Environmental group criticizes track record of mining company

Monday, Jan. 14, 2002 | 11:53 a.m.

An environmental group opposed to an underground zinc and copper mine in northern Wisconsin said Monday the owners of the mine were responsible for 31 spills of hazardous materials over four years in Arizona and Nevada.

The Mining Impact Coalition of Wisconsin researched spills at three mostly copper mines owned by BHP Billiton, the parent company of Nicolet Minerals Co., which wants to develop a mine near Crandon.

Nicolet Minerals is seeking state, federal and local permits to mine 55 million tons of zinc and copper ore.

From 1996 to 2000, the coalition said state and federal records document spills of sodium cyanide, mine waste tailings, sulfuric acid, wastewater with arsenic and dust at Pinto Valley Mine in Miami, Ariz.; San Manuel Mine in San Manuel, Ariz.; and Robinson Mine, in Ruth, Nev.

All but four of the spills occurred at San Manuel, the records show.

Dave Blouin, coordinator of the Mining Impact Coalition, said the research points out the potential for environmental problems at the Crandon mine.

"Nicolet Minerals has never operated a mine. But its parents have, and one of its parents, BHP, in a four-year span at three mines in the United States seems to be a chronic polluter," Blouin said.

Dale Alberts, a spokesman for Nicolet Minerals, said chemical spills are not unusual at any large-scale industrial activity, including paper mills.

"I see small spills of sulfuric acid," he said, referring to the list of incidents at the Arizona and Nevada mines. "I bet if you focused on one paper company that used sulfuric acid, you will find a similar record or worse."

The spills of sulfuric acid on the list researched by the Mining Impact Coalition ranged from 140 gallons to 5,000 gallons.

Users of hazardous materials must have plans to deal quickly with spills, as will the mine, which would use a dozen or more industrial chemicals in its operation, Alberts said.

Blouin's group "overstates everything" and only tells half the truth, Alberts said.

"It is part of their overall strategy to put pressure on the Legislature to pass more anti-mining legislation. They want to fan the rhetorical and emotional flames against mining," Alberts said.

Michelle Robertson, manager of the water permit section of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, said it was not unusual for mining companies to have some chemical spills.

She refused to characterize the environmental record of the mines in her state without doing more detailed research.

The agency's hazardous materials incident log shows that in 1997, a waste tailings pile at Pinto Valley failed, spilling about 100,000 tons of material.

Blouin said the mining company was fined $558,000 and was forced to clean out a stretch of Pinto Creek.

The Mining Impact Coalition did not document if any environmental damage was caused by any other spills.

Jeff Parker, an environmental manager for the three mines owned by BHP Copper in Arizona and Nevada, did not immediately return a telephone message seeking comment Monday.

Mining at the three mines stopped in 1999, although some ore processing continues, a receptionist at the company's office in Tucson, Ariz., said.

Critics believe toxic chemicals from Nicolet Minerals' proposed mine will damage the environment and jeopardize water quality in the area, which is the headwaters for the Wolf River.

Supporters say the mine can operate safely without harming the environment and provide badly needed jobs in Forest County.

The mine would create 400 jobs over its 35-year life and another 300 during construction.

The state Department of Natural Resources is expected to release its recommendations on the project by May, Alberts said Monday.

Larry Lynch, a DNR mining regulator involved in the study of the Nicolet Minerals project, did not immediately return a telephone message Monday for comment on the environmental track record of BHP Billiton.

Blouin said the mines in Arizona and Nevada - two are open pits mines and one is an underground mine - are the only hard-rock mines owned by BHP Billiton in the United States.

Before its merger, BHP was based in Australia and Billiton had headquarters in South Africa and the United Kingdom.

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On the Net:

Nicolet Minerals Co.: http://www.crandonmine.com

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources: http://www.dnr.state.wi.us

Arizona Department of Environmental Quality: http:// www.adeq.state.az.us/environ/waste/hazwaste/hwssearch/html