Page 10 - Flathead Beacon // 6.4.14

10 | JUNE 4, 2014 NEWS FLATHEADBEACON.COM

Lincoln County Oicials Express Frustration

Facts
Montanore
FIGURES
with Schweitzer Over

Numbers in the news
Optima Inc., former governor

ile $10 million compensation
24,175
claim against Mines

Management
Voter signatures
needed in three weeks By JUSTIN FRANZ of the Beacon

to get a measure on Lincoln County oicials are frustrat-
the ballot in November
ed with former Gov. Brian Schweitzer for
to ban marijuana use putting up what they see as another road-
and possession in block in front of the proposed Montanore
Mine near Libby. Last week, Schweitzer
Montana, even for and a group of investors iled a $10 million
medical purposes.
compensation claim against Mines Man-
agement, Inc., a Spokane-based company
that is trying to open the copper and silver
30
mine.
Mines Management Chairman and
Percentage of carbon Chief Executive Oicer Glenn Dobbs ac-
cused Schweitzer of pushing the company
dioxide emissions into an unfair deal that threatens the en-
from power plants tire project. The former governor says he’s A Montanore Mine employee, right, describes the ventilation system while standing outside the adit with
just trying to help move the deal forward Glenn Dobbs, president and CEO of Mines Management, Inc. BEACON FILE PHOTO
that is to be reduced
by 2030, according by resolving the claims dispute so mining agement works to receive government
can begin.
“WHEN HE WAS ELECTED HE approval. The company has also been in-
to the Environmental Lincoln County oicials, including volved in various legal battles with Opti-
Protection Agency, Commissioner Tony Berget and Libby SAID HE WOULD GET MON- mia, which says the Montanore adit slices
Mayor Doug Roll, said Schweitzer is be- TANORE FAST TRACKED. WELL right though one of its mining claims and,
which is setting in ing a “bully” and is threatening the project before the company can start mining, it
motion one of the that could potentially bring hundreds of HE WAS THERE FOR EIGHT needs to be compensated for its losses.
most signiicant jobs to the area.
Earlier this year, U.S. District Court
YEARS AND HE CERTAINTY
actions on climate Berget said Schweitzer had once prom- Judge Dana Christensen issued a pre-
change in U.S. history.
ised him that the governor’s oice would DIDN’T FAST TRACK IT.”
liminary condemnation order in favor
do everything it could to get the Mon- of Mines Management, which began the
tanore project of the ground and yet to- Tony Berget
process of iguring out how much Optimia
day, the 14,000-foot mine adit sits empty was owed for crossing its claim. Recently,
21
and partially looded.
Schweitzer contacted the company with a
“When he was elected he said he would deal for $10 million, but Dobbs said that is
get Montanore fast tracked.” Berget said. way we were hoping to be paid compensa-
Percentage that far too much.
Montana will need to “Well he was there for eight years and he tion? These are illogical allegations, and If the two sides cannot come to an
certainty didn’t fast track it.”
they are not true,” Schweitzer said.
agreement in the next 20 days, the court
cut carbon emissions In an Associated Press story, Dobbs Both Berget and Roll say the mine will appoint a three-member commission
to meet new EPA also accused Schweitzer of delaying the could help turn around Lincoln County’s to settle the dispute. Roll and the others
project while in oice. The former gover- lagging economy, which has been plagued hope the disagreement is resolved soon
standards; each state nor countered that there was “quite the with the highest unemployment in the and mine development begins.
has until 2017-18 to opposite” and that this current deal was state. Dobbs said the mine could annually “(Schweitzer) paid lip service to me in
submit a plan for
an opportunity to settle any claims issues produce 7 million ounces of silver and 60 support of that mine and then he goes and
hitting the target and move the project forward.
million pounds of copper and employ 350 does this,” Roll said. “It’s just one road-
levels.
“How would it make sense for us to de- people. However, the project has been de- block after another with this project.”
press the value of the shares if that’s the
layed for nearly a decade as Mines Man-
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