The Idaho Conservation League asked a state court to review an Idaho Land Board decision approving dredge mining on the Salmon River without a reclamation plan.
The suit comes after the Idaho Land Board approved the lease in September. It seeks to require the State to approve reclamation plans prior to any mining operations on state-owned lands.
“Unfortunately, authorities are ignoring laws that Idahoans put on the books to protect Idaho’s clean water and tax dollars,” said Jonathan Oppenheimer, Senior Conservation Associate with the Idaho Conservation League. “Too often, miners take the gold and leave taxpayers with the bill to clean it up.”
The lease provides Grangeville miner Mike Conklin with exclusive rights for “suction dredge mining” in a half-mile section of the Salmon River, 13 miles downstream of Riggins. The stretch is one of the most popular for recreational whitewater in the state, and also prime habitat for steelhead and salmon.
Suction dredge mining vacuums up tons of gravel and sediment found in the bed of streams and rivers with a floating, gasoline-powered dredge in an effort to extract flakes of gold. The filing in 4th District Court also claims the board did not require Conklin to get a water right or to adhere to other state laws as a requirement of his permit.
Riggins fishing guide and river outfitter Roy Akins said the Salmon River is important both for Idaho’s outdoor way of life and the economy.
“This world-class river deserves better than to be dredged for short-term gain,” Akins said.
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"The stretch is one of the most popular for recreational whitewater in the state, and also prime habitat for steelhead and salmon."
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Duhhhh.
While not mentioned in this
While not mentioned in this article as it was in the other article written about this same subject, the Slate Creek claim on the upper Salmon is just three miles down river from my cabin. I spend a lot of time there during the summer months and have yet to see anyone dredging the river. So I'm curious as to how much of an impact this could really have on the river. Now I know I don't spend everyday on the river during the summer so I can't be for certain, but by my tally over this last summer I stirred up more sediment and gravel than the Slate Creek permit holder did by just fly fishing the river.
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Right GRudge.
What The Rock and ICL and other enviros are not saying is the mining is done during 'off months'. It's not just to avoid the crowds either.
It is easy to understand any dredging is going to be less expensive, easier and therefore more profitable if done when the river is at it's lowest point. And then come Spring, the river makes its hurricane-like run off that do more "damage" reshaping the bottom than a 1,000 Eqyptian dredges could do. Dredging on a small scale like this would be unnoticable.
The WHOLE river is s/s habitat. So to say this section is more habitat than than the Columbia river where Portland dumps their 'water' into the river... and to say the fish spawn in this part of the river ignores the tributary redds.
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In would most likely be HELPFUL to dredge a deep channel in the river to produce a deep channel- Deeper water in a narrower river equals cooler water; that's a fact.
Cooler water is better for s/s and that is a fact. therefore, dredging channels must be good for s/s. It holds as much truth as the ICL and Rock's garbage going against this dredging.
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The ICL needs to choose their battles or they lose credibility.
I guess you don't have much
I guess you don't have much understanding of how a gold dredge works...after the gravel is suctioned to the surface, it is run through a floating sluice box and the tailings get dumped--minus the gold--back to the bottom where they came from. So enlighten me as to how this is going to make this deep channel to create cooler water?
a thousand words
First, I was making a hypothetical statement. Making a trench is ridiculous. I made a comparison - a trench reducing the temperature is a 'honest' and this one suction dredge affects the whole population.
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That being said, let's see out gold suction dredges work. Here are some pictures. Notice the water is clear enough to see the suction tube IN THE WATER. Notice the size of the 'pit'.
http://www.goldgold.com/tag/gold-dredging/page/6
An enviromentalist peeeing in the water is more likely to kill fish.
Your linky don't work. And
Your linky don't work. And no, sediment being dredged up and dumped back onto the river bed is more likely to kill fish, not urine in a river. You is clueless.
Pimp, your information about s/s habitat isn't quite correct
You are correct that Spring and summer chinook are tributary spawners, if you include upriver reaches near Challis and Stanley. Steelhead - same deal. So, spring & summer chinook and steelhead merely pass this location during their migration, and would probably be minimally affected by dredging in the Lower River. But dredging would do damage to bull trout, which could indeed spawn there.
Worse yet, the Lower Salmon is prime habitat for fall chinook, which likely spawn in the exact gravels to be dredged.
And let's see - 'off-season dredging' would start now and extend through the winter months, during low water. That's exactly when the eggs for fall chinook can be disturbed and destroyed.
Cool water is indeed good for all species of salmon - but dredging a deeper channel that destroys fall chinook redds (nests) isn't good, under any logic.
There are plenty of places in Idaho where these 'miners' can dredge. Leave the Salmon R alone.
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As is evident, pimp isn't really a fisheries biologist
or a hydrologist .... he just likes to play one on this thread. Thanks for setting it straight rivercityblue.
Pimp is an Englsh or Lit teacher, based on the nitpicking.
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hats
I'm too busy being a forester, police officer, politician, sociologist, and climotologist. That's just today.
Not sure what you think RCB set straight.
Yeah, go ruin some other river!
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UPDATE
Yesterday is was well reported Mr. Conklin is NOT going to sign this lease.
And no UPDATES here.
Others are doing a better and more timely job than the Statesman's Award Winning Environmentalist Writer.