A public meeting on the CuMo Mine, a potential mining project near the Boise River headwaters, was supposed to happen in January. But because of the federal government shutdown, the Forest Service cancelled it.
At first it wasn’t clear whether the meeting would happen at a later time – or at all. Once the government reopened more than a week ago – federal officials rescheduled it to Wednesday night. They also extended the public comment period to February 22.
The American CuMo Mining Company is actually a Canadian company. This is the third time the company has tried to build a mine in the Boise National Forest near Idaho City to extract the mineral molybdenum.
Two years ago, a federal judge rejected a Forest Service environmental assessment, citing concerns over a rare plant called Sacajawea’s bitterroot. The plant is only found in central Idaho at higher elevations.
The public meeting Wednesday, Feb. 6 is from 5:00-7:00 p.m. at the Best Western Plus Vista Inn at the Airport in Boise.
Find reporter Frankie Barnhill on Twitter @FABarnhill
Copyright 2019 Boise State Public Radio