A West Virginia Coal Company was found to be in further contempt of the court after failing to achieve compliance standards previously set by the court regarding water pollutants.
The court agreed to hold Lexington Coal Company in further contempt, following the company’s liability for water pollutant violations being established in March 2021, and it racking up $69,500 in contempt fines, according to the opinion. Three environmental groups, West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, Appalachian Voices, and the Sierra Club filed the motion, following the court’s holding that Lexington coal was liable for violations of polluting the water with selenium and ionic pollutants, claiming the deadline for compliance had come and gone, and that “little to no progress” had been made regarding addressing the water pollutants.
