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Groups Appeal Water Rights

Groups Appeal Proposed Buckhorn Mine Water Rights

Today, the Okanogan Highlands Alliance, Washington Environmental Council, and the Center for Environmental Law & Policy announced the appeal of a five water rights issued by the State Department of Ecology for the proposed Buckhorn Gold Mine in north-central Washington.  The groups charge that these permits are based on flawed and inadequate information and not only harm people who currently use the water but also the streams and wetlands on which fish and wildlife depend. The groups contend that the granting of these water rights is not in the public interest.
 
“People on both sides of Buckhorn Mountain have been denied new water rights for over 50 years because the water in the streams is already spoken for” states David Kliegman director of OHA “Since the Department of Ecology has failed to make the correct decision and deny the permits for this multi-national mining corporation’s proposal, we are forced to stand-up for people and the public interest and file appeals to protect our clean water.”
 
The water rights are based on an incorrectly applied model of the geohydrology of Buckhorn Mountain which made faulty assumptions that skewed the results. Additionally, the water rights are based on an incomplete inventory of aquatic resources, and the mitigation offered does not come close to offsetting the effects of dewatering the mountain.

“Water is scarce in eastern Washington.  There’s good reason why new water rights have been denied here for decades,” said Michael Mayer with Washington Environmental Council.  “While there’s been plenty of paperwork so far, we have not seen real assurances that this mine will avoid harming the surrounding creeks and streams.”

"The impacts to streams and groundwater will last long after mining operations are complete and may result in permanent harmful changes. This is not in the public interest,"said Patrick Williams, staff attorney with CELP.  "This mine was a bad idea in 2000 and it’s a bad idea today.”
 
The water rights rely on studies and modeling that were rejected by the Pollution Control Hearings Board in January of 2000.
 
The water rights for original Crown Jewel open-pit mine were reversed in 2000 when he state's Pollution Control Hearings Board found that “The speculative and perpetual nature of the mitigation proposed here does not meet the requirements that new water rights not impair existing rights or the requirement that new water rights not be detrimental to the public welfare.” While the new proposal uses underground mining instead of open-pit mining, resulting permanent changes to the hydrology of Buckhorn Mountain and the lack of adequate mitigation remain strong concerns.

The appeal was filed with the Environment and Land Use Hearings Board in Olympia, a new hearings board designed to expedite projects within a single forum. This proposed mine has two more permits to consider and then it is anticipated that all appeals would be consolidated into one legal challenge.

The Okanogan Highlands Alliance is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to educating the public about the environmental threats of large-scale mining. The Washington Environmental Council has worked for nearly 40 years as a leading voice in the state for the protection of our land, air and water. The Center for Environmental Law & Policy serves as a voice for the public interest water resource management and preservation in Washington state.

 Contacts:
David Kliegman, Okanogan Highlands Alliance (OHA): 509-485-3361
Michael Mayer, Washington Environmental Council: 206-622-8013
Patrick Williams, Center for Environmental Law & Policy: 206-547-5047

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