Midas Gold’s (MAX: TSX) Stibnite gold project is now open for public review following release of the draft environmental impact statement (EIS) by the US Forest Service’s (USFS) last Friday.
The public will have 60 days to comment on the proposed redevelopment and restoration of the former Stibnite mine located in Valley County, Idaho. The comment period is legally required to be 45 days, with a 15-day extension granted by the USFS.
The draft EIS places the company one step closer to developing the Stibnite project, which is expected to produce not only gold and silver but also antimony — becoming the only domestic source of the critical mineral.
The Stibnite project would produce the only domestically mined source of the critical mineral antimony in the US
While Midas has faced litigation over claims relating to water impacts owing to historical mining activity prior to its involvement in the site, the company said the project still has “strong support” within the state of Idaho.
However, the company conceded that the mining district was in need of environmental repair and said it had designed Stibnite to integrate responsible, modern mining with the restoration of legacy and new disturbances.
“Our company has worked hard for the last decade to design and permit a mining project that could redevelop and restore an abandoned brownfields site and have a positive economic impact on the local community and Idaho in general,” Midas CEO Stephen Quin stated in a media release.
“We have carefully developed an approach to use the proceeds of mining to restore fish passage and habitat, address numerous legacy environmental impacts and improve water quality in the region.”
According to the company, the Stibnite project would add $1 billion in construction investment, provide approximately 500 direct, family wage jobs for Idahoans as well as numerous indirect jobs in the supply, services and contracting sectors, address numerous legacy mining issues affecting the environment, and reconnect migrating salmon to their native spawning grounds for the first time in more than 80 years.