Mine study, helicopters grounded for this summer

Permitting isn’t up to snuff

Odds are that the helicopters anticipated to be used for baseline studies on the proposed Mount Emmons Project won’t be flying in the nearby valleys this summer. In fact, all the baseline studies and the associated impacts likely won’t start until the summer of 2012 at the earliest.

The U.S. Forest Service has spent the last eight to 10 weeks looking into issues brought to their attention by members of the public, in particular High Country Citizens’ Alliance. During that time, the agency put on hold the NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) process for the baseline studies proposed by U.S. Energy, the company that holds the mining patents for a molybdenum mine on Mt. Emmons. The foresters wanted to see how to break out or combine all the activities taking place at the mine, located just a few miles west of Crested Butte.
HCCA will hold a public informational meeting on the proposed mine at the Center for the Arts on Thursday, March 31. The meeting will start at 6 p.m.
“HCCA essentially was saying that anything and everything taking place on Mt. Emmons is connected,” explained Gunnison district ranger John Murphy. “We’ve spent a lot of time looking into their position. We agree with a lot of their allegations and we have done a lot of research trying to figure all this stuff out.
“Basically, we are moving forward with the baseline studies and there won’t be any change to that NEPA process,” Murphy continued. “We are essentially separating out three main issues. We want U.S. Energy to apply for a road use permit to get access to the prospecting activities that were approved by the state. We want more information on the wastewater treatment plant and the stormwater management plan. But because we put the baseline study NEPA process on hold and we are restarting it now, the timing of the process won’t allow us to get any approval done in time for U.S. Energy to start this summer. It’s not realistic to think a decision could be finalized before the fall or winter, so nothing with the proposed studies is likely to start on the ground until the summer of 2012 at the earliest. We just can’t move that fast.”
Murphy said that while HCCA argued that everything being done up on the mountain by the mining company should be under one NEPA consideration, the Forest Service disagreed.
“The things that are tied to the old Keystone mine are being separated out from new activities,” he said. “Those are not connected actions.”
Forest supervisor Charlie Richmond has sent a letter to the mining company asking for more details about potential activities on Forest Service roads and the water treatment plant that is located on Forest Service land.
Richmond’s letter states that certain activities may not be currently authorized by the Forest Service and so “We need to bring all authorizations up to date. To fully evaluate these activities, we need a complete understanding of all your ongoing and proposed activities on NFS lands.”
The letter requests details for the need for road access to patented claims near the proposed mine. The agency wants details on water treatment plant operations and wants the company to “differentiate activities associated with the old Keystone mine from other current and planned activities.”
The Forest Service is also requesting information on the stormwater collection and treatment system along with “other activities that will occupy or use National Forest System lands that are not yet identified.”
The letter states the Forest Service has the intention of proceeding with baseline studies as scoped, but they “cannot make that final determination until we have reviewed your submittal.”
HCCA executive director Dan Morse sees the letter as partially positive for the community.
“HCCA is looking forward to discussing the letter with the Forest Service,” Morse said. “But I agree that it means the baseline studies couldn’t begin this summer. Our experience with environmental analysis is that it doesn’t move quickly. It entails a lot of work and that’s on top of all the other things the agency is dealing with.”
Morse said the environmental organization had been communicating with the Forest Service since the end of last year about the roads and water treatment plant at the mine site. “We made the assertion that the company didn’t have valid permits for the use of the roads or for the water treatment plant operation,” Morse explained. “We wanted to have the agency explain how those two issues relate to the overall mine proposal including the proposed drift and the proposed baseline studies.”
Murphy agreed that the agency found proper permitting lacking. “They definitely need to provide a road use application. We can issue that without going through NEPA so that could be in place by this summer,” Murphy said. “If approved, that would allow them to get to their prospecting area on a Forest Service road but we want to look at all potential uses of that road.
“We also agree with HCCA that the Plan of Operations [PoO] with the water treatment plant is totally inadequate by today’s standards,” Murphy continued. “Nothing is clearly spelled out in the PoO they are operating under. It was issued in 1979 and it needs to be addressed. As for the stormwater management plan, there was never any plan for how they would use Forest Service land in that plan so we need a Plan of Operation for that as well. For example, they have ditches on Forest Service land that need to be addressed. We’ll probably need another round of NEPA once they submit all their plans.”
Murphy said the agency would also address the HCCA concerns over bonding for the treatment plant. He said that the agency would normally require a reclamation bond at a minimum that would pay for removal of the plant if it were no longer needed. “We aren’t sure about requiring a bond to operate the plant into perpetuity,” Murphy said.
Murphy said when the PoO for the wastewater treatment plant is updated, the Forest Service will look at it for a five-year period or until a new mine development plan is submitted. That plan must be applied for by 2013 under an order by the water court.
Mount Emmons project director of community relations Perry Anderson said he was traveling and hadn’t yet been briefed on the letter.
“We are encouraged by some aspects of the Forest Service letter. They are correct to step back and take a more complete look at all of these ongoing activities,” Morse said. “It may result in better management of water quality at the site. However we are concerned that the Forest Service appears to be opting to continue with the baseline studies proposal separate from the other activities and we are also concerned that the agency seems to think that the road use permit could be issued without adequate analysis. We fully intend to address those issues with the Forest Service.”
“We are particularly concerned that the Forest Service is claiming that they can issue the required road use permit without public review under NEPA,” Morse continued. “That is simply unacceptable. We all know that the Forest Service is requiring commercial events on Forest Service roads, like the summer bike races, to go through a public environmental analysis. So how can the agency even attempt to justify approving a commercial use like moving mining equipment and heavy trucks through town and across public lands without an adequate public review?
Still, Morse sees some positive aspects of the Forest Service action. “The community can be encouraged by some of what the agency has done, but we should continue to demand a comprehensive and combined review of all activities at the Mt. Emmons site,” he said.
Morse said HCCA would be holding a public informational meeting on the proposed mine at the Center for the Arts on Thursday, March 31. The meeting will start at 6 p.m.