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The Bureau of Land Management will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the proposed expansion of the Coeur Rochester and Packard Mines near Lovelock in Pershing County.  The publication of the Notice of Intent in the Federal Register today opens a 30-day public scoping period, during which the interested parties may help define the environment issues to be considered in the EIS.

The BLM will hold public open-houses in Winnemucca and Lovelock, Nevada, as follows, where public input and comments will be accepted on the proposed project:

• March 19 from 5pm-7pm: Winnemucca Convention Center, located at 50 West Winnemucca Blvd, Winnemucca, Nevada.
• March 21 from 5pm-7pm: Lovelock Community Center, in the Seven Troughs Room, located at 820 6^th Street, Lovelock, Nevada.

The silver mine, which employs about 300 people, has operated the mine since 1986, and is currently authorized to disturb up to 2,203 acres (approximately 165 acres of private land and 2036 acres of public land).  The proposal would increase disturbance by approximately 2,815, 2,380 acres of which is public land.

In keeping with the Department of the Interior’s priority of providing opportunities for the sustainable and responsible development of the nation’s natural resources, the BLM intends to prepare an EIS that analyzes environmental impacts associated with Coeur Rochester’s proposal to expand the existing mines.  Proposed changes are to expand mining in both of their current pits (the Rochester and Packard pits) and move, relocate, or expand: heap leach pads, waste rock dumps, haul roads, access road, water pipeline, and processing facilities.

Mining of the Rochester Pit would extend below groundwater and require dewatering, resulting in a permanent pit lake after closure. Additional potentially acid generating material would be excavated and would be processed as ore or stored according to their Waste Rock Storage Plan.  The plan would also necessitate an upgrade in power distribution lines and a substation. With the proposed expansion, mine life would be extended to 2033, and would be followed by mine closure and reclamation.

 The purpose of the public scoping process is to determine relevant issues that will influence the scope of the environmental analysis, including alternatives, and guide the process for developing the EIS.  At present, the BLM has identified the following preliminary issues:

Dewatering during mining and the formation of a pit lake after completion of mining activities;

• Potentially acid generating material excavated during mining and ensuring that there is no degradation of waters of the state or undue or unnecessary degradation of public lands;
• Potential impacts to visual resources;
• Potential impacts to wildlife habitat, including Greater Sage-Grouse; and other sensitive species;
• Potential impacts to the Rochester Historic Mining District. 

The public is invited to submit comments during the 30-day public scoping period that will end April 8, 2019.  Interested individuals should address all written comments to Kathleen Rehberg, Project Lead, using any of the following:

Website: https://go.usa.gov/xPdjC

Email: wfoweb@blm.gov. Include POA11 EIS Scoping Comments in the subject line.

Fax:     (775) 623-1740

Mail:    BLM Winnemucca District Office, Humboldt River Field Office

5100 E. Winnemucca Blvd.

Winnemucca NV 89445-2921

Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. While you can ask the BLM in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to do so.

Maps and other planning documents associated with the project may be accessed on the project website at https://go.usa.gov/xPdjC. For further information, please contact, Kathleen Rehberg, Project Lead, at the BLM Winnemucca District Office, 5100 E. Winnemucca Blvd, 775-623-1500.

-BLM-

The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. The agency’s mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. Diverse activities authorized on these lands generated $96 billion in sales of goods and services throughout the American economy in fiscal year 2017. These activities supported more than 468,000 jobs.