Sandfire’s Black Butte copper mine challenged

The Black Butte copper project that TSX-V-listed Sandfire Resources America is advancing in Montana, US, is facing a lawsuit filed by a number of groups opposing the development over concerns relating to the mine’s potential impact on the Smith river.

Montana Trout Unlimited, Montana Environmental Information Center, Trout Unlimited, Earthworks, and American Rivers on June 4 filed the lawsuit in state district court challenging the mine operating permit approved by the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (MT DEQ), alleging a failure to conduct a thorough environmental analysis and ignoring more than 12 000 public comments opposing the mine.