A Missoula District Court Judge stopped new work on a gravel pit three miles south of Salmon Lake after area residents filed multiple lawsuits over the validity of the project.
Protect the Clearwater, a nonprofit group of residents near the Clearwater River, successfully petitioned Missoula District Judge John Larson on July 17 for a temporary injunction, or hold, on LHC Construction’s permit to crush gravel and create asphalt for road projects.
The temporary injunction means work on the project must stop immediately and cannot restart without the judge clearing the hold.
“A delay in restraining (the) defendant from further mining activities at the site will result in immediate and irreparable harm to (the) plaintiff and its members,” the order by Larson said.
Larson made the ruling based off of a brief from Protect the Clearwater lawyers and three affidavits from Elbow Lake cabin owners.
A hearing on the matter was held on July 21, with LHC construction, the Department of Environmental Quality and Protect the Clearwater lawyers in attendance. The DEQ brought two witnesses to go over the permit application process and other legality issues. LHC construction also brought two witnesses that testified against keeping the temporary restraining order. Protect the Clearwater countered with the testimony of three area residents. At the end of the hearing, Larson ordered all parties submit more written arguments by July 28. The restraining order was still in effect by press time.
The Pathfinder attended part of the July 21 hearing, but had to leave to cover the Colt Fire. A more in depth update will come after judge Larson makes a decision on the matter.
While Protect the Clearwater argued that the DEQ violated the National Environmental Policy Act and the Montana Constitution, the DEQ lawyers argued recently changed laws during the 2021 legislature made the approval process faster, but that DEQ did not violate any laws.
Much of the debate stems from the dryland permit given to LHC, as opposed to a standard open-cut mine permit. Since there isn’t water on the site, according to DEQ testing, then it should continue to be a dryland permit.
The dryland permit process is different from a standard permit, which requires a lengthy public involvement process, while dryland does not require a public meeting since there are not 10 primary residences located within a half mile of the permit.
Other topics of debate included how DEQ does testing on potential mining sites and whether the temporary injunction should continue to halt work.
Construction on the new gravel pit broke ground last month after LHC applied for a permit on Montana State Trust Lands in March. With the injunction, the equipment sits idle in the partially torn-up field.
The company hoped to use the asphalt for infrastructure projects across the Seeley-Swan valley.
Residents strongly opposed the project, writing in its environmental assessment public comment that they have concerns about the impact to migrating wildlife, water quality on the Clearwater River and dust polluting residents’ air.
The gravel pit sits roughly 1,250 feet from the Clearwater River, and about 1,300 feet from privately-owned and state-leased cabins.
In its environmental assessment, the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation ruled the gravel pit would be more environmentally friendly than trucking asphalt from Ovando, an additional 47-mile round trip.
The environmental assessment ruled there would be some potential impact to wildlife and the Clearwater River during the operation of the mine, but those impacts would end with the closing and restoration of the area.
The mine is permitted to operate for up to 17 years, pending regular reviews.
Reader Comments(0)