The U.S. Forest Service appears to be slowing permitting of the proposed Rock Creek Mine in northwest Montana.
The agency advised opponents of the copper and silver mining proposal that it was modifying a Record of Decision to permit the development of only the project’s first phase, which allows for the excavation of an audit to evaluate the ore body beneath the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness. The second phase of the project, which involves the development of the mine itself, will be subject to additional review.
The project’s original Record of Decision approved both Phase I and Phase II.
The pristine wilderness terrain around the site of the proposed Rock Creek Mine drains directly into the watershed that connects the Clark Fork River with Lake Pend Oreille.
LINK (via: Bonner County Daily Bee)
