Regulators Ask Judge To Dismiss Mine Suit

State regulators have asked a district judge to dismiss on procedural grounds a lawsuit challenging the state’s approval of expansion of the Zortman gold mine in central Montana.

The state Department of Environmental Quality want District Judge Jeffrey Sherlock to dismiss the suit by two Indian tribes and a pair of environmental groups alleging that the department’s approval violated state law and the Constitution.

The suit was filed against the state by the Gros Ventre and Assiniboine tribes, the Montana Environmental Information Center and the National Wildlife Federation.

Tim Fox, staff attorney for the DEQ, told Sherlock Wednesday the suit does not include Zortman Mining Inc. or its parent company, Pegasus Gold Corp., as a defendant. He said that was a fatal flaw.