RED DOG AND THE ENVIRONMENT

• Fugitive dust
• Water quality
• Red Dog Mine and TRI
• Q&A on TRI
• Water quality permit
• USEPA Red Dog Mine SEIS website
• EPA 2006 TRI Report

In 1998, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reissued a water discharge permit for the Red Dog Mine that included metal limits EPA called "significantly more stringent" than the original permit and limits for total dissolved solids (TSS) based on a state standard that was changed a year later. The EPA acknowledges that the TSS standard is virtually impossible to meet due to the process required to remove metals from the wastewater. The EPA and the mine have attempted to modify the permit for years but have been thwarted by legal challenges.

The issue appeared close to resolution last fall when EPA put the finishing touches on a new permit that would bring Red Dog into compliance with its permit for the first time in years. But days before it was to be issued, EPA pulled the permit, saying its analysis was partially flawed because it used historical assumptions rather than current data. "This was a very difficult decision for us because we feel the permit itself is a strong permit and is based on strong science," said Patricia McGrath, An EPA project manager based in Seattle.

EPA said it will merge its review of the water permit with an environmental impact analysis it is conducting for a proposed mine expansion.

In the meantime, the San Francisco-based Center on Race, Poverty and the Environment, on behalf of the Kivalina Relocation Planning Committee, filed suit for $20 million, accusing Red Dog of 1,951 violations of the Clean Water Act. A federal judge dismissed most of the charges and the case is scheduled to go to trial this spring.

Ongoing testing shows waste water from the mine meets drinking water standards and is much cleaner than in pre-mining days.