Michigan Trout Unlimited
MICHIGAN Trout
Michigan TU’s New Mining Policy
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by Al Woody and Robb Smith, MITU Conservation Committee
Spring 2021
Almost two years ago, the Back Forty Mine Project (BFMP) became a concern to Michigan Trout Unlimited. Since it would be affecting a warm water stream, Michigan TU did not give the matter a high priority. However, Michigan TU recognized that a policy/procedure regarding mining activities should be adopted for moving forward on these types of threats to our coldwater resources. As a result, Michigan TU started the development of a policy regarding mining. This article will introduce this new mining policy and update the status of the BFMP. The BFMP would be located in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula adjacent to a warm water segment of the Menominee River near the city of Stephenson. The open pit mine would extract sulfide rock containing significant amounts of zinc, copper, and other valuable metals. The major process steps are: •
The metal ore laden sulfide rock is extracted from the mining site, loaded into trucks, and transported to the mill for processing.
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The rock is crushed in the mill and then moved to ball-milling machines where water is added to create slurry. This operation creates very small rock particles with some chemicals.
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The slurry is then sent to a flotation process where the chemical rock particle mixture is agitated with air to create bubbles. The bubbles that rise to the top of this bath contain the ore minerals of interest, which are skimmed off and collected to be sent to another facility for further purifying processing. The waste material from the flotation process is sent to a tailing pond.
To evaluate a mine’s threat to coldwater resources, location is the critical issue – the opportunity to harm nearby bodies of water by one or more of the following: •
Acid mine drainage – sulfide rock, when exposed to water and air, creates sulfuric acid.
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Spill potential – slurry waste deposited in a tailing pond using an earthen dam is often over 100 feet high.
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Groundwater depletion – the floatation process needs large quantities of water.
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Likelihood of erosion – large, heavy trucks and other earth-moving equipment transport ore to the mill.
Keeping these threats in mind, the Michigan TU Council’s Conservation Committee began preparing a mining policy statement. The Pennsylvania Council of TU has a similar document that identified concerns and offered guidance for action. TU is not opposed to mining, but sometimes the wrong mine is proposed in the wrong location. Michigan TU must fully consider the impacts of mining and mine-related activities on our coldwater habitats before the development of mining projects. Our mineral resources’ economically-desirable development should not come at the cost of coldwater fisheries and their habitats. The purpose of the mining policy statement is to guide Michigan TU in conserving our salmonid populations and their habitat in areas where they may be affected by mining activities, including storage, transportation, processing, and tailings. The policy covers four mining activities; underground mines, open pit mines, rock quarries, and sandpits. It deals with the three phases of a mine’s life; the permit process, mine operation, and land reclamation after the mine has ceased operations. The policy provides a rationale for evaluating the potential effects of any proposed mining activity on coldwater habitats and identifies the most valuable time and means to get involved with the proposed mining activity. The threats to coldwater habitats from mining come from the mining operations and the failure to provide adequate environmental site conditions after mining has stopped. The establishment of what will be done during these periods is defined and agreed upon during the permitting process. Thus, reviewing the documents generated during the permitting process and voicing our concerns at that time is very important to achieving TU goals. Typically, a permit request to mine includes assessments of the mining operations on the environment, how they will be minimized, any needed monitoring, and plans of corrective actions if the need arises. The permit application is submitted to the state or other governmental organizations for review and approval. It is reviewed, commented on, public hearings take place, and a conclusion is made to approve or deny the permit. For Michigan TU to have its concerns heard, we must be involved in this process. Gaining insight into a potential new mining operation is essential so that our involvement in the permit review is effective. This requires watchfulness by our
