The Collapse Of Gulf Mine Poisons Economy, Official Says Pollution Problems Scare Off Investors, Says Commissioner

Jack King blames his astigmatism on lead exposure from working 20 years as a Bunker Hill electrician.

Now, as a Kellogg business owner and Shoshone County commissioner, King blames contamination from the same mining company for prolonging the county’s economic problems.

He says the area’s economic depression cannot end until the area around Bunker Hill is cleaned up. Commercial builders are frightened away by the pollution.

“We have to get this land usable again so we can develop our community,” King says.

Particularly frustrating, he says, is that Gulf Resources & Chemical Corp. had plenty of money for cleanup until the company squandered its cash overseas.

Demolition of Bunker Hill’s polluted buildings began only recently - after 10 years of federal government involvement.

King is miffed that it’s taken so long to get the cleanup started. Yet he understands the complexity of undoing the sprawling mess.

“That pollution took 100 years to get here,” he says. “It can’t be cleaned up overnight.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo