Strike three for the Rock Creek mine proposal
It’s good news for our ongoing effort to protect Montana’s Cabinet Mountains Wilderness Area and the area’s threatened bull trout and grizzly bear populations from the proposed Rock Creek Mine.
On May 5, 2010, a federal court tossed out the mine permit, saying it fails to minimize impacts to water quality and fisheries.
This is the third time that the court has ruled against this project. The mine must now go back to the drawing board to develop a revised plan. With your support, we will continue our efforts to protect this important ecosystem.
Strike… four? The fisheries challenge in Montana State Court
In 2008, EARTHWORKS and our partners also contested a permit issued by the State of Montana, challenging the large amount of sediment that the mine is expected to discharge into Rock Creek, a lower Clark Fork tributary that supports a crucial population of bull trout, a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. State water quality law prohibits anyone from discharging sediment into state waters at levels that will harm fisheries. That case will be briefed in front of the Court in September.
For more information:
- Take a look at this fact sheet for a quick synopsis on this mine and the threat it poses to our water, wildlife and wilderness.
- Also, check out our page on the Rock Creek mine proposal for a more complete history.
- 2008 press release announcing the joint lawsuit, filed in Montana State court to protect bull trout from mine sediment
- 2010 federal court order tossing the third permit of the Rock Creek mine proposal
