The lead story in the Saturday, May 29, 2004 issue of the Missoulian is another excellent article by Michael Jamison . . .
KALISPELL - A Canadian proposal to mine coal near Glacier National Park has been shelved, although plans to develop coal bed methane fields in the area are still moving forward.
At a Friday morning meeting in Fernie, British Columbia, the province's Minister of Energy and Mines announced that the controversial coal mine plan would not be permitted.
Minister Richard Neufeld said the decision came after reviewing previous international reports and environmental agreements signed between Montana and British Columbia.
The controversy over the coal deposit dates back to the late 1970s, when Canadians first floated a plan to strip mine some five miles north of Glacier Park. That proposal raised concerns south of the border, particularly with regard to downstream water pollution in and around Glacier Park and the Flathead Valley.
The debate ultimately landed in the lap of the International Joint Commission, which is charged with resolving transboundary water disputes between the two countries.
After four years of scientific study, the IJC unanimously recommended in 1988 that the mining plan be abandoned.
The issue was resurrected early this year, however, when Toronto-based Cline Mining Corp. announced its intent to mine the coal.
Again, the process was begun in the United States to refer the project to the IJC, with Montana's governor and congressional senators requesting an international review. The U.S. State Department weighed in, saying it felt the 1988 IJC decision still applied.
Neufeld referred to that IJC decision as one of many reasons he decided to kill the mine proposal. He also said tentative environmental agreements between his province and the state of Montana helped form his decision, as did the proximity of Glacier Park and the adjacent Waterton Lakes National Park in Canada.
He admitted to being somewhat reluctant to bury the mining plan, saying coal mining has been successful from both an environmental and business perspective elsewhere in British Columbia. Nevertheless, Neufeld said, refusing the mine "would be best, in the interest of all."
Read the entire article . . .
(This link may expire once the article moves to the newspaper's permanent archives.)