Complaint about North American Coal (NAC)
North Dakota Public Service Commission (PSC)
1
2022 Formal Complaint given to the PSC - Esther Eisenbeis Farmland
- pdf document
Appendix A - 2019 Complaint PSC Decision Letter - 13 Jun 2019
- pdf document
... PSC ruled that it is not mining related ... Comments have been added by Clyde Eisenbeis
Appendix B - North American Coal Dishonest Letter - 19 Jun 2018
- pdf document
... Numerous errors ... Comments have been added by Clyde Eisenbeis
Appendix C - North American Coal Proposed Approach Agreement - 22 Sep 2017
- pdf document
... NAC is not liable for damage ... Comments have been added by Clyde Eisenbeis
Appendix D - North American Coal Threatening Letter - 5 Jul 2018
- pdf document
... Numerous errors ... Comments have been added by Clyde Eisenbeis
Appendix E - Eisenbeis Farmland History Log
- pdf document
... Accurately documents the history since 2011
Appendix F - Eisenbeis Questions not allowed to ask
- pdf document
... at the 2019 PSC meeting
The
2022 Formal Complaint PSC Final Decision Letter
- 27 Sep 2022 - pdf document
... Per the PSC Commissioners Julie Fedorchak, Randy Christmann, and Sheri Haugen Hoffart, NAC is
not liable for property damage to farmland.
... Comments have been added by Clyde Eisenbeis
This
PSC Policy Graitities
has loopholes.
The PSC Commissioners will always decide that what they do is legal.
Bottom Line
The PSC Commissioners are allowed to contradict the North Dakota Century Code.
Addendum 1 - Should be classified as Perjury
- pdf document
... at the 2022 PSC meeting
Addendum 2 - Dishonest NAC Comments
- pdf document
... at the 2022 PSC meeting
Addendum 3 - Pond water discharge exceeds rainfall
- pdf document
... at the 2022 PSC meeting
Damage to Farmland Summary 7-Nov-2022
A Formal Complaint was filed with the Public Service Commission in Sep.
The PSC Commissioners Julie Fedorchak, Randy Christmann, and Sheri Haugen Hoffart made
decisions that oppose the Formal Complaint. That PSC decision included statements such
as "no proof" and this is a "private matter".
The PSC Commissioners do not consider, photos taken by PSC staff, to be proof.
The PSC Commissioners categorize this is a "private matter". Suppose someone burned down
your Mom's house. The arsonist claimes that your Mom said it was ok. The arsonist also
states that this is a private matter between the arsonist and your Mom.
In addition, intentionally digging ditches on someone else's land and blocking access to
farmland is a crime. The PSC did not contact the Mercer County Sheriff in 2014.
This is a grave injustice. NAC dug the ditches on the Esther Eisenbeis farmland.
The farmland owners are expected to pay for repairing the NAC damage using retirement savings.
The PSC Commissioners are not enforcing ND laws (NDCC) that protect people and their property.
NDCC (North Dakota Century Code) 38-14.1 Surface Mining and Reclamation Operations
NDCC (North Dakota Century Code) 38-14.1-02 (35 b) "Surface coal mining operations means:
The areas upon which such activities occur or where such activities disturb the natural land surface. Such
areas shall also include any adjacent land the use of which is incidental to any such activities"
NDAC (North Dakota Administrative Code) 69-05.2 Surface Coal Mining and Reclamation Operations
NDAC 69-05.2-01-02 (1) "Adjacent area means land located outside the affected area or permit area"
PSC Memorandum
PSC Memorandum 6 to Mine Operators, March 8, 1995 "... activities and disturbances must be conducted
within the boundaries of a surface coal mining permit ...."
2
Photos:
Photos of the farmland damage were taken by the PSC during multiple years. Per the PSC Commissioners, these
photos are not adequate proof.
The contents of Appendix B - North American Coal (NAC) Dishonest Letter contains hearsay. The statement on
the witness-stand by Sarah Flath (NAC) that this document is accurate, is perjury.
Also, if Miss Flath comments, about obtaining permission to damage property from a person who has Alzheimer's, is
accurate, that is a crime.
Original road ditch ... road ditch, deepened by NAC ... road ditch continues to erode
/2008 road ditch facing east.jpg)
/IMG_7735.jpg)
/Agweek Road Ditch, 3 Jun 2021.jpg)
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Original diversion ditch ... diversion ditch deepened by NAC,
/2008 next to fence facing southwest.jpg)
/IMG_0559.jpg)
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More PSC photos taken on:
6 Mar 2008 photos
before North American Coal (NAC) damage
31 Aug 2011 photos
after NAC damage
16 Sep 2014 photos
after more NAC damage and NAC land modification
26 Apr 2018 photos
after more NAC damage and more NAC land modification
3
North American Coal (NAC) is required to obtain a permit to dig on NAC land.
NAC is not allowed to dig on land that someone else owns without a permit.
NAC is not allowed to block access to farmland.
Clyde Eisenbeis did provide NAC with written authorization to install an approach -
pdf document.
NAC did not require a written authorization to remove the approach, which had been there for more
than 100 years.
Is NAC is not allowed to discharge coal mine pond water into a creek on the farmland if
that discharge floods farmland.
4
A North American Coal (NAC) sedimentation pond overflowed on the Esther Eisenbeis
farmland which damaged farmland and farmland crops in 2011 and 2014. Sedimentation pond
netting was found in multiple places on the the Esther Eisenbeis farmland.
NAC dug a deep drainage ditch on the farmland in 2012 and 2014 without authorization
from the land owner.
NAC also dug the road ditch deeper without authorization from the land owner,
and without authorization from Mercer County. The ditch is so deep that grain trucks
can no longer cross the ditch. The combine needs to travel across the ditch to unload the grain
onto a truck. The land owner and county did not know, until 2016, this occurred.
NAC discharged sedimentation pond water into the the Esther Eisenbeis farmland creek
on the north end (water flows north into Lake Sakakawea). The volume of water caused the water to also
flow south. This raised the water table elevation to the farmland elevation.
This elevated water table caused problems on the Wayne Eisenbeis farmland south of the Esther
Eisenbeis farmland, the flooded the SW corner of the Esther Eisenbeis farmland over a
span of many years. It also flooded a neighbor's farmland and basement north
of the Esther Eisenbeis farmland.
The Public Service Commission (PSC) took photos of the farmland in 2008, 2011, 2014, and 2018
These photos document the damage and land modifications by NAC.
NAC verbally agreed to install an approach across the deep road ditch on 13 Apr 2016.
NAC did not install the approach.
On 28 Apr 2017 (a year later) NAC stated the approach was not installed because there was no written
authorization. Clyde Eisenbeis immediately emailed a written authorization to NAC and the
PSC. NAC has acknowledged receiving that written authorization.
A Formal Complaint was submitted to the PSC on 15 May 2019. The PSC decided this is not related
to coal mining. This ignores the fact that the coal mining pond is related to coal mining.
--- Facts ---
1) Sedimentation ponds are related to coal mining.
2) Sedimentation pond netting was found on the farmland.
3) NAC discharge of mining pond water into the farmland creek raised the water table elevation. The water table elevation measurements (a half mile south of the farmland) show the elevation was raised to the farmland elevation which flooded farmland.
4) NAC dug the deep drainage ditch and deepened the road ditch.
5
Clyde Eisenbeis exchanged emails with the PSC staff and met with them at the farmland and at the PSC office multiple times starting in 2016.
The PSC received a response letter from NAC dated 19 Jun 2018. That NAC letter was not given to Clyde Eisenbeis until 10 Jun 2019. That NAC letter has errors and dishonest statements (see Appendices).
Clyde Eisenbeis filed a Formal Complaint with the PSC in 2019. The PSC Commissioners met on 12 Jun 2019 to discuss the complaint. Clyde Eisenbeis was not allowed to speak at that meeting.
The PSC Commissioners decided that this is "not" coal mining related (see Appendices), even though:
1) NAC sedimentation pond water overflow caused the damages,
2) NAC discharged sedimentation pond water which flooded farmland, and
3) NAC dug the ditches.
6
Agweek article, Nov 2021
North Dakota landowner says North American Coal owes him a field approach
website
Road ditch, blocking acesss to farmland, is continuing to erode - 2021
7
North Dakota Century Code (NDCC)
website
38 Mining and Gas and Oil Production
website
38-14.1 Surface Mining and Reclamation Operations
website
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38-14.1-01 Declaration of findings and intent
38-14.1-01 (1) --- disturbances of surface areas ... by damaging the property of citizens
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38-14.1-02 Definitions
38-14.1-02 (17) --- Permit area means land approved for surface coal mining operations
38-14.1-02 (19) --- Permit revision mean modification of permit and includes changes in the mining plans boundary extensions
38-14.1-02 (34) --- Surface coal mining operations means surface coal mining
38-14.1-02 (35 a) --- activities affecting the surface of lands in connection with surface coal mine
38-14.1-02 (35 b) --- areas where activities disturb natural land surface ... includes adjacent land
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38-14.1-14 Permit applications - Mining and reclamation plans
38-14.1-14 (1) Permit applications ... must contain
(r 13) Permit applications ... must contain the location of any discharges to any surface body of water on the area of land to be affected or adjacent thereto
38-14.1-21 (3 c) Prevent damage to the hydrologic balance outside the permit area
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38-14.1-24 Environmental protection performance standards
38-14.1-24 (8) Minimize the disturbances to the prevailing hydrologic balance in associated offsite areas
(f) --- Avoiding natural channel deepening
North Dakota Administrative Code (NDAC) [Administrative Rules]
website
69 Public Service Commission
website
69-05.2 Surface Coal Mining and Reclamation Operations
website
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69-05.2-01 General Provisions
69-05.2-01-02 Definitions
69-05.2-01-02 (1) ... Adjacent area means land located outside the affected area or permit area ....
PSC Public Awareness: Laws, Rules and Other, Interpretive Docs [Policy Memoranda]
website