time to watermonitoring@
northernplains.org, so that we can ensure there are back up copies in one central location. If you don’t have a way to scan or fax the filled out form, you can just email a picture of it. - If you make a mistake as you fill out the form, do not erase. Just cross out the mistake and initial it.
Discharge from Developed Springs
- Click here to look at the standard operating procedure to measure the discharge from developed springs using just a 5-gallon bucket and a stopwatch. On the last page of the document, you can find the field form to fill out. If mining activity is over two miles away from your spring, we recommend conducting this procedure and recording data quarterly at a minimum. If mining activity gets closer to your spring, we recommend increasing the frequency of testing. If you have the time for it, however, the more frequently you can collect data, the better.
- Please send copies of your data each time to watermonitoring@
northernplains.org, so that we can ensure there are back up copies in one central location. If you don’t have a way to scan or fax the filled out form, you can just email a picture of it. - If you make a mistake as you fill out the form, do not erase. Just cross out the mistake and initial it.
- If there is no surface flow in your spring, or you can’t measure with a bucket, it is still worthwhile to take a picture of your spring with an object for scale, and submit that with the form and write that you were unable to measure.
- Click here for a map of Signal Peak’s mine plan. As of August 2022, they are on panel 9. If you’re interested in looking at more maps from Signal Peak’s online permit document, click here.
- To read about Signal Peak’s recent criminal charges and to learn about its parent companies, check out this article.
- Montana Department of Environmental Quality Coal Section website for further information on coal mining program or agency contact information.
- Click here to become a member of Bull Mountain Land Alliance so you can work with your neighbors to protect your community and the mountains you call home.
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