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For the second time in two years, Peabody Energy's Seneca Mine has earned the state's highest honors for environmental stewardship and safety excellence from the Colorado Division of Minerals and Geology and the Colorado Mining Association. The awards were presented this month at the 104th National Western Mining Conference.

The Colorado Health and Safety Achievement Award recognizes the mine's 95 employees for achieving the best surface mine safety record in the state, which includes tracking one year without any injury causing a miner to miss work. Seneca employees also recently completed one year with no Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) reportable injuries. The results embody Peabody's "Going for Perfect" safety program that establishes an annual goal of zero injuries throughout the company's U.S. mining operations.

The Large Surface Mine Reclamation Award applauds Seneca's participation in a two-year industry trial to enhance wildlife habitat on reclaimed lands. The study is exploring the most effective techniques for establishing native shrubs, such as chokecherry, serviceberry and Gambel oak. Test sites have been established to track varying planting techniques, topsoil treatments, seeding and transplanting methods.

"Safety and stewardship go hand in hand and are among our highest priorities," said Gregg Kitchen, Seneca operations manager. "We take great pride knowing our results in both areas continue to lead the industry." Seneca received similar honors from the state in 1999 for completing the single largest restoration project in the mine's history and for operating more than 300,000 hours injury-free.

Seneca's award-winning reclamation practices restore rangeland to a condition that is four times more productive for grazing than native lands. Large populations of deer, elk and other wildlife continue to find a home on the mine's more than 1,800 acres of reclaimed range.

Historically, Seneca Mine has ranked among the nation's safest coal operators, continually posting results that rank significantly below the national average of reportable accidents for every 200,000 hours worked. Employees also have earned more than two dozen awards from the state, the National Safety Council and the Mine Safety and Health Administration in the past 15 years.

Seneca Mine is located near Hayden, Colo., and annually produces about 1.5 million tons of compliance coal for the nearby Hayden Station. The mine's payroll and fringe benefits annually inject $6.3 million into the regional economy.

Peabody Energy is the world's largest coal company. Its coal products fuel more than 9 percent of all U.S. electricity generation and more than 2 percent of worldwide electricity generation.

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SOURCE: Peabody Energy