LINCOLN, MONTANA — The Montana Department of Environmental Quality approved an amended exploration license for Sentinel Metals to conduct additional drilling at the Columbia Gold Project near Lincoln. The Montana Environmental Information Center and the Clark Fork Coalition filed a lawsuit against the department on June 26.

The approval allows Sentinel Metals, which operates in Montana as Great Plains Mining LLC, to drill up to 21 exploratory holes. Some holes may reach depths of 2,300 feet. The project area is on private land surrounded by the Lewis and Clark National Forest, located approximately three miles south of Highway 200, and includes the Columbia, Rover, and Seven Up Pete mines. The DEQ concluded in its final Environmental Assessment that the exploration activities would result in minor and temporary impacts.

The lawsuit alleges the DEQ failed to provide requested public records in time for meaningful public participation before approving the additional exploration. The plaintiffs are asking the court to invalidate both the environmental assessment and the exploration permit. Conservation groups, including the Clark Fork Coalition, the Montana Environmental Information Center, the Montana Wildlife Federation, American Rivers, and the Montana chapter of Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, submitted comments during the environmental review process, which concluded in April. These groups argued that the DEQ should prepare a full environmental impact statement instead of relying on a 24-page environmental assessment.

The Columbia Gold Project is situated in an area where streams eventually flow into the Blackfoot River. The Montana Department of Environmental Quality stated, "Approval of the proposed action does not set any precedent that commits DEQ to future actions." The department specified that the permit authorizes exploration, not mining, and that any future proposal to develop a mine would require a separate permitting process and environmental review. No new roads would be constructed for the authorized work, and disturbed areas would be reclaimed after drilling.

David Brooks, executive director of Montana Trout Unlimited, said, "These are companies that have a singular interest in using the Blackfoot and its resources for profits that will primarily flow outside of Montana and outside of the U.S." He added that the companies "will leave behind damages to the Blackfoot, its traditional land uses, and a blue-ribbon fishery that the community has spent decades and millions of dollars restoring." Andrew Gorder, policy and legal director of the Clark Fork Coalition, said, "Like many of our rivers in the Clark Fork watershed, the Blackfoot River bears the scars of legacy mining activity, but after decades of effort, the river and its renowned fishery are on the mend." Gorder also said, "Sufficient water supplies and high water quality are crucial to supporting the agricultural and recreational economies that support the Blackfoot Valley."

More than 8,700 public comments were submitted during the state's environmental review process. Bull trout, a federally threatened species, inhabit the Blackfoot River. In 1975, the tailings dam at the Mike Horse Mine failed, releasing sediment and heavy metals, including zinc and cadmium, into the upper Blackfoot River tributaries. Federal and state agencies, non-profit organizations, and local communities have since invested over $100 million into restoring the damaged stream channels, floodplains, and aquatic habitat in the Blackfoot River watershed. A water treatment facility continues to clean contaminated mine drainage from the Mike Horse Mine site.