The U.S. and Canada have struck a deal over pollution flowing from British Columbia coal mines into a lake and river system in Montana.
Tribes in the U.S. and Canada have raised concerns for years about selenium levels harming fish reproduction in Lake Koocanusa and the Kootenai River. That selenium is flowing from coal mines along the Elk River in British Columbia.
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes chairman Tom McDonald said the pollution puts cutthroat trout and threatened species like bull trout at risk.
“We have to be able to have a clean and healthy environment where we can catch fish and eat fish out of any river system that’s in our aboriginal territory that we’ve relied on for the past 10,000 to 30,000 years,” McDonald said.
The U.S. and Canada agreed to let the International Joint Commission (IJC) set up a governing body for the transboundary watershed. That body will make recommendations for provincial, state and federal governments. While not legally binding, the IJC recommendations are usually implemented.
Teck Resources, which owns the mines, said it wants to learn more about the IJC process, but noted it’s willing to work with all parties. B.C. provincial officials released a statement saying they support IJC involvement.
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The Montana Department of Justice is blocking access to what it calls privileged documents showing its communication with a Canadian mining company. An environmental group is now suing to access the information. -
A new report says a Canadian company that runs coal mines north of Montana hasn’t set enough money aside for cleanup. Those mines are sending pollution into Montana waters. -
After years of tribes calling on the U.S. and Canada to do something about selenium pollution flowing into Montana, the two governments have struck a deal. An international body will make recommendations on how to settle the boundary-water dispute.
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A new study finds that Canadian coal mines contribute nearly all of the selenium found in Lake Koocanusa. For decades, coal mines along British Columbia’s Elk River have sent large amounts of selenium into Lake Koocanusa in northwest Montana. -
Federal officials from the U.S. and Canada plan to meet with Montana and British Columbia tribes over coal mining pollution. Selenium has for years flowed from B.C. coal mines into the transboundary Lake Koocanusa.
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Conservation groups filed lawsuits Thursday challenging a state board’s assertion that it overturned a pollution standard for Lake Koocanusa.
