State Reaches Deal With Mining Firms

Crown Resources Corp. and Battle Mountain Gold Co. have reached a landmark accord with the state of Washington in the permitting of its Crown Jewel gold mine near Chesaw, Wash.

The mining companies signed an agreement with the state that is the first such agreement between regulatory agencies and private enterprise, said officials from Crown Resources.

The agreement sets a schedule for permitting the project. If the final environmental impact statement on the controversial mine is complete by October of this year, some preliminary construction could begin as soon as the first part of 1997, the company said.

The Crown Jewel mine contains 1.66 million ounces of gold that would be milled and refined in a closed system. The process uses cyanide, but none would be exposed to the environment, the company said.

Denver-based Crown Resources owns 46 percent of the mine. Houston-based Battle Mountain Gold owns the other 54 percent.

The companies also picked M3 Engineering & Technology Corp. of Tucson, Ariz., to engineer the equipment and services for the mine.

, DataTimes