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Peabody Energy affiliates earned five of 12 national industry awards for stewardship at the 2006 U.S. Department of the Interior's Excellence in Surface Coal Mining Reclamation Awards ceremony last night in Washington, D.C.

Peabody earned four National Excellence in Reclamation Awards for promoting sustainable practices, and Seneca Coal Company Reclamation Manager Roy Karo was honored with the "Best of the Best" Award for his career achievements in reclamation at the Seneca Mine in Colorado.

  Award recipients include:
  Black Beauty Coal Company and United Minerals Company
  Cedar Creek Mine, Illinois
  Excellence in Surface Mining and Reclamation National Award

  Black Beauty Coal Company and United Minerals Company
  West Fork Mine, Indiana
  Excellence in Surface Mining and Reclamation National Award

  Peabody Coal Company
  Lynnville Mine, Indiana
  Excellence in Surface Mining and Reclamation National Award

  Seneca Coal Company
  Seneca Coal Company Reclamation Manager Roy Karo
  Best of the Best Award

  Seneca Coal Company
  Seneca Mine, Colorado
  Excellence in Surface Mining and Reclamation National Award

Peabody has a long history of achieving sustainable practices, having earned nearly two dozen awards for stewardship in the past two years. Peabody's mission says, "When the mining is complete, we will leave the land in a condition equal to or better than we found it." In 2005, the company invested hundreds of millions of dollars in reclamation activities, restored nearly 4,600 acres of land and planted more than 700,000 trees.

The company has earned more than 50 state and national awards for stewardship and sustainability since 2000, including all three Good Neighbor Awards from U.S. Interior in 2005.

"Achieving excellence in stewardship and sustainability is a core Peabody value and continues to be demonstrated through best practices at our operations," said Peabody Energy President and Chief Executive Officer Gregory H. Boyce. "We are proud of our environmental teams, which create lasting community benefits from reclamation activities, and Roy, who has dedicated his 30-year career to innovative practices that have created tremendous results at our former Seneca Mine."

Peabody Energy is the world's largest private-sector coal company, with 2005 sales of 240 million tons of coal and $4.6 billion in revenues. Its coal products fuel approximately 10 percent of all U.S. and 3 percent of worldwide electricity.

Editor's note: A description of each award follows, and images depicting each of these projects can be downloaded at www.PeabodyEnergy.com .

Use of the words "Peabody", "the company" and "our" relate to Peabody, our subsidiaries and our majority-owned affiliates.

                              PEABODY ENERGY
                     U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
        2006 EXCELLENCE IN SURFACE COAL MINING RECLAMATION AWARDS

  Excellence in Surface Mining and Reclamation National Award
  Cedar Creek Mine, Illinois

The former Cedar Creek Mine was recognized with an Excellence in Mining and Reclamation National Award for restoring mined land for prime farmland that has demonstrated greater crop yields than before mining occurred. The reclamation also incorporated forest lands and wildlife habitat, creating greater diversity than native range. U.S. Interior credited the mine for a community-based approach to reclamation, working with area landowners to develop reclamation plans, which resulted in creation of 20 acres of ponds on five properties, along with development of roads to improve landowner access. Employees also partnered with the Natural Resource Conservation Service to develop an erosion control plan for protecting the soils for farming.

  Excellence in Surface Mining and Reclamation National Award
  Lynnville Mine, Indiana

The former Lynnville Mine in Indiana was awarded an Excellence in Mining and Reclamation National Award for managing soil resources and reseeding more than 300 acres of reclaimed land. Reforestation efforts included planting more than 40 species of trees, with more than 600 trees per acre of reclaimed land.

  Excellence in Surface Mining and Reclamation National Award
  West Fork Mine, Indiana

The former West Fork Mine in Indiana earned an Excellence in Mining and Reclamation National Award for restoring diversified forest areas, ponds and wildlife habitat that included open grassland as well as wooded species for food and cover. West Fork Mine restored more than 700 acres and developed more than a dozen ponds for wildlife, creating a more diversified wildlife habitat that included open grassland areas as well as woody species that provide food and cover for wildlife.

  Excellence in Surface Mining and Reclamation National Award
  Seneca Mine, Colorado

The former Seneca Mine in Colorado was honored with an Excellence in Mining and Reclamation National Award for collaborating on a five-year study with Colorado State University to establish best practices for restoring oak brush and shrubs to enhance wildlife habitat. As part of the study, Seneca gathered native seeds and grew them in nurseries to make them more readily adaptable to environmental conditions prior to being planted across reclaimed land. Seneca has planted more than 100,000 shrubs in the past 11 years.

  Best of the Best Award
  Roy Karo, Reclamation Manager, Seneca Coal Company, Colorado

Roy Karo is Reclamation Manager at the Seneca Mine in Colorado, a nearly 30-year industry veteran honored for his lifetime of achievement in best practices for reclamation. Roy has spent his career at the Seneca Mine where his efforts have created lush reclaimed lands that are typically four times more productive for livestock grazing than native range. Under Roy's leadership, Seneca Mine has earned numerous state and national awards for stewardship.

  CONTACT:
  Beth Sutton
  (505) 287-2636

SOURCE: Peabody Energy