"BILLINGS, Mont. — A U.S. judge has rejected the Biden administration’s attempt to delay a lawsuit from several states and environmentalists who are seeking to end lease sales for coal mining on federal lands.

The coal leasing program was temporarily shut down under President Barack Obama because of concerns about climate change, and then revived by the Trump administration. There have been few sales in the years since because the use of coal has plummeted as utilities turn to cleaner-burning fuels.

Environmentalists want to shut down the program permanently and have been frustrated by the Biden administration’s attempts to delay a legal challenge pending before U.S. District Brian Morris in Montana."

Matthew Brown reports for the Associated Press June 4, 2021. [2]