Cyanide heap leach mining in Montana

[ScottP]

Montana Senate has approved SB 306 which modifies current regulations to allow transportation of ore from open pit mines to approved facilities for processing, chiefly Golden Sunlight near Whitehall/Cardwell.

Montana voters approved a ballot initiative in November 1988 which banned the recovery of gold and silver in new mining projects that would use cyanide heap leaching. They subsequently rejected a second ballot initiative aimed at repealing the ban.

http://www.greatfallstribune.com/art...xt%7CFrontpage



Regards,
Scott

[JohnScott]

Scott -

That is only one piece of the pie - and it is probably the least significant. Follow the link for more news.

http://missoulian.com/news/local/art...cc4c03286.html

John

P.S. The way this Legislature ignores laws ennacted through voter initiatives really is bothersome. Can you spell referendum ??

[ScottP]

John,

Thanks for the link; hadn't seen that one. Love this quote:

"I know that some people don't like the idea of the ground being torn up and holes being dug, but this is Montana - that's what we do," said Sen. Dave Lewis, R-Helena.

And do poorly. Take a look at the Berkley Pit, check out the history of Zortman-Landusky mine. State and federal govt are left holding the bag and dealing with the mess that will last for ?? Wouldn't be surprised to see Seven Up Pete re-open for business if this goes through and then you'll have the threat of acid mine drainage spills in the headwaters of the Blackfoot and Rock Creek, among others.

Regards,
Scott

[two]

I do now and will continue to feed my family from the paychecks of the mining industry. I was lucky to be able to vote against I-197 (I think) and would do so again today if given the chance.

I don't believe, " to see the future, we need only to look to the past." I remain proud of the companies I have worked for and the sound environmental principal they embrace. The cyanide ban does not make the Berkley Pit go away and as easy as it is to point to the major problems it washes away the good that industry did to build the state of Montana and many others. John, you and I have walked the streams of Montana and have seen the obvious signs of over grazing and watering of cattle to the waters of the state; should we ban beef production?

Guys, sound environmental engineering coupled with sound planning allows some projects to move forward and some to be left on the cutting room floor, but just blanket banning of proven technique only leads to further dependence on others to provide what we need . Proper bonding of projects will not cure all problems, but will help to mitigate impacts at mine closure. Lastly for me, oversight and input on all proposals is crucial. There are folks that will be against everything all the time and that gets us nowhere; I do believe sound science rather than fear should dictate whether each individual project gets a go ahead.

Please don't take this as a lecture as it is not meant in that spirit, I'm just giving my two cents before I try to figure out what to do with that new spey rod my wife got me for Valentines Day.