WASHINGTON—Western sportsmen have new game in their sights: A 135-year-old mining law they say has allowed hardrock mining companies to pollute trout streams, damage wildlife habitat and leave abandoned mines throughout the West.
Hunting, fishing and wildlife advocates announced Wednesday that they have joined forces to lobby lawmakers to update the General Mining Act of 1872. They are set to testify at a House hearing on Thursday on a proposed rewrite of the law.
“The law’s legacy is a damaged landscape with hidden hazards that have even killed children,” said Gene Kolkman, a former Bureau of Land Management district manager from Ely, Nev. “It is not only outdated, it is dangerous. This law must be modernized.”
Environmental groups have lobbied for years to revise the law, which imposes few environmental protections and reviews and doesn’t require companies to pay federal royalties on the minerals they extract.
The law allows public lands to be sold for as little as $5 an acre, although Congress has annually prohibited that, and it elevates mining’s importance above other uses of public land, making it difficult for federal agencies to deny mining applications.
This year, with Democrats in control of Congress, critics of the law believe they have a shot at success. An update introduced by House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., would impose environmental requirements, give federal land managers power to reject mining applications and assess an 8 percent royalty to pay for cleaning up abandoned mines.
They will face opposition from mining companies, who warn the changes will hurt the industry and cost jobs. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., a gold-miner’s son from a state heavily dependent on mining, is one of the industry’s strong supporters.
Among the groups that will be lobbying in support of the change are the National Wildlife Federation, the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and Trout Unlimited. They include hunters and anglers whose interest in politics has grown because they fear wildlife habitat has become threatened by decisions in Washington.
In a conference call with reporters, representatives from the three groups said they hope lawmakers will listen to them because they know the land best.
“We believe fees and royalties should pay to restore fish and wildlife habitat,” said outdoor television show host, Tony Dean, who called the current law “legalized theft.”
