Aug12016
Daily DrakeSaveStick

Montana’s iconic Smith River is facing two challenges to its unsullied flyfishing future: A proposed copper mine on a vital tributary that would endanger the entire river ecosystem. And mining industry blowhards who want to limit public sentiment in the decision-making process. That’s why Montana Trout Unlimited (MTU) is asking anglers to lean on the powers that be in order to squash the deal.

(Which is easier said than done considering the state’s lax mining laws.)

“Tintina Resources, a Vancouver, Canada-based company controlled by an Australian mining corporation, is proposing a copper mine next to and underneath Sheep Creek, one of the two most critical tributaries of Montana’s Smith River. Tintina’s interests total about 12,000 acres, and include 7,500 acres of private land and the underlying mineral estate, as well as the mining claims it has on adjoining federal land. Tintina promises its Black Butte mine will include ‘state of the art’ environmental protections, and that this foreign company cares just as much about the Smith River as Montanans do,” MTU says.

Project top-dog, Australian John Shanahan, on the other hand, says the mine won’t harm Sheep Creek or the Smith River, noting it will be a “small, boutique underground operation.”

Of course, Montanans have heard similar promises. And they’re almost always broken, resulting in damaged habitat and spendy taxpayer-funded cleanups.SaveStick

Implication of a Sheep Creek turned cesspool are bad, considering it can represent up to half of the flow of the Smith River below Camp Baker and taking into account that at least half of the trout spawning in the Smith River watershed use Sheep Creek. “Some fish even come from the Missouri River to spawn in Sheep Creek,” MTU adds.

Visit MTU’s Smith River Watch page today and sign its “No Risk” ACTION ALERT, petitioning Montana Governor Steve Bullock to get on board.

In addition, hit RepYourWater for Save the Smith stickers—all proceeds are earmarked for the effort.

Tom Bie
+ posts

Tom Bie is the founder, editor, and publisher of The Drake. He started the magazine in 1998 as an annual newsprint publication based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. He then moved it to Steamboat, Colorado (1999), Boulder, Colorado (2001), and San Clemente, California (2004), as he took jobs as managing editor at Paddler, Senior Editor at Skiing, and Editor-in-Chief at Powder, respectively. Tom and The Drake are now both based in Denver, Colorado, where The Drake is finally all grows up(Swingers, 1996) to a quarterly magazine.

Category: Daily Drake
Tags: 

Author: Tom Bie

Tom Bie is the founder, editor, and publisher of The Drake. He started the magazine in 1998 as an annual newsprint publication based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. He then moved it to Steamboat, Colorado (1999), Boulder, Colorado (2001), and San Clemente, California (2004), as he took jobs as managing editor at Paddler, Senior Editor at Skiing, and Editor-in-Chief at Powder, respectively. Tom and The Drake are now both based in Denver, Colorado, where The Drake is finally all grows up(Swingers, 1996) to a quarterly magazine.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Post comment