Proposed mine in B.C. threatens to pollute Montana waters

[greendog]

~Daily Interlake, Kalispell, 05/04/04~

Combined, the mining proposals have sharply raised concerns about threats to water quality and fisheries in Montana's North Fork Flathead River, along with impacts on elk, grizzly bears and other wildlife that roam across the border.

"Don't look for legal rescue in the laws of British Columbia. There isn't any," warned David Thomas, a City Council member in Fernie, British Columbia.

~snip~

Methane extraction typically involves extensive road development. To reach trapped gas, huge volumes of water must be continuously pumped from coal seams.

That water has to go somewhere, and in the mountainous terrain of southeast British Columbia, it is proposed to be diverted directly into watersheds, said Erin Sexton, a researcher who gave the Flathead Basin Commission a presentation on coal bed methane impacts based on her recent masters thesis.

Sexton said "treated" water from experimental methane wells in B.C. has been tested, showing substantial differences in the chemical composition of the treated water and natural stream water. The tests show increases in salinity, shifts in acid-alkaline balances and depleted dissolved oxygen.

~more~

http://www.dailyinterlake.com/NewsEngine/SelectStory_AD.tpl?command=search&db=news.db&eqskudata=75-809762-45