Mining company responsible for muddy mess in Porcupine Mountains fined $25K

GOGEBIC COUNTY, MI - The Canadian mining company cited with state law violations for causing messy erosion issues in Michigan's Upper Peninsula has reached a settlement with state officials.

Copperwood Resources - a local subsidiary of Highland Copper of Quebec, which is managing the mining project in Gogebic County's Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park, recently signed an administrative consent order which included a $25,000 fine.

The consent order is a legal settlement addressing damages without conveying admissions of violations of law. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Department of Natural Resources and Gogebic County Road Commission have all agreed to the settlement.

Highland Copper began conducting exploratory drilling of the mineral deposit last winter, however work was halted April 4 after Highland Copper officials were informed of several potential erosion issues on the county property.

A contract drilling company was part way into drilling their last scheduled test core hole into the eastern extension of the copper deposit first explored in the 1950s.

According to Steve Casey, U.P. district coordinator for the DEQ's Water Resources Division in Marquette, the mining company's big mistake came when it continued to test drilling operations during spring snowmelt, in and around wetlands, without first obtaining the necessary wetlands or soil erosion and sediment control permits.

The resulting work damaged wetlands and resulted in a discharge of muddied water from the site, creating an unconstrained, muddy mess in the area along 233 feet of Gogebic County Road 519.

The DEQ issued an order requiring the mining company to stabilize the site and restore the wetlands in April 2017.

The company employed Coleman Engineering Co., an Upper Peninsula firm, and Michigan wetland specialists King & MacGregor Environmental, to work on getting short-and-long-term erosion control measures in place. That work continued throughout the summer and has since been completed.

A catch basin in between Gogebic County Road 519 and an old snowmobile trail in April 2017, soon after erosion occurred, with short-term holding structures in place. The basin is intended to block water and silt from entering a nearby tributary to Gipsy Creek.

"Our team has learned a great deal from this incident and future work will continue to be done under strict compliance with current environmental legislation and best practices," said Carlos Bertoni, vice-president of exploration at Highland Copper in a statement.

"We remain committed to developing the Copperwood Project, thus creating new economic opportunities for the western Upper Peninsula."

Casey said the area was "stable" heading into the winter and the Gogebic County Road Commission has granted a permit to the mining company to continue the drilling operation in the holes it started. However, no new holes will be permitted without frozen ground or in the boundaries of the park, officials said.

Any potential mining of the minerals would require a separate regulatory process through the DEQ including public review and comment. Highland Copper would also have to amend its existing permit.

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