The Utah Board of Oil, Gas and Mining (BDOGM) made the selection and chairman James Jensen presented the two awards to Skyline and Sufco mines, managed by Arch subsidiary Canyon Fuel, on April 24.

Canyon Fuel is Utah's largest coal producer.

The 250 employees of Skyline mine were recognized for their outstanding efforts to mitigate the mine's ventilation facility in Winter Quarters Canyon.

During the ceremony Jensen said that the Skyline mine "went the extra mile" to voluntarily produce a booklet on the historic Winter Quarters Canyon to preserve the rich mining history of the area.

It is the second consecutive earth day award for Skyline mine and since 2000, Skyline has been honored with eight earth day awards.

Skyline's leading environmental performance includes a perfect compliance rate for six consecutive years.

The 375 employees of Sufco mine earned high honors for "environmental improvement", according to the BDOGM.

Sufco voluntarily developed gravity-fed pipelines to distribute scarce water resources for livestock and wildlife.

Sufco has maintained a perfect environmental compliance rate since 2006. It has been honored with five Utah earth day awards since 2000.

"Environmental responsibility is a core value at Arch,” Arch Western Bituminous Group president Gene DiClaudio said.

“We're honored to be recognized by the state for environmental excellence twice in 2013."