Company outlines plan to reopen nearby coal mine; towners press on noise, traffic and dust

Scofield — Representatives for a company seeking to reopen the Kenny coal mine near Scofield told the Scofield Town Council on Feb. 10 that the project is again in permitting and could begin preliminary work if state approvals and buyer contracts materialize.

Greg Hunt, a representative of Coal Energy Group, told the council the company has gone through permitting attempts twice before and expects the current permit update to reach the state’s technical-review stage in the coming months. “It’s not a certain deal. We’re very hopeful,” Hunt said.

The presentation drew about an hour of questions from residents and council members about where operations would sit relative to town buildings and a campground, how the company would control fan and equipment noise, how trucks would enter and exit the site, and how the company would manage dust and emergency medical services.

Why it matters: The area under discussion includes county-owned coal that would generate royalty revenue for Carbon County. Residents are concerned about local impacts — noise from ventilation fans and equipment, increased truck traffic on Highway 96, dust from stockpiles and haul roads and strain on local emergency medical services (EMS). Several speakers said the mine’s surface facilities would be close to the highway and to existing town uses, and asked for mitigation that would reduce community disruption.