Mining is necessary, but it must be done responsibly, the Idaho Conservation League report says

Boise (Idaho Capital Sun) – Mining played an important role in shaping the state of Idaho, but the Idaho Conservation League is working to raise awareness about the long-term environmental damage caused by mining in the Jim State.

A new report from the nonprofit, Unearthing Idaho: Mining and Environmental Effects in the Gem State, provides guidance on balancing demand for minerals while protecting Idaho’s environment. It was deployed to address concerns about new mining projects, increased exploration efforts and issues related to abandoned mines, said Josh Johnson, central director of the Idaho Conservation League.

Johnson acknowledged the need for mining, noting that resources such as cars, cell phones, computers and renewable energy technology depend on extracted materials, some of which come from Idaho.

“Mining is a big part of Idaho’s history and in our heritage here,” Johnson told the Idaho Capital Sun. “We are blessed with a lot of natural resources, and there is a reason why we use those mineral resources. But I think we need to realize that this mining is not appropriate everywhere, and it needs to be done in the right way.

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Johnson said the organization looks at mining projects in Idaho on a case-by-case basis, and it does not generalize mining throughout Idaho. The report includes a list of best practices that it hopes mining companies will adopt.

A look at the history of mining in Idaho

Although mining shaped Idaho’s history, it also created lasting environmental challenges.

Idaho’s mining history dates back to the late 1800s, when the area became part of the late gold rush, historian Troy Lambert told the Idaho Capital Sun. After the discovery of gold in 1860, mining quickly became Idaho’s dominant industry, overtaking agriculture and ranching, according to Idaho inaugural mining report 1899.

The rush for resources did not stop with gold. Many discovered deposits of silver, lead, and copper, especially in Shoshone County in northern Idaho, that would continue to lead the country in silver production for decades.

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For decades, Idaho has led the mining industry, even offering mining programs through the University of Idaho College of Mines, founded in 1917 to support the state’s demand for mining expertise. During World War II, the Stibnite Mine near Yellow Pine became the nation’s leading producer of antimony and tungsten, which were used to produce lead and strengthen metals, according to a U.S. Department of Defense report. US Geological Survey.

However, Idaho’s mining industry, like the rest of the country’s industries, began to decline in the late 20th century for several reasons, including the rising costs of deep resource extraction, the end of World War II mining subsidies, and the introduction of environmental regulations such as the Clean Environment Act. The air and water works go back to the 1970s, Lambert said.

This led to a decline in interest in mining. By 2002, the University of Idaho closed its mining school, and many of those courses were restructured at other colleges on campus, university spokesman Jody Walker told The Sun.

The Clean Air and Water Act, in particular, has dramatically changed mining practices in Idaho. Before these regulations, historic mining projects operated under the idea of ​​“dilution as a solution,” Lambert said, assuming that contaminated water would naturally clean itself as it traveled downstream.

“For a long time it was just a really dirty operation, especially the milling operation…outbuildings over the stream,” Lambert said. They poisoned the land, the water, and everything downstream. These dirty mining practices still affect how we manage the environment in those areas today.

Mining in Idaho was seen as a very noble profession, with men risking their lives to work, Lambert said. While mining has declined in Idaho and the United States as a whole, Lambert said mining worldwide has not.

“If we don’t mine here, it will happen somewhere else in the world,” he said, adding that the United States has child labor laws and modern environmental standards to ensure more ethical and sustainable practices.

The report highlights mining projects that have departed and could leave scars in Idaho

Today, mining makes up less than 1% of the Gem State’s economy. There are six operating mines remaining in Idaho, with three phosphate mines in southeastern Idaho and three metal mines in northern Idaho.

But historic and modern mining projects continue to impact Idaho’s landscape. From lead contamination from the Bunker Hill smelter to British Columbia coal mining runoff polluting the Kootenay River — Idaho’s waterways and wildlife habitats continue to suffer damage from mining, the report says.

The report includes a non-exhaustive list of mining projects across Idaho that the Idaho Conservation League says deserve Idahoans’ attention. Some are mineral exploration projects, such as the CuMo Exploration Project outside Idaho City, and others are in the permitting stage, such as the Stibnite Gold Mine.

Johnson said the report says that although mining is necessary, it must be done responsibly. By providing a list of best practices, the Idaho Conservation League hopes to help mining companies and allow regulators to mitigate the environmental impact of new and ongoing projects.

According to the report, there are still 8,800 abandoned mines in the state. However, Johnson said a new federal law signed Dec. 17 to clean up abandoned mines in the West is a step in the right direction. The law was sponsored by US Senator James Risch, Republican of Idaho. The next step to address mining issues will be to reform the General Mining Act of 1872, which Johnson said favored mining over any other use of public lands.

“We’re not trying to shut down Idaho’s mining industry,” Johnson said. “What we’re trying to do is improve the projects and say some places in Idaho are really special and should be off-limits to mining.”