Caroline Krenn stands on the shore of the Blackfoot River at a fishing access site just north of the town of Bonner.
A few months ago Krenn and her husband learned that a 64 acre parcel of land near them had been sold to be developed into a sand and gravel pit. Krenn worries gravel dust would impact air quality, and sediment runoff could harm sensitive fish species in the river, like bull trout.
"All day long in the spring and summer, people will be floating and they're full of joy. It's such an important part of our community," Krenn says. "It brings us together. It's like a heartbeat. Yeah, and that just feels really sacred."
So they took it upon themselves to spread awareness. In 2021 lawmakers made it easier for the state to permit opencut mines, which includes gravel pits. They reduced the environmental review requirements and made it harder to challenge mine development.
Once a project is permitted, it’s almost impossible to defeat and involves costly, drawn out legal fights. Another local group just upriver, Protect the Clearwater, has spent over $165,000 suing over a gravel pit approved on state land along Highway 89.
Krenn submitted a petition with 1,500 signatures asking the county to pass emergency zoning to stop the project for at least two years and study the impacts of the gravel pit. She says the county should only make a choice after that happens.
"We need gravel, we need to make it cost effective," Krenn says. "How can we do that in ways that don't harm or impact the environment?"
With the petition submitted, it’s now up to the Missoula County Commission to decide the next steps.
