NO Cyanide-Heap/Leach Mining in Kilgore, Idaho

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Hey all!

Here are a couple more articles from another conservation group in Idaho the ICL.
https://www.idahoconservation.org/blog/kilgore-gold-exploration-project-still-a-concern/
https://www.idahoconservation.org/blog/gold-exploration-at-kilgore-threatens-wildlife-water-quality/

Gold exploration at Kilgore threatens wildlife, water quality - Idaho Conservation League The Centennial Mountains are not a good place for an intensive exploration drilling program and certainly not a good place for a gold mine.

Our friends over at the Greater Yellowstone Coalition have been fighting for Kilgore for a while now. Contact them for more information about the effects of this project on the environment and what you can do to help.
https://greateryellowstone.org/kilgoremine

Kilgore Mining Project — Greater Yellowstone Coalition High in the wild foothills of the Centennial mountain range, in a place full of value to the wildlife and communities of eastern Idaho, a foreign mining company sees only the opportunity to make a quick buck. 

There are realistic alternatives to cyanide leeching that are available and non-toxic. Why does the mining industry cling to outdated and destructive methods of mining? We deserve better.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0959652605000636

Alternatives to cyanide in the gold mining industry: what prospects for the future? This paper reviews a series of alternative lixiviant systems for the recovery of gold from ores and concentrates. For over 100 years, cyanide has been…

How is cyanide used in gold mining and how does it effect the environment? Aren't there cleaner and more efficient methods of mining gold that are better for Idaho?
https://www.earthworks.org/issues/cyanide/ #:~:text=A%20sodium%20cyanide%20solution%20is%20commonly%20used%20to%20leach%20gold%20from%20ore.&text=The%20cyanide%20dissolves%20the%20gold,until%20the%20ore%20is%20depleted.

Cyanide Use in Gold Mining - Earthworks What is cyanide? Cyanide is a rapidly acting, potentially deadly chemical. “Cyanide” can mean any one of various compounds containing the chemical group CN: one atom of carbon (C) and one atom of nitrogen (N). Because it is organic, it… More »

"Kilgore displays similar characteristics to Kinross Gold’s Round Mountain Mine." The comparison of Kilgore to the Round Mountain mine in Nevada is grim when we look at Kilgore as it is vs the current state of the Round Mountain mine.

Did you know that because Excellon Resources is a foreign company, they are not required to share any of the raw gold or profits mined with the state of Idaho or the US? They pay taxes on their profits and that's it. So Idaho is left with the ruined mountain and Canada gains nearly 1 billion dollars worth of gold in raw materials.

"I’ve been all over the country looking at these mines. And every place I’ve been, from South Carolina to California and Nevada, every single one has leaked,” said Jim Jensen of the Montana Environmental Information Center.

The disaster at the Zortman-Landusky mine in Montana that led to the banning of cyanide mining in Montana should demonstrate to us all the reality of cyanide mining in the west. Spills are inevitable and deadly to the environment. It's not a matter of if, but when it will spill.

Damage to the environment aside, the Pegasus mining company went bankrupt and left the taxpayers of Montana with the bill to clean up the 50,000 gallons of cyanide that had spilled into the local waterway. This led to the banning of cyanide use in Montana for mining. We can do the same in Idaho before a disaster like that happens here!
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1998-nov-17-mn-43773-story.html

Cyanide's Bitter End in Mining for Gold After a century of use, Montana votes to ban the deadly chemical. Backers of the new law now hope for support in Congress for wider curbs, but the industry is fighting back.

Fellow Idahoans, we need your help!

There is a Canadian based mining company called Excellon Resources that is trying to cyanide pit mine our Kilgore, Idaho. There are actions we can and should take as Idaho residents to protect our land, water, and wildlife from foreign exploitation.

-The wildlife and environment will suffer from chemical leaks and the disruption of open pit mining.
- The cyanide used to extract the ore will almost definitely leak into Camas Creek, poisoning fish, wildlife, and our aquifer, effecting drinking water and irrigation.
-Ranchers will lose grazing lands they have run cattle on for nearly a century.
-Hunting, Camping, and ATV activities will no longer be possible in the area that is being mined.
-The area in question is a known summer range for deer, elk, moose, black bears, and endangered grizzly bears.

These operations are nearly impossible to shut down once they begin mining operations. Thus, it is imperative that we take action NOW to prevent them from mining in this harmful way.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:
1. Contact your local state representatives and ask them to support or introduce legislation to ban cyanide mining in Idaho. Our beautiful state deserves more efficient and less destructive methods of mining.
2. Like and share this page to increase awareness of this issue.
3. Contact conservation groups that can help lobby government action and prevention.
4. Tell your friends! The people of Montana were able to ban cyanide mining in their state because enough people got involved and pressured their elected officials to act. We need as many people pressuring our representatives as possible.