As Montana’s Golden Sunlight mine prepares to close, the mine manager reminds us that the closure is happening because “It’s a nonrenewable resource.” Once there isn’t enough gold to be profitable, it’s over…except for the polluted water, which “will have to be pumped and treated in perpetuity.” The jobs and tax base disappear but the toxic water and the cost of treating it remain, forever.
Because this mine is perched above the Jefferson river, how the company plans to treat and dispose of its never-ending source of polluted water will be critical.
Read more about the closure in this article by Susan Dunlap at the Montana Standard.