Grass Valley City Council Gets Update on Status of Idaho-Maryland Mine Environmental Review

Published on Nov 18, 2006 - 4:23:00 PM

By: YubaNet

On Tuesday evening Planning Director Tom Last gave the Grass Valley City Council an update on the status of the ongoing environmental review process for Emgold's proposed Idaho-Maryland gold mine. As a formality, the city council voted to authorize the mayor to sign an amendment with the consulting firm of Environmental Science Associates (ESA) to continue the next two phases of the environmental review and to approve addendums to the reimbursement agreement to cover ESA's costs, as well as costs for the law firm of Abbott and Kindermann, LLP.

In November 2005, the city had entered into its original contract with ESA to complete all the environmental work. Tom Last explained that this original agreement recognized the need to amend the scope and budget following the completion of the Master Environmental Assessment (MEA or Phase 1 of the process). The MEA was completed in June 2006. Now, ESA has amended its scope of work so that the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) will address the issues identified in the MEA. Hence, the need for an amendment to be approved by the council.

All costs borne by the city will be reimbursed by Idaho-Maryland Mining Corporation, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Emgold Mining Corporation. With the latest revisions, ESA's contract comes to $578,115 for the MEA and EIR.

The junior mining company (www.emgold.com), headquartered in Vancouver, B.C., wants to explore for gold it believes previous miners overlooked before the mine closed in 1956. Emgold wants to mine 2,000 feet deeper than the original mine. 70 miles of flooded tunnels would have to be dewatered and treated mine water would be diverted to South Fork Wolf Creek. A cyanide leach process would be used to separate microscopic particles of gold from the ore.

Because of its location, mine tailings can't be stored or reclaimed on the site. Emgold hopes to convert its mine waste into ceramic tiles via a proprietary process it calls Ceramext. At this stage, patents are still pending and the process has not been demonstrated to work on a commercial scale. However, the Ceramext technology has now moved "from an experimental technology housed in a garage environment to a pilot scale manufacturing technology for the Idaho-Maryland Mine Project," according to documents submitted by Emgold in October. The company plans to build a 193,000 sq. ft. ceramics plant.

Some of the other changes by the applicant include a 100-foot buffer area along Wolf Creek, the extension of Centennial Drive from Idaho-Maryland Road to Bennett Road to include a new intersection alignment with Spring Hill Road, and modifications to the site plan.

The Three-Phase Process Moves Forward

The three-phase review process began in January 2006 with the Master Environmental Assessment (MEA), which gathered and reviewed existing data from previous studies, site history and all the information needed to develop a comprehensive list of environmental issues and constraints pertaining to the project. It also identified the local, state, and federal agencies involved in making decisions. The MEA was completed in June 2006 and was prepared, according to ESA, in accordance with the provisions of CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act). As a purely informational document, the MEA is not a decision document that requires certification by the city. To read the MEA click here.

Now that amended agreements have been approved by the city council, the next two phases can proceed as planned. Phase 2 is the Final Initial Study and Notice of Preparation (IS and NOP); Phase 3 is the EIR.

ESA plans to hold a public scoping meeting after publication of the Initial Study and NOP. During Phase 3 (the EIR), ESA plans to attend up to 12 meetings: one kickoff meeting with city staff; four meeting with staff to discuss the Draft EIR, responses to public comments and the Final EIR; four meetings/hearings of the planning commission or city council; and three public and agency outreach meetings or workshops.

As part of the EIR process, ESA is planning to hire a subcontractor, Hausrath Economics, to prepare a Fiscal Impact Analysis.

The EIR will address a wide range of resource topics including:

Aesthetics
Agricultural Resources
Air Quality
Biological Resources
Cultural Resources
Geology, Soils, Seismicity and Mineral Resources
Hazards and Hazardous Materials
Hydrology and Water Quality
Land Use and Planning
Noise
Population and Housing
Public Service
Recreation
Transportation and Traffic
Utilities and Service Systems
Significant Unavoidable Adverse Impacts
Growth-Inducing Impacts
Cumulative Impacts
Effects Not Found to be Significant
Alternatives to the Proposed Project
Mitigation Monitoring and Reporting Program

As documents are completed they will be posted to the city's web site.

Emgold's proposal is controversial given the location of the project and its planned 24/7 operations. The largest of the mine properties (101 acres) is located between Idaho-Maryland Road and East Bennett Street off Centennial Drive, just outside the city limits. This would need to be annexed to the city. The two others are located off Whispering Pines Lane and Brunswick Road and next to the old lumber yard on Brunswick Road at East Bennett Street. The total project area is 145 surface acres.

Concerns expressed by residents include heavy truck traffic, transportation of hazardous materials over city roads, dust, noise, light pollution, contamination of ground water, aquifer and well depletion, unseasonable flows to Wolf Creek, lowered property values, and a host of issues related to operating a hardrock metal mine within city limits.

Related Articles:

Grass Valley Planning Commission Tours Proposed Idaho-Maryland Mine Site

Grass Valley Provides Online Information on Proposed Idaho-Maryland Mine

Grass Valley Hosts Public Outreach Presentation on Emgold' s proposed mine

YubaNet's 5-Part Special Report on the Idaho-Maryland Mine: Golden Gamble in Grass Valley

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