A greed-driven mining corporation is seeking government approval to tunnel beneath the protected
Cabinet Mountains Wilderness in Northwest Montana to access billions of dollars worth of copper and silver deposits. Not only would this project destroy thousands of acres of habitats where threatened grizzly bears and Canada lynx make their homes, but would permanently drain pristine lakes and streams that are home to threatened trout species. Also part of the plan is dumping sewage generated from mine workers into the natural watershed. The mine proposes to seize adjacent National Forest land to make way for high-voltage transmission lines, huge processing facilities, tailings dams and slurry pipelines, leaving lasting scars on our national wilderness.
We the undersigned oppose corporate mining's invasion of the Cabinet Mountain Wilderness and Kootenai National Forest in northwest Montana.
We find the Mines Management Inc. proposal to drain St. Paul Lake, Rock Lake, upper Rock Creek and the east fork of the Bull River, spawning grounds of threatened bull trout, to be a violation of the federal protections which preserve these precious public lands.
Overuse of natural waterways for mining processes promises permanent changes in the ecosystem, while significant drawdown in the water table will leave private landowners with dry wells and worthless properties.
The MMI proposal promises devastating consequences to currently protected habitats of threatened grizzly bear, Canada lynx and gray wolf species, as well as permanent scarring of public lands.
Installation of high-voltage power lines across the National Forest heightens the risk of destructive forest fires.
These are just some of the consequences that will result from approval of MMI's mine proposal, and as owners of these national lands, we strongly urge you to withhold the permits that would allow the project to go forward.
Thank you for considering our petition, and we hope you will forward this information to any other relevant decision-makers in the United States Forest Service or other federal agencies.
