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Secrets and Strengths of the Moss World

Mosses are a fascinating part of our world. They operate much like their larger relatives, like trees and shrubs, just on a much smaller scale. On Friday, January 4, 2019, Erica Heinlen shared her expertise to bring the moss world into focus for our community. In this talk, we touched on the taxonomy of mosses as well as their structure and life cycle. We discovered the importance of mosses in our ecosystems and discussed where they grow. We explored concepts of conservation and then saw some special species found here in the Okanogan. Finally, we addressed some of the “Frequently Asked Questions” the audience had about mosses. It was an interesting journey as we unlocked the secrets and strengths of the moss world.

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Local Loon Tales

On Friday, November 2nd, 2018, Dan and Ginger Poleschook returned to the Highland Wonders education series to update our community on how our local loons have fared in the seven years since the Poleschook’s last presentation in Tonasket. They shared stories of our local loons — where they hatched, adventures they have experienced, obstacles they have overcome, and which loons at which lakes are related to each other. Some stories reflected loons as being highly intelligent, beyond their basic survival skills and genetic influences, and provided examples of loons having long-term memories of places and people. We learned ways in which people have helped loons survive, and what we can do to increase and protect future populations of the common loon.

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Closing the Buckhorn Mine

The closure of the mine is a planned event; it is well established in the pre-mining planning documents that the mine was only anticipated to engage in active mining operations for 7.5 years. Even so, Crown/Kinross and the Department of Ecology (Ecology) are struggling to ensure that the closure and reclamation of the mine site are conducted in a way that returns the site to its pre-mining condition.

With the gold ore at the Buckhorn Mine exhausted, the Crown/Kinross mining company has expedited reclamation. This is a financial decision that will save the company money as the employees and contractors work themselves out of a job. Surface reclamation has involved plugging the mine adits and re-contouring the ground surface to resemble pre-mining conditions. In fall 2017, the treatment facility was decommissioned and the administration buildings were removed. The shop has been retrofitted to accommodate those functions, but for a period of time, the site lacked a facility to treat the water.

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Surface Water | Water Year 2008-9

Nitrates (Nitrite plus Nitrate, mg/l as Nitrogen) at the SW-14 monitoring point in the South Fork of Bolster Creek are significantly above baseline, indicating escape of contaminants outside the capture zone.

Since the Buckhorn Mine began operation in 2008, water quality monitoring data in surface water (as well as groundwater) have shown that mine contaminants are continuously escaping capture. The mine is required to capture and treat contaminated water. The mine has a permit to discharge water from the treatment facility and the treated water is relatively clean. However, the increased level of mine contaminants outside the mine is coming from unpermitted sources. Crown/Kinross has not established control of mine related contaminants, and the Buckhorn Mine continues to discharge contaminants in locations where no discharge is authorized, degrading surface and groundwater and even exceeding water quality standards.

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Mitigation for the Buckhorn Mine

In the 2008 settlement agreement, OHA negotiated for mitigation beyond what the agencies required, which included significant onsite and offsite mitigation to streamflow and wetlands with additional long-term independent oversight.

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2015 Permit Renewal

Water surrounding the Buckhorn Mine must be left as clean as it was prior to mining

Background for 2015 discharge permit renewal:
Discharges at the Buckhorn Mine are regulated by the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) under the U.S. Clean Water Act. The NPDES permit must be renewed every five years. The first Buckhorn Mine NPDES permit went into effect in November 2007, there was a permit modification in June 2009, and it expired in November 2012. The WA Department of Ecology (Ecology) temporarily extended the permit due to complications stemming from significant violations for which a penalty was issued in July 2012. Crown/Kinross appealed the penalty. The second NPDES permit was issued in February 2014 and was appealed by Crown/Kinross the next day. Ecology issued a permit modification in April 2014 and again on April 1, 2015.

The penalty that Ecology issued in July 2012, was for $395,000, the largest in WA State history. Almost a year later, in June 2013, Crown/Kinross and Ecology settled the penalty for the permit violations, in order to break through the deadlock and start finding solutions to the water quality problems at the mine. The penalty settlement forgave all previous water quality violations at the mine, and agreed to a timetable for the issuance of the discharge permit and other provisions. In October 2013, after over 30 meetings with the mining company and their consultants, a draft NPDES permit was presented by Ecology to the public for comment. OHA submitted over 200 pages of comments, including a 3D visualization of the capture zone, which is posted online at: youtu.be/SPE5waXRjfU. OHA pushed for the NPDES renewal to hold the company to discharging water that is as clean as streams and groundwater were before mining began (background levels). There is no reason that higher levels of contaminants should be allowed than were originally present in local streams and groundwater.

The 15 month overdue new permit was issued on February 27, 2014. Despite verbal assurance during the penalty settlement negotiations that they would not appeal the new NPDES, Kinross submitted an appeal to the Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB), one day after the permit was issued.

Buckhorn mine
Left to right: Aerial of Buckhorn Mine; mine and waste rock; 2011 landslide in Gold Bowl Creek; culvert with sediment

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OHA Memos to WA Dept. of Ecology

This page links to several letters that OHA has written over the life of Buckhorn Mine to ensure that Ecology held (and continues to hold) the mining company accountable to rules and regulations for pollution discharge.

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Water Quality not improving at the Buckhorn Mine

Mine Seepage Exceeds Permit Limits; Violations Mount

The 2018 Annual Coordination Meeting at the Buckhorn Mine included a presentation from Dr. Ann Maest, OHA’s consulting aqueous geochemist. Dr. Maest has worked on Buckhorn issues for 25 years and is an expert on the environmental impacts of mining, working on projects internationally. In contrast to the water quality presentation given by Crown Resources, Dr. Maest took a critical look at the previous year’s data. In her presentation, Dr. Maest concluded that, despite ongoing mitigation measures at the mine, water quality was not improving in key locations at the site. The presentation focused on the water quality impacts of two contaminants of concern: sulfate and nitrate.

OHA’s technical expert, Dr. Ann Maest
OHA’s technical expert, Dr. Ann Maest, provides an analysis of the water quality monitoring data.

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Agency Documents

The public can access permit documents such as permits, fact sheets, and public notices through PARIS (the Permit and Reporting Information System). 

Buckhorn Mine Related Documents

Documents, including water right decisions, can be requested from Ecology

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