From the Wednesday, January 10, 2007 online edition of the Billings Gazette . . .
A coal mine proposal for southeastern British Columbia will be examined here Monday at a public meeting the governor and Montana's senior U.S. senator plan to attend.
The session is an opportunity for the public to provide comments, which will be sent to the provincial government "as part of Montana's ongoing effort to make B.C. aware of opposition" to the mine, the Flathead Basin Commission said.
The Montana-based commission announced the meeting, which Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., plans to attend along with Gov. Brian Schweitzer.
Canada's Cline Mining Co. wants to develop an open-pit coal project just north of the Montana-British Columbia border. The provincial government has prepared draft terms and conditions that would be required in operating the mine, but Montana officials find the draft unsatisfactory.
In Montana, the mine has raised concern about effects on the quality of water in the transboundary Flathead River system. The North Fork flows into Montana's Flathead Lake and serves as the western boundary of Glacier National Park.
Speakers at the meeting are to include representatives of the park, state and federal wildlife agencies and the Flathead Lake Biological Station. The commission said the meeting is part of its effort "to inform Montana residents of the range of environmental threats posed by the proposed mining project."
The meeting Monday at the Red Lion Hotel in Kalispell is scheduled for 9 a.m. to noon and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Baucus and Schweitzer plan to be at the early session. A similar meeting is scheduled for Jan. 24 in Missoula.
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