Although Idaho has been significantly shaped by mining, the Idaho Conservation League is trying to increase public awareness of the long-term environmental harm that mining has produced in the Gem State.
The nonprofit organization Understanding Idaho: Mining and Environmental Impacts in the Gem State recently released a report that offers suggestions for striking a balance between the preservation of Idaho’s ecosystem and the demand for minerals. According to Josh Johnson, the Idaho Conservation League’s central Idaho director, it was released to address worries about new mining projects, heightened exploration activities, and problems with abandoned mines.
Johnson acknowledged the necessity of mining, pointing out that mined elements, some of which come from Idaho, are necessary for things like computers, telephones, cars, and renewable energy technology.
Johnson told the Idaho Capital Sun, “Mining is a huge part of Idaho’s history and our heritage here.” We are fortunate to possess an abundance of natural resources, and we use them for a purpose. However, I believe that we must acknowledge that this mining is not suitable everywhere and that it must be carried out properly.
Johnson stated that the group does not generalize mining throughout Idaho and instead considers each mining operation in the state on an individual basis. A list of recommended practices is included in the paper, which the authors hope mining corporations would follow.
An examination of the mining history of Idaho
Despite having influenced Idaho’s history, mining has left the state with enduring environmental problems.
Historian Troy Lambert told the Idaho Capital Sun that the state’s mining history began in the late 1800s, when it was a part of a late gold rush. According to Idaho’s 1899 first mining report, mining quickly overtook agriculture and livestock as the state’s most important industry following the discovery of gold in 1860.
Gold was not the end of the resource rush. Numerous people found quantities of silver, lead, and copper, especially in Shoshone County in North Idaho, which would go on to produce the most silver in the country for many years.
Idaho led the mining industry for many years, even providing mining studies through the School of Mines at the University of Idaho, which was founded in 1917 to meet the state’s need for mining knowledge. According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the Stibnite Mine in Yellow Pine rose to prominence during World War II as the country’s top producer of tungsten and antimony, which were used to make bullets and strengthen metal.
However, for a number of reasons, including the higher costs of extracting deeper resources, the termination of World War II mining subsidies, and the implementation of environmental laws like the Clean Air and Water acts from the 1970s, Idaho’s mining industry, like that of the rest of the country, started to decline in the late 1900s, according to Lambert.
As a result, mining became less popular. According to university spokesperson Jodi Walker, the University of Idaho discontinued its mining school by 2002 and reorganized many of those courses into other institutions on campus.
Idaho’s mining techniques were drastically altered, especially by the Clean Air and Water Acts. According to Lambert, prior to these rules, historical mining operations relied on the theory that dilution was the answer and that contaminated water would purify itself as it flowed downstream.
According to Lambert, the milling of the outhouses across the stream was particularly filthy for a long time. They contaminated the water, the soil, and everything else downstream. The way we currently manage the environment in those locations is still influenced by those unethical mining methods.
According to Lambert, men would risk their lives to engage in mining, which was regarded as a very noble career in Idaho. Lambert claimed that although mining has decreased in Idaho and the United States overall, it has not stopped globally.
“If we don’t mine here, it’s going to happen somewhere else in the world,” he said, adding that modern environmental standards and child labor laws in the United States guarantee better moral and sustainable methods.
The report exposes abandoned mining projects that may cause harm to Idaho.
The Gem State’s economy now depends less than 1% on mining. Three phosphate mines in southeast Idaho and three metal mines in north Idaho make up the six remaining active mines in Idaho.
However, Idaho’s terrain is still impacted by both past and contemporary mining operations. According to the research, mining-related harm to Idaho’s waterways and wildlife habitats continues, ranging from lead contamination from the Bunker Hill smelter to coal mining runoff in British Columbia damaging the Kootenai River.
A non-exhaustive list of mining operations throughout Idaho that the Idaho Conservation League believes should catch Idahoans’ attention is included in the study. Some, like the Stibnite Gold Mine, are undergoing the permitting process, while others, like the CuMo Exploration Project south of Idaho City, are mineral exploration projects.
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According to Johnson, the paper makes the case that mining must be done properly even though it is essential. The Idaho Conservation League seeks to assist permitting regulators and mining firms in reducing the environmental impact of new and ongoing operations by providing a list of best practices.
The research states that 8,800 abandoned mines remain in the state. But according to Johnson, a new federal law that was passed on December 17 to clean up abandoned mines in the West is a positive move. U.S. Senator James Risch, a Republican from Idaho, sponsored the legislation. Johnson stated that changing the General Mining Law of 1872, which prioritizes mining over all other uses of public land, would be the next step in resolving mining-related difficulties.
Johnson stated, “We are not attempting to shut down the mining industry in Idaho.” Our goal is to make projects better while arguing that some areas of Idaho are truly unique and ought to be off-limits to mining.
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