Juneau, AK—This afternoon the Ninth Circuit Court
re-affirmed the injunction halting the Kensington Gold Mine’s damaging
dam construction activities at Lower Slate Lake pending a decision on the
appeal. Coeur Alaska asked the court to cancel the injunction. In response, the
court concluded, “SEACC has shown a likelihood of success on the merits
because it has argued persuasively that the Corps’ permit to Coeur Alaska
violates the Clean Water Act,” and that voiding the injunction before a
final decision would result in irreparable harm to the environment.
“This order sends a strong signal that the Ninth Circuit will
agree the Clean Water Act prohibits anyone from dumping 4.6 million tons of
mine tailings into our lakes and streams,” said Russell Heath Executive
Director of the Southeast Alaska Conservation Council (SEACC).
“Kensington can store its waste in more responsible ways, as mines in Alaska
and other parts of the country do.”
If allowed to proceed as planned, the Kensington Mine would be the
first mine in a generation to dispose of its chemically-treated mine tailings
in a lake or stream. This decision protects Lower Slate Lake
while the Court examines the legality of the Kensington Mine’s plan to
use the lake as a tailings dump.
“Coeur has a choice. The Kensington Mine was previously fully
permitted for a plan that didn’t dump tailings in a lake. There are other
options besides the current plan that would provide for jobs and would protect
our clean water,” says Heath.
The Ninth Circuit Court has not made a final decision on the Kensington
case. That could happen anywhere from the next few weeks to a few months.
