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Crown/Kinross 2015 Mine Report claims, “No Action Needed”

Kinross Plans Unapprovable

Each spring the company is required to report the results of monitoring activity. Once again the mining company has reported that “no action is required,” basically because it continues to ask the wrong questions. Lack of action on the part of the Department of Ecology has allowed Kinross to continue operating under outdated management plans, specifically the Adaptive Management Plan (AMP) and the Hydrologic Monitoring Plan (HMP). Two years ago, the current operating permit required updated plans that considered the water quality changes that occurred during the window of the first discharge permit. The AMP submitted by Crown Resources/Kinross Gold was basically the same as the one that has been in force from the beginning of operations, with no substantial reflection on its adequacy to address the current water quality issues. Ecology pointed this out, but has not required the follow-through that the permit requires. The company responded that what it submitted was adequate and that they would take no additional action…

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Taxpayers Vulnerable for Buckhorn Mine Cleanup Costs

Ecology takes steps toward independent review

Last November, Kinross submitted a plan to Ecology that purported to detail the amount of money required to satisfy the company’s environmental mitigation and cleanup requirements on Buckhorn Mountain. This plan, known as the Environmental Protection Performance Security Plan (EPPS), contains the narrative and numeric components of the mine’s environmental reclamation bond. During a careful review of the EPPS by OHA and its consultants, serious omissions and underestimations were discovered, leading OHA to the conclusion that the amount of money secured by the bond is inadequate to protect taxpayers from shouldering the environmental cleanup costs at the Buckhorn Mine, should Kinross fail to meet its obligations..

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Butterfly Field Trip – Gems that Fly

Butterflies are the quintessential symbol of renewal through change. In a world that is rapidly changing, the Highland Wonders educational series provides opportunities for our community to learn more about the natural world, with the hope that these experiences may renew our enthusiasm to take care of the rich biodiversity around us. 

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Era of Megafires

Things seem to be changing in the West – snowpack levels are lower than they used to be, and the snowpack melts earlier in spring. Fire seasons are longer and more severe. Megafires, wildfires over 100,000 acres, now occur more often, causing wide-ranging impact on homes, communities, and wildlands. These changes are expected to continue, and we need to increase the fire resiliency of our wildlands, while also completing defensible space work around homes and communities.

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One Stick at a Time: Climate Vulnerability & Forest Management in the West

Film Screening & Discussion

Beaver ponds on Lost Lake are storing water both on the surface and below

For the last year, Kent Woodruff, a retired US Forest Service biologist from Winthrop, has been engaging people across the west in discussions about what we can do to soften the impacts of climate change. As our already dry landscape and water resources become impacted by climate change, this topic will be increasingly relevant to our ecological and human communities.

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Those Marvelous, Myriad Lichens

with Jack Massie
An indoor/outdoor combo opportunity: April/May 2017

Lichens appear as an entire organism but are actually composed of two or more very different partners — they truly are peculiar, efficient, and wondrous. Often misunderstood, the lichen field trip will provide an up-close look at these incredible life forms and how they function.

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CD Release Concert

On Friday, March 24th 2017, OHA celebrated 25 years by hosting a fundraising concert, variety show, and dinner at the Community Cultural Center of Tonasket for the release of OHA’s Highland Voices CD. We enjoyed an evening of delicious locally-sourced food, original music, and appreciation for the people who have been a part of OHA over the years.

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