Rock Creek mine moves forward

The Kootenai National Forest (KNF) has issued the Final Record of Decision (ROD) for Phase I of the Rock Creek Project, a proposed underground copper and silver mine near Noxon.

RC Resources, Inc., a subsidiary of Hecla Mining Company, proposes to construct, operate and reclaim the proposed Rock Creek Mine. As proposed, this project would potentially result in more than 600 jobs in the area and produce more than 3.5 million tons of silver and copper ore per year while in operation. The mine is estimated to be viable for more than 30 years.

RC Resources owns the mineral rights to the ore deposit beneath in the Cabinet Ranger District of the KNF. This area is adjacent to the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness, between Trout Creek and Thompson Falls. Hecla secured the mine in 2015 under the Revett Mining acquisition.

“RC Resources and the U.S. Forest Service have dedicated thousands of hours to reach this point. We appreciate the hard work and perseverance shown by the U.S. Forest Service and their contractor,” said Doug Stiles, General Manager for RC Resources. “With the ROD now signed, we will push expeditiously to complete the operating, monitoring, and mitigation plans required by the U.S. Forest Service before beginning the exploration activities. Our goal is to have everything in place so that when the courts uphold our right to operate in Montana, we are ready to put Montanans to work. If not for the actions of the state, we could possibly have broken ground as early as this year.”

The KNF prepared a Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) in February 2016, which responds to a 2010 U.S. District Court decision in that found deficiencies in the 2001 Rock Creek Project Final EIS and directed the Kootenai National Forest to prepare a SEIS and a new Record of Decision (ROD).

The Kootenai National Forest issued the Final SEIS and Draft ROD in June 2017 and has finalized its decision to approve Phase I of Alternative V based on input received during the objection process. This alternative and the Final ROD can be found at: http://www.fs.usda.gov/projects/kootenai/landmanagement/projects.

“This is an important first step in moving forward with this project,” said Chris Savage, Kootenai Forest Supervisor. “This project has been in the planning phase for a long time and I am happy to issue the decision to start the first phase of this project.”

The USFS is monitoring state actions against Hecla for violating Montana’s “Bad Actor” statute. The state continues to support its claim against Hecla’s CEO Phillips Baker, Jr. When he was an executive for Pegasus Gold Corp., which filed for bankruptcy in 1998, the mining company left three sites that polluted adjacent waterways with arsenic, cyanide and other toxins, costing the state $35 million in clean-up, with an ongoing $2 million per year to continue water treatments.

Additional Rock Creek project related documents, including the Final SEIS, can be downloaded from the Forest Service’s web page.

Copies of the Final ROD and Final SEIS will be maintained at public libraries in Libby, Thompson Falls, Heron, Missoula, Helena, and libraries at the Kootenai National Forest Supervisor’s Office and Cabinet Ranger District Office.

For more information concerning the Forest Service’s decision or to request an electronic copy of the Final SEIS and/or Final ROD contact Katelyn Miller, Project Coordinator, Kootenai National Forest, 31374 US 2, Libby, MT 59923-3022, 406-293-6211.