HELENA, Mont. (AP) — A federal board has ordered BNSF Railway to transport at least 4.2 million tons of coal from a Montana mine to a port in Canada this year.

This would allow a Navajo Nation-owned coal producer to meet its overseas contracts.

The U.S. Surface Transportation Board order requires BNSF to move 23 trains of coal per month for the Navajo Transitional Energy Company, beginning immediately, and additional trains when it can.

The board says BNSF Railway's obligation as a “common carrier” means it has to provide service if it has the capacity to do so.

NTEC is also suing BSNF Railway for hauling less coal last year than it was contracted to.

Read more here.

Native plants that do well in Wyoming gardens

Consider the Indian Paintbrush. This and other regional wild-flowers. For one thing, they don’t require fertilizers and require fewer pesticides since they have natural resilience to garden pests in the region, in turn promoting beneficial populations like butterflies and hummingbirds. They also require less water because they’ve adapted to rely on rainwater.

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