Group sues for records for Ariz. mining operation

A group of environmentalists is suing the federal government for access to records regarding a coal mining operation in northeastern Arizona.

The group contends the Office of Surface Mining has unlawfully withheld documents, including a copy of the operating permit for Peabody Energy’s Kayenta mine.

Coal from the Kayenta mine comes from the Navajo and Hopi reservations and supplies the Navajo Generating Station near Page.

The lawsuit filed last week in federal court in Colorado asks a judge to order the records be released.

The group filed its request earlier this year but not all documents were produced.

The U.S. Department of Interior, which oversees the Office of Surface Mining, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.