Blasting Blasted?

At the July 9 Blount County Commissioners work session, MCoal said that there would be no blasting in the auger mining operation at Rosa Mine. However the ASMC permit contains plans for blasting. As the investigation into this inconsistency proceeds, it seems that blasting is not a common practice with auger mining, but that certain high walls that might otherwise be dangerous, might need to be ‘benched’. However, ASMC described the blasting plans as ‘deficient’, because they were not site specific. ASMC requested a site specific blasting plan which means Mcoal would have to take time to identify these areas and make a specific plan for each area. Forgoing the blasting plan lets them go ahead and get started. Further, when they disturb the high wall they will have to reclaim a whole lot more making it much more expensive. Depending on the amount of loose highwall it may be more practical to just skip certain areas. If only a small portion of an area is unstable, then it would be much more practical to leave them undisturbed and score community points by making people feel they were responding to concerns. A site specific blasting plan could be developed for a future permit. Watch those legal ads!