Kensington Mine
The recent decision by the Supreme Court to allow Coeur Alaska Inc., the owners of the mine, to dump their waste into Lower Slate Lake creates a dangerous precedent that is in direct conflict with the intent of the Clean Water Act and puts the rich marine resources of Berners Bay at risk.
- Canoers paddle Berners Bay in the shadow of Lions Head mountain, just below Lower Slate Lake and the proposed Kensington Mine site. <br /> Photo: Skip Gray<br />
Photo by Skip Gray
Clean Water Act Threatened by Kensington Mine
The Kensington Gold Mine is located 45 air miles north of Juneau within the Tongass National Forest. It sits above Berners Bay, a cherished place of outstanding biological diversity, rich cultural and historical significance, diverse recreational opportunities and scenic beauty.
The recent decision by the Supreme Court to allow Coeur Alaska Inc., the owners of the mine, to dump their waste into Lower Slate Lake creates a dangerous precedent that is in direct conflict with the intent of the Clean Water Act and puts the rich marine resources of Berners Bay at risk.
In May of 2007, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Army Corps of Engineers violated the Clean Water Act when it issued a “fill material” permit to Coeur Alaska to discharge 210,000 gallons per day of tailings slurry into Lower Slate Lake. This slurry is the waste product of the chemical and physical milling process used to extract the gold ore. The discharge would kill all the fish and most other aquatic life in the lake. Since the passing of the Clean Water Act a mine has not been permitted to dump chemically processed tailings into a lake.
Coeur d’Alene Mines and local conservation groups jointly developed plans for a less environmentally damaging paste tailings alternative. Coeur nearly completed the permitting process for the paste plan, but, just months before final permits were set to be issued, Coeur abandoned that plan to push its controversial lake dumping plan in the Supreme Court.
What changed?
The 1972 Clean Water Act had established necessary standards to protect our watersheds, and did so very effectively until the Army Corp of Engineers under the Bush Administration changed the definition of “fill” in the Clean Water Act. In 2002, the Army Corps reclassified “fill material” to include placement of slurry, or tailings or similar mining related material. This is what led to the destructive practice of mountaintop removal and, if allowed to proceed will put at risk Alaska’s clean water resources.
Recent Update
On July 17th, 2009, EPA issued a letter to the US Army Corps of Engineers to re-evaluate the permit that allowed for disposal of mine waste to Lower Slate Lake. EPA estimates the re-evaluation process to take about 8 months. EPA believes that the paste tailings facility could have less environmental impact than the Lower Slate Lake disposal method. EPA has noted that it was Coeur Alaska that had previously requested permitting for the dry tailings process and that it is best to revisit this option. This recent action taken by EPA is a very positive step towards preventing a major impact to the environment by Coeur Alaska and reestablishing higher standards for mine waste processing and storage that are already included in the Clean Water Act. During this re-evaluation stage, it is critical that the public take action by voicing their concerns about the Lower Slate Lake disposal process to the permitting agencies involved and other government representatives. Listed below are some links to send your comments.
What you can do:
On July 17th, 2009 US Army Corps of Engineers issued a public notice for a 15 day comment period for modification of Coeur Alaska, Inc. Kensington mine 404 permit. The public notice can be reviewed at http://dnr.alaska.gov/mlw/mining/largemine/kensington/index.htm
Tell Your Congressman and Senators to support HR 1310, the Clean Water Protection Act. The Act is a bipartisan bill that would put the definition of “Fill Material” back to what it was before the Bush Administration.
Senator Murkowski :( 907) 271-3735 http://murkowski.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=ContactMe.EMailLisa
Senator Begich: (907) 271-5915
http://begich.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?p=emailSenator
Congressman Don Young: Phone: (907) 271-5978http://donyoung.house.gov/IMA/issue_subscribe.htm
Sources:
Alaska Department of Natural Resources http://dnr.alaska.gov/mlw/mining/largemine/kensington/index.htm
United States Supreme Court Decision
http://dnr.alaska.gov/mlw/mining/largemine/kensington/kensussc062209.pdf
Southeast Alaska Conservation Council http://www.seacc.org/issues/mining/kensington-mine
