Dillon Field Office
| Contacts: | David Abrams, Public Affairs Specialist | |||
| dabrams@blm.gov | ||||
| (406) 490-0367 |
BLM Seeks Public Comments on Mine Waste Rock Removal Project Near Pony
DILLON (Oct. 16, 2012) – The Bureau of Land Management’s Dillon Field Office is evaluating a proposal to remove about 9,000 tons of waste dump material from four different locations west of Pony, Montana. The BLM will take public comment on the proposal until Nov. 18, 2012.
Two of the locations are on public land and the other two locations are on patented land. The material will be hauled from the four locations down Pony Creek Road in 30-ton articulating off-road trucks to a crusher site just off Strawberry Creek Road located about one mile west of Pony. From there, it will be screened and crushed and then hauled to the Golden Sunlight Mine east of Whitehall.
Minimal road improvement on public land is anticipated, however, a section of road will need to be constructed to access one of the sites on public land.
Although levels of potentially hazardous substances in the waste rock may be somewhat elevated, the concentrations will not pose a public health issue. The material will eventually end up in a lined permitted tailings pond.
The BLM is processing the applicant’s plan of operations in accordance with federal regulations. If the operation is approved as submitted, removal would begin immediately and take up to two summers to complete. No winter operation is proposed.
For more information or to submit comments, please contact Robert Gunderson at the Dillon Field Office at (406) 683-8000, or by email to MT_Dillon_FO@blm.gov with “Pony Waste Removal” in the subject line.
Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.
For the latest BLM news and updates visit us on the web at: www.blm.gov/mt and on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/BLMMontana.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
Dillon Field Office 1005 Selway Drive Dillon, Montana 59725