by Evan Schroedel, candidate for HD 88, Florence
After examining aspects of the proposed Sheep Creek mine in the high country above the Bitterroot River, I am convinced a rare earth elements mine there is neither logical, wise nor viable, now or ever.
My reasons are many. The as-yet undetermined cost of developing a productive mine in that pristine landscape makes no sense. The total lack of infrastructure in that rural area alone should be the kiss of death to the project, and profitability will remain a distant and impractical goal.
Those who support efforts to develop that mine will no doubt try to tamp down concerns about their plans. Don’t worry, they will assure us, our immediate proposal is limited and harmless. The current strategy, they will insist, is simply to explore if rare earth elements even exist there in adequate amounts to warrant development.
We should have no doubt, however, that any exploration at Sheep Creek can do significant harm and threaten the purity of one of the Mountain West’s premier trout streams and be detrimental to all the outfitters, guides, ranchers and other downstream users who depend on the Bitterroot River for their livelihoods.
Few doubt the importance of rare earth elements to our modern way of life. From electric cars to cell phones, to radar and sonar systems, they are vital components that make our 21st Century function.
Sheep Creek is not the place to seek these elements; river scientists and lay people alike agree. These important minerals are more readily available at other American sites more suited for mining activities.
A large mining operation is underway in California and geologists have found major deposits near Bear Lodge, Wyo. Based on information provided by the website rareelementresources.com, that project is situated in one of the best mining districts in the world, adjacent to I-90 in northeastern Wyoming. It has none of the downsides of the remote and sensitive Sheep Creek locale.
Local scientist Dr. Phillip Ramsey earned a Ph.D. in microbiology and has studied the devastating effects of heavy metal contamination in rivers. He points out that Montana’s own infamous Berkeley Pit in Butte can be a source of all the rare-earth elements that could be mined at Sheep Creek, removing any need to roll the dice on developing there. An additional benefit, he said, is removing those minerals from the pit is a step toward cleaning up the many pollutants there.
The very existence of a toxic soup like the Berkeley Pit proves the inherent environmental dangers of developing a mine and underscores the unwillingness of mining companies to clean up their own messes.
We need to change the antiquated mining law of 1872 to protect Montana public lands, not just at Sheep Creek but all over the Big Sky State that we all love so much.