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APRIL 1, 2015 | 11
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Denver Winslow, project manager at the Montanore Mine, right, describes the ventilation system while standing outside with Glenn Dobbs, president and CEO of Mines Management, Inc. BEACON FILE PHOTO
USFS Issues Draft Record of Decision Approving Lincoln County Mine
If constructed, the Montanore Mine located south of Libby would produce 20,000 tons of copper and silver ore a day and employ 450 people during construction
By JUSTIN FRANZ of the Beacon
The U.S. Forest Service has tenta- tively approved the construction of a new copper and silver mine in Lincoln County.
On March 26, the Kootenai National Forest issued a final environmental im- pact statement and draft record of deci- sion that approves the Montanore Mine, a controversial project that has sat dor- mant for decades roughly 18 miles south of Libby near the Cabinet Mountains.
The proposal is open to public com- ment before a final decision from the Forest Service will be issued. It would also still need approval from the Mon- tana Department of Environmental Quality, which would also oversee the mine located on federal land south of Libby.
“We’re very happy to see 10 years of hard work on the part of the U.S. Forest Service, Montana Department of Envi- ronmental Quality and our own com- pany come to fruition,” Mines Manage- ment, Inc. CEO Glenn Dobbs said. “We are thrilled to death.”
The Montanore Mine was initially developed in the 1980s. Falling copper
and silver prices shuttered the project in the 1990s before its completion. In the early 2000s, Spokane, Washington- based Mines Management picked up the unfinished project and has been trying to permit it ever since.
Final approval of the mine could provide a needed boost to the economy of Lincoln County, which has struggled with the highest unemployment rates in the state in recent years.
“This is welcome news for Lincoln County and the Libby community,” Montana U.S. Sen. Steve Daines said. “This long-awaited project will support hundreds of good-paying jobs and in- crease economic opportunity in north- western Montana. I look forward to see- ing this job-creating project move ahead and and will continue to monitor its sta- tus closely.”
Libby Mayor Doug Roll also said it was welcome news for the area, espe- cially in the wake of the Troy Mine shut- tering and the winding down of the En- vironmental Protection Agency’s Super- fund cleanup.
“Any employment would be a great thing for Libby,” Roll said. “Cautiously optimistic is a good way of putting it.”
Environmental groups have raised concerns in the past about the mine’s impacts to wildlife and the adjacent Cab- inet Mountains Wilderness. Approxi- mately 1,500 acres of mainly National Forest System lands would be disturbed by facilities for the proposed project.
The proposed operation would ini- tially mine and process 12,500 tons of ore per day with a full production rate of 20,000 tons of ore per day, according to the Forest Service. Company officials say the mine could produce 7 million ounces of silver and 60 million pounds
of copper annually.
More than 450 people could be em-
ployed during construction of the mine and once it is up to full production 350 miners would be working underground. At predicted production levels, a 16-year mine life is anticipated.
Dobbs said if the final record of deci- sion is released late this summer at least 30 people would be hired to begin work on the Libby Adit by the end of the year.
Forest Service approval may not be theonlyhurdleleftforthemine.Agroup led by former Gov. Brian Schweitzer has said it has legitimate mine claims in the area and on March 25, representatives from Mines Management met with the group to try and resolve the issue. Dobbs said that both sides were still “far apart” in their positions and that a trial has been set for April 8, when they will make separate cases before a commission of experts.
The first phase of the project would be the evaluation phase, which is an 18-to 24-month underground expansion of the existing Libby Adit to evaluate the ore- body and hydrogeologic conditions un- derground. The evaluation phase would be followed by construction, operations and reclamation phases of the project.
“The final Environmental Impact Statement and draft Record of Decision is the culmination of many years of ded- ication and effort on the part of Forest Service employees and the participating agencies,” Kootenai Forest Supervisor Chris Savage said. “Now we can begin the objection process so that the pub- lic has a chance to review and provide substantive comments during the next phase of this process.”
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