NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – Under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, communities around the country are getting funding to transition away from legacy coal mining. New Mexico will get over $2.4 million.
The federal funding is aimed at providing jobs in communities with now-abandoned coal mines. For example, the funds can support reclamation work like land stabilization or water quality treatment.
“The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) is very impactful for the New Mexico Abandoned Mine Land Program,” Mike Tompson, the manager of the New Mexico Abandoned Mine Land (AML) Program, said in a press release. “As a minimum program state, it was getting increasingly harder to make ends meet using the AML Fee-Based funding provided through the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act. Construction and labor costs were rising and the BIL funding provided a lifeline for the state to continue to address the legacy issues of abandoned coal mines here in New Mexico.”
New Mexico also received several million in funding in fiscal year 2022. Now, the additional funding of over $2.4 million through the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement for fiscal year 2023 will continue mine reclamation work around the state.
