Mining

Abandoned uranium mines are found in all corners of the Southwest. With big money flowing in the coming decade from settlements with large corporations and the U.S. government for contamination, cleanup of hundreds of abandoned mines will finally begin after decades of neglect. And that means jobs for tribal citizens and businesses, providing an economic balm for areas that need work.

A proposed lithium mine along the Nevada-Oregon border would produce critical materials for electric car batteries along with local jobs, but critics say the damage to the environment, including the ancestral lands of multiple tribes, isn't worth it.

Dr. Bradley Snow spent 10 years researching the history of mining in the Silver Valley. He's a teaching professor in Montana State University's Department of History & Philosophy. He'll be talking about that history at the City of Boise's Fettuccine Forum on Thursday and he's here to talk with us now.

This interview originally aired Aug. 18, 2020.Back in 1966, a mining company had a plan to develop an open-pit mine in the North Cascade Mountains of…

Back in 1966, a mining company had a plan to develop an open-pit mine in the North Cascade Mountains of Washington state. Endangering the Glacier Peak…

As part of its budget plan, the Trump administration proposes spending $150 million for a new uranium reserve. That could help struggling uranium mining…

Public lands that used to be a part of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in southern Utah will lose many of their environmental protections ,...

President Trump is touting his environmental achievements this week. But some environmental advocacy groups are not impressed. The Center for Western...

The law that governs today’s hardrock mines on public lands in the West is nearly 150 years old. New legislation this week from House Democrats would...

Idaho’s Surface Mining Act was amended by a bill passed during this year’s legislative session. The Idaho Department of Lands, or IDL, will hold public…