Scotchman Mine cleanup meeting set for Heron

A public meeting on the cleanup of the Scotchman Mine has been scheduled for 6-8 p.m., on Tuesday, March 2, at the Heron Community Center.

The Scotchman Mine is located in the East Fork of Blue Creek about five miles north of Heron and about 25 miles southwest of Libby within the Kootenai National Forest.

The Scotchman was silver, lead and zinc mine that was initially worked by Montana Mining and Milling Co., beginning around 1908. It was last operational from 1966-70.

In 1999, the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology completed an assessment of abandoned mines on the Kootenai National Forest. The assessment showed that contaminated water was leaking from the mine’s waste dump into Blue Creek.

The mine opening is on private land but the waste dump is on National Forest System lands and immediately adjacent to the East Fork of Blue Creek. Although the waste dump is relatively small, the Forest Service said its proximity to the creek creates a risk to human health and aquatic life especially during spring runoff and other times of high flow.

In 2008, the Forest Service partnered with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and the Green Mountain Conservation District to further evaluate the site and develop a work plan. The Conservation District obtained a grant under the Reclamation and Development Grants Program administered by the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation for the initial work.

Last year, the Kootenai National Forest received funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for the cleanup work.

With funding in place, a contract was issued to Envirocon out of Missoula to develop a work plan and to do the actual cleanup of the site once the work plan is approved. The Forest Service now has a draft work plan from the contractor that describes possible access to the waste dump and how to move the material to a stable location away from the creek while protecting soil and water resources.

Over the next few weeks district personnel will be finalizing the work plan and preparing for cleanup of the site. The work of moving the mine tailings to a drier, more stable location and reclaiming the mine site will likely be done in August when water levels are lowest, the Forest Service said.

For more information, call Gary Kedish, Doug Grupenhoff or Lee Kramer at the Cabinet Ranger District at 406-827-3533.