Outside a newly constructed acid mine water treatment facility, mechanical engineer Mark Tome drives around in his truck to check on things. He circles around a large pond holding water pumped up through underground mine shafts. It doesn’t look like just any pond.
Victoria Traxler: What color water are we looking at right now?
Mark Tome: Well, it's got a lot of mineral in it, so it's kind of a rust color due to just the mineral in the water, mostly iron.
Victoria Traxler: What would happen if I put a cup in there and drank it?
Mark Tome: I mean, I wouldn't recommend it. I don't know that I would do that. [laughs]
This mine water then travels inside a building with several large tanks. There, it mixes with materials that attach to the metals and produces what is called “sludge.” The sludge is filtered out while clean, neutralized water flows on to Belt Creek.
Driving south on state Highway 331, travelers wind along that creek into a small green valley. The deepening curves and drainages lead to Belt, a town east of Great Falls populated by about 500 people.
Belt Creek anchors the town. It flows from the Little Belt Mountains to the Missouri River, carving out this region along its way.
"We swam in this creek, but we always swam upstream from it," says Thad Stinson, who owns Belt Creek Brew Pub.
Stinson is pointing out the tributary behind his business where mining left its mark – in streaks of neon orange and crimson.
"So, you fish upstream, not downstream. That was always a concern of mine. I don't think I ever ate one of the fish that was downstream," he says.
Starting in the late 1800s, Belt hosted one of several bustling coal mines in the region. Its main mine shut down in 1924, but regional mining continued for decades.
Over the years, groundwater has flowed through this abandoned mine, forming sulfuric acid and discharging highly acidic water and heavy metals. One state Department of Environmental Quality report says this discharge expelled “over 800 pounds of iron, aluminum and other dissolved metals” into the creek on a given day.
That went on for more than 100 years, damaging the nearby aquatic ecosystems, harming fish populations and leaving deep rust-colored stains.
"We have a deck out the back of the building and customers always go out there and see the orange rocks, and I’ve always said that it's steelhead fishing," Stinson jokes.
Belt’s new $13 million water treatment facility finally began diverting and cleaning the underground mining water this year. It stems from the federal Abandoned Mine Lands program, which funds coal and hard rock mine reclamation work like this.
Belt’s Project engineer Steve Hector explains the mission is, "Getting the environment back to what it was before mining had occurred."
The government has distributed more than $6 billion since 1977 through the federal programs. In 2021, Former President Joe Biden allocated an increase of $11 billion for the program over the next 15 years.
According to DEQ spokesperson Nolan Lester, AML is currently working on 21 projects in the state.
“The program has more than $2.2 million currently contracted for these projects,” Lester says. “This represents only funds obligated to complete existing contracted work and does not include estimates to complete all problems being investigated.”
Experts like Ryan Ellis with the Interstate Mining Compact Commission say these funds help, but there’s more work to be done.
"In the long run, you will need more funding than is currently available. The current amount of funding will fall short by tens of billions of dollars of what's needed just for coal abandoned mine lands."
Ellis added funding for abandoned hard rock mines, a separate but connected part of the AML program, falls short too. He hopes the success of coal-based projects like Belt’s will encourage Congress to expand funding for hard rock mine cleanup.
Back at the Pub, Jerry Stinson, Thad’s father, reflects on the town where he grew up, and the creek that now flows with clear water. He says the value it provides is priceless.
"We're going to be able to fish. People, kids – the kids will be able to fish this stream and keep the fish. Because before it just wasn't possible."
"The fish had both eyes on one side," Bruce Morgan adds from the next seat over.
The rainy spring has already reduced the rust-tinged banks. Stinson hopes the rocks will be a lesser shade of orange by next summer.
