Mines

White, pink, yellow and blue opals hide in the rocky landscape of Spencer Opal Mines, the largest-producing precious opal mine in the United States.

It’s Friday, which means it's time for our Reporter Roundtable when Idaho Matters gets you up to date on all the news that made headlines this past week, including the latest on the threats to public lands and the expansion of a Valley County mine.

It’s Friday, which means it's time for our Reporter Roundtable when Idaho Matters gets you up to date on all the news that made headlines this past week.

Committees in the U.S. House and Senate recently discussed abandoned mine policies, with some lawmakers calling for faster rollouts of federal money for cleanups.

The Mine Safety and Health Administration issued 335 violations in April at 20 mines across 15 states. Mines in the Mountain West accounted for 83 of the violations, 17 of which were considered "significant and substantial."

We look at towns that may see new nuke power plants and uranium mines and what it means for the economy and the environment.

U.S. support for nuclear power is the highest it's been in a decade. And there are a number of proposals for new plants in our region. That could mean an uptick in domestic uranium mining.

The public is invited to submit public comment on a draft Forest Service environmental impact review of plans to resume and expand mining in Valley County's Stibnite district.

Rare earth elements are a set of 17 silvery white metals with names mostly unknown to the general public, like neodymium and gadolinium. But the mining industry is spending millions of dollars looking for deposits throughout the Mountain West.

The first cobalt mine in America in decades opens Friday in Idaho. The metal used in electric vehicle batteries is in big demand yet analysts say the environmental costs are also high.