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A federal appeals court says environmental groups can challenge the removal of the Blair Mountain Battlefield from the National Register of Historic Places.

 

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled Tuesday that the groups have legal standing to bring the challenge.

 

In 2012, U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton dismissed the lawsuit filed by the Sierra Club and other groups against the U.S. Department of Interior. The lawsuit sought to prevent mining on Blair Mountain. Walton ruled that the groups have no standing to bring the challenge.

 

The appeals court sent the case back to the lower court for further proceedings.

 

Blair Mountain was the site of a 1921 battle between coal miners trying to unionize and police and hired guns.