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Adding new sparks to the
age-old debate about the feasibility of the
proposed Rock Creek mine, Asarco sold the project last
October, along with the defunct Troy mine, to Sterling
Mining Company. Sterling
was formed specifically for the purpose of acquiring
these mineral interests, but Asarco remains a major
shareholder with a 20% stake in the new company.
Sterling may be a new name in
Montana, but the company's principals are anything but
new to mining. Sterling executives have a history of
attracting capital for risky mining ventures, declaring
bankruptcy, and leaving the cost of an environmental
catastrophe to taxpayers. The principals of this mining
company include the likes of Tim Babcock, Frank Duval,
Hobart Teneff, Gary Hebener, and
Raymond Hanson. Mr. Babcock, former Governor of
Montana, has been a mining industry lobbyist and chief
opponent of responsible mining in Montana for two
decades. Mr. Duval and Mr. Teneff co-founded
Pegasus (Gold,
owner and operator of the now bankrupt Zortman-Landusky
(Z-L) Gold mines near Malta.
Despite attempts by Sterling to
convince local citizens in Montana and Idaho that Rock
Creek will be different, the public isn't buying it. At
recent town meetings held in Noxon and Sandpoint, locals
were eager to question Sterling's principals about their
involvement in other failed mining ventures and how they
plan to protect public lands and water resources at Rock
Creek. When asked by someone in the audience if Sterling
could guarantee protection of the Clark Fork River,
Frank Duvall said "only God Almighty could do
that." The person in the audience said, "We'll
take God Almighty."
The enormous threat of pollution to
waters on both sides of the border has raised hackles
throughout the river corridor and continues to sustain
an impassioned battle to protect water quality. The
Clark Fork River has a long history of abuse by historic
mining and other urban and industrial pollution, but the
river is on the mend. Federal and state Superfund
remediation efforts at Milltown Dam, a Voluntary
Nutrient Reduction Program, and a ground-breaking
relicensing agreement on the Noxon rapids and Cabinet
Gorge dams to reconnect the historic migratory corridor
for bull trout, are all coalescing into overall water
quality improvement. In light of these efforts, the
proposed Rock Creek mine, which would return 3 million
gallons of polluted water to the lower river, every day,
and leave a 100 million ton pile of tailings next to the
river, just doesn't make any sense.
STERLING RAISES STINK ABOUT TROY
RECLAMATION BOND
While Sterling has been eager to
convince the public that they will do things
right, they failed to pass the first real test.
The Troy mine, which operated from 1982 to 1993 before
closing prematurely due to low metals prices, is long
overdue for a reclamation bond review (required every
five years). The State of Montana has been mulling this
over in recent months.
Since Pegasus Gold Corp. went bankrupt and left
the state with millions of dollars in cleanup costs,
Montana is taking a closer look at bonds.
The Department of Environmental
Quality (DEQ) has determined that the current
Troy bond amount of $2.7 million is inadequate. Instead,
they propose raising the bond to $10 million. This
figure represents the minimum dollar amount necessary to
reclaim the site, based upon the current reclamation
plan. Independent experts, who recommend a bond between
$15-20 million, view the $10 million bond as a
bare minimum in light of existing problems with
non‑permitted discharges to ground and surface
water and questions about the integrity of the tailings
impoundment, among other things. But Sterling
Mining and Asarco object, contending it is
unreasonable. Until Sterling posts an adequate bond,
Asarco remains legally responsible for reclamation -- so much for a clean
get-away. DEQ expects to release a decision
on the bond any day.
If you would like to help protect water quality and
wild lands along the Clark Fork River, contact the
Bitterroot-Mission Group of
Sierra Club or the Rock Creek Alliance
(406-543-2947).
Click
Here to
go to the Rock Creek Alliance's website or you can write
them at: Rock Creek Alliance,114 West Pine
Street, Missoula, MT 59802, (406) 543-29487,
dgilels@aol.com. (Dori Giles)
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