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The Looming Threat of the Stibnite Gold Project 

 
 
 

What is important about the South Fork Salmon and its tributaries?

The South Fork of the Salmon River winds through the heart of Idaho, fostering some of the state's most delicate ecosystems. For centuries, it has been a thriving home for Chinook Salmon, Steelhead Trout, and Bull Trout. These fish, listed under the Endangered Species Act, are an integral part of the South Fork ecosystem and an immeasurable part of the people, both native and non-native, who for generations have inhabited and depended upon the area for physical, spiritual, and economic sustenance. Proposed gold mining in the South Fork watershed threatens these vital resource values. It will permanently degrade fish habitat and water quality, and substantially harm the Nez Perce Tribe's ability to preserve their treaty-reserved resources. In addition, the mine will risk the health and safety of surrounding communities due to increased heavy truck traffic transporting hazardous materials, new sources of hazardous air pollution, and the mine's contribution to climate change.

The South Fork Salmon is part of the Nez Perce Tribe’s aboriginal territory, where they have retained their inherent rights. The U.S. Government has treaty obligations to take care of it. It holds the plants, animals, fish, and spiritual values that the Tribe depends upon. It is the home of elk, deer, wolverines, bear, otter and bighorn sheep. It is the home of federally protected Chinook salmon, steelhead and bull trout. These fish depend on clean, clear, and cold water for their survival. The Stibnite Gold Project is a massive metals mining project run by Perpetua Resources (formerly Midas Gold Inc.). It would feature: 3 open  mine pits; industrial facilities to chemically process gold, silver, and antimony ores;  waste rock dumps; storage for millions of tons of toxic sludge behind a 400+ foot high  earth fill dam; miles of new access and haul roads and electrical transmission lines;  and on-site housing and services for hundreds of workers. The estimated life of the  mine is 20-25 years.  

What is the Scope of the SGP and its impacts?

The Stibnite Gold Project (SGP) would directly impact over 7 square mile of land.  A Draft Environmental Impact Statement released in 2020 concluded the  mine would permanently degrade water quality in the East Fork of the South Fork of  the Salmon River and damage miles of salmon, steelhead, and trout habitat. Additional  threats include the potential for a tailings dam failure, permanent water pollution by  acid mine drainage and toxic metals, and cyanide spills. The project would adversely  impact county road infrastructure, schools, emergency services, law enforcement,  social services, affordable housing, and employee availability for existing businesses.  External costs of the project would be shifted to the taxpayers.

WHat about perpetua’s claims of restoring the site?

Perpetua Resources claims that remediating the impacts of historic mining at Stibnite cannot happen without more mining, and that the SGP is the only way to address degraded water quality and threats to Endangered Species Act listed fish. This is wrong. Restoration can, has been, and will be done without mining. The Forest Service, Nez Perce Tribe, Idaho Dept of Environmental Quality, and others have already spent millions of dollars on restoration, fisheries research, and supplementation in the Stibnite area and the South Fork. These efforts are all without destructive, long-lasting impacts to water and fish.

For more information take a look at our SSFS Informational Packet!

 
 

Current Topics of Concern

 

Horse Thief Exploration

Why is this project a concern?

The Boise National Forest is seeking comments for Stallion Gold's Horse Heaven Exploration Project in the Johnson Creek watershed. Stallion Gold, a Canadian junior mining company with no experience operating a mining project, plans to conduct an extensive drilling on unpatented mining claims adjacent to Johnson Creek, a major tributary in the South Fork of the Salmon River watershed. This project is the first step towards developing another Stibnite Gold Project sized mine. Stallion Gold is quick to point out to its investors that the mining claims are adjacent to the Stibnite Gold Project.

The Boise National Forest needs to hear your voice that the South Fork of the Salmon River watershed is not the place to begin an unnecessary 21st century gold rush. Stallion Gold's proposed drilling would begin when the sites are snow free and extend to October 1. Drilling would be conducted in 10 day shifts, 24 hours a day, closing Forest Road 456 during operations. The Boise National Forest plans authorize this project under a categorical exclusion, which means that there will be limited analysis of any environmental impacts.

Let the Boise National Forest know that a categorical exclusion is inappropriate because there are extraordinary circumstances existing that require an Environmental Assessment under NEPA. These circumstances include:

  • Increase in industrial traffic and fuel hauling along Johnson Creek, which hosts Endangered Species Act-listed Chinook Salmon, Steelhead, and Bull Trout;

  • Potential impacts to wildlife, including wolverine, Northern Idaho ground squirrel, and wolves, from 24/7 drilling operations.

  • Potential impact to the Nez Perce Tribe's treaty-reserved hunting and gathering rights due to access restrictions to traditional hunting and gathering areas.

  • Potential impacts to groundwater from drilling activities, which will occur upgrandient and adjacent to Johnson Creek.

Make your voice heard. Read about the drilling proposal below and submit comments by clicking the link by August 12, 2022.

Air Quality

SSFS and Partners Challenge Perpetua’s Air Quality permit

With help from our technical experts and partner organizations we have continued to expose the flaws in Perpetua’s proposed plan to control toxic air emissions from the Stibnite Gold Project. Early on, Perpetua got the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality to designate the proposed mine as a “Minor Source” of air pollution, thereby making the mine subject to more lenient air quality rules. We have consistently challenged this in the permitting comment process. Perpetua continues their pattern of relying on a combination of shoddy scientific analysis and heavy political lobbying to move their project through the legally required regulatory processes. Had we not been able to provide substantive public comment to the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality regarding this air permit, Perpetua would already have approval to spew massive amounts of arsenic, mercury, other toxic compounds and fugitive dust into the air we breathe. Recently we have managed to convince the Environmental Protection Agency to scrutinize the State permitting process closely as the battle continues. The saga grinds on as, with your support, we make every effort to protect our air

Antomony

What about antimony, “Strategic Minerals”, climate change, and the “new mining boom”?

Perpetua's latest attempt to portray their project as contributing to the common good (rather than just the investors) centers on the production of antimony as a byproduct. Their claim that this antimony is needed to enable a transition to renewable energy is little more than “greenwashing” intended to encourage public support of a gold mine having major detrimental environmental and economic impacts. Claims of how their antimony will enable the production of grid-scale storage batteries needed to integrate renewable energy sources into the power grid are highly speculative. Even if one accepts their statement that enough storage could be created to power one million homes, it begs the question of where would the other estimated 139 million American homes get their power.  If they use an antimony-based battery it will likely come from China. There is simply no getting around the geologic luck of the draw that Chinese antimony deposits constitute the largest reserves in the world by far. Another overlooked fact is that of all the so-called critical minerals, antimony in particular has viable substitutes for approximately 90% of all end uses. 

Despite the sincere enthusiasm of some of Perpetua's staff, it will make no significant difference to either a green energy transition or national security whether Perpetua mines antimony or not. However, whether a mine goes in or not on the East Fork will make a staggering difference to those of us who live here and understand what an industrial gold mine can destroy.  We must meet any demand for minerals in the most sustainable, equitable and just way possible while at the same time reducing that demand through conservation, cutting consumption and  reusing, recycling and remanufacturing. 

Greenwashing

What is greenwashing?

Green washing is the practice of using marketing and PR tactics to overamplify ESG ( Environmental, Social and Governance) efforts for the purpose of gaining greater favor from consumers, investors and employees. To learn more, read the opinion piece by one of our founding members, Judy Anderson, in the local Star News. Click on the link below

Mining today

Thoughts on the “new mining boom” and the mining law reform

With critical minerals demand rising to power the new technologies of the clean energy economy, we must ensure that our critical mineral supply chains are sustainable, secure, and held to the highest environmental, equity, and human rights standards. Reforming the 1872 Mining Law that has governed hardrock mining for 150 years is critical to ensuring that any minerals sourced through mining are done in the most sustainable way possible.