from the Casper Star-Tribune

BILLINGS, Mont. -- The federal government has approved strict new water quality standards sought by Montana over fears that coal-bed methane drilling in neighboring Wyoming could pollute interstate rivers.

Montana officials said Monday that the new rules would protect farmers from poor-quality water produced during exploration for coal-bed methane. Over the last decade, that industry has boomed just over the state line in Wyoming.

"It's a good thing to protect the water for our state," Montana Department of Environmental Quality Director Richard Opper said of the new rules. They were approved by the Environmental Protection Agency in a letter dated Friday.

But with a federal lawsuit over the issue still pending before District Judge Clarence Brimmer in Cheyenne, it was not immediately clear how far Montana could go in enforcing the standards.

The energy industry and state of Wyoming joined forces to oppose the rules in court after they were adopted by Montana's Board of Environmental Quality in 2006. They argued Montana's actions threaten to dampen energy development in the Powder River Basin, which straddles the border of the two states.

A spokeswoman for Wyoming Gov. David Freudenthal declined to comment Monday, citing the pending litigation.

The EPA said in its approval letter that the rules were "consistent with the requirements of the Clean Water Act."

Full Story: http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2008/03/04/news/
wyoming/7d095be1e9536943872574020008f186.txt