The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement is in a very important comment period, and it’s vital for the Moffat County community to submit comments in order to keep Colowyo Mine open.

The lawsuit that put Colowyo’s fate in question requires a comment period for the public to address the environmental assessment for the South Taylor pit at Colowyo Coal Mine.

Comments make a difference, and it’s critical to understand that all the comments submitted will be read, assessed and used to help determine the fate of Colowyo.

To highlight how comments do foster change, you can look at the newly released Clean Power Plan.

The Environmental Protection Agency released the finalized plan on carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants Monday.

Prior to the finalized plan, the EPA disclosed a proposed plan, followed by a comment period. One of the fears that Craig Station officials had with the proposed plan is that it didn’t take into account all the emissions work the plant had done since 2012.

Throughout the Clean Power Plan comment period, the EPA received hundreds of thousands of comments from entities across the United States. The EPA was required to go through those comments.

The end result is that the finalized plan took into account the emissions work done since 2012. Now, we’re not saying that the Clean Power Plan is perfect by any means, but we are saying that if it weren’t for the comments submitted, perhaps that work would never have been recognized.

So, please, take time to stop by one of the comment stations set up throughout Craig and voice your opinion, concerns and support for Colowyo — it will make a difference.

There are comment stations at the Craig Chamber of Commerce, the Meeker Chamber of Commerce and Hayden Town Hall. You can also submit comments online at supportcolowyo.org.

We want people to personalize their comments. Again, every comment will be read, so it is not a waste of time.

Additionally, two community events are coming up at which residents can make their comments. From 5 to 7 p.m. Monday, a community meeting will take place at the Hampton Inn & Suites. On Wednesday, another community meeting will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. at Downtown Books.

The deadline for comments is Aug. 14, so please help the community be heard.