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Department of Ecology News Release - Dec. 22, 2003
03-239
SPOKANE - The public is being invited to comment on a new, updated wastewater-discharge permit for the Pend Oreille Mine, which is scheduled to begin operating in January.
The Washington Department of Ecology is holding a public hearing on the permit at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 3, at Cusick High School. An open house and question-and-answer session will begin at 5 p.m. In addition, the deadline for written comments has been extended to Feb.3.
On Jan. 6, Teck Cominco American Inc. will re-open the Pend Oreille Mine, located two miles north of Metaline Falls. The mine has been closed since 1977.
Ore-bearing rock will be extracted from the underground mine and transported to the surface via an existing conveyor system. Lead and zinc would be recovered at an existing on-site mill. The metal-bearing concentrates will be shipped to Teck Cominco's smelter in Trail, B.C.
Water from the underground mine will be treated and pumped into the Pend Oreille River. Teck Cominco's past water-quality permit has been extended, allowing the company to operate its mine until a new permit is issued. The new permit will include updated environmental requirements.
The proposed "National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System," or NPDES, permit was released for 30 days of public review on Nov. 5. Based on public comments, Ecology has decided to extend the public review period and conduct a public hearing to gather more remarks.
The project is subject to the Metals Mining and Milling Operations Act, which required that Teck Cominco prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS). An EIS has been completed that identified the potential environmental effects of the mining activity.
The mining act also requires the company to post a bond of approximately $8 million dollars to cover any cleanup that might be needed later. And it requires a pollution-prevention plan, which has been completed, and imposes strict new requirements on how mine tailings must be handled.
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Contact: Jani Gilbert, public information manager, 509-329-3495; pager 509-622-3073.
Proposed permit and fact sheet: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/permits/eastern_permits.html
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
