Plan Made For Basin Cleanup ‘Doable’ Idaho Proposal Would Cost $478 Million

The state of Idaho is proposing a 30-year, $478 million plan to deal with metals pollution in the Coeur d’Alene River Basin.

It’s one of five cleanup alternatives that will be considered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA is expected to decide next year how lead, zinc and other metals from historic mining practices will be removed or covered up.

Idaho’s plan was explained Wednesday at a meeting of the Coeur d’Alene Basin Commission.

Steve Allred, director of the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, couldn’t say exactly how the work would be paid for. He expects the Idaho and Washington state governments, the federal government and the mining companies would contribute.

“I’m convinced it’s doable,” Allred said. “The funding can be found.”

Last month, the major mining companies being held responsible for the widespread contamination pledged $250 million over 30 years. They’re hoping that will resolve a $1 billion lawsuit brought by the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and federal government.

The state wants to limit spending and have as much say as possible in the cleanup process.

The state’s 30-year timeline is strictly an estimate, said Kathy Johnson, Idaho’s basin cleanup coordinator.

“It could be more, it could be less,” Johnson said. “We can learn by doing. Every year, we’ll be smarter. Every year, we’ll be more cost-effective.”

The state’s plan emphasizes “getting smarter” by budgeting money to find technological solutions. Research would focus on three areas: removing zinc from water, removing lead from soil, and using the river’s natural energy to distribute clean sediment to cover up riverbank contamination.

The plan divides cleanup into three major areas:

* Tributaries to the South Fork of the Coeur d’Alene River. Most of the mining and ore processing was done in the mountains along streams. The state plan targets 26 waste rock piles, 15 tailing sites in piles and in the floodplain, 12 mine adits (openings) and seeps, and the Hecla Star and Hercules mine sites. Cleanup estimate: $39 million.

* The South Fork. The plan targets 18 waste rock piles, 13 tailings sites, the Coeur d’Alene Mine and Mill, 11 common use areas, three adits and 10 miles of river bank. Cost: $36.5 million.

* The Lower Coeur d’Alene River. Much of the contaminated sediment settled in its bed and banks. The state calls for cleaning up Mission Flats and 31 common uses areas. It would stabilize 80 miles of stream bank, excavate soil from 38 miles, build some levees, clean up eight adjacent lakes and marshes, and remove contaminants from “hot spots” on the river bottom. Total cost: $155.3 million.

“The Lower Coeur d’Alene is large and not much has been done there,” Johnson noted. “We’ll essentially be doing something to both sides of the river through that stretch.”

Now that its proposal is complete, the state - working with the EPA - will begin gathering public comment on what the final cleanup plan will look like. It’s likely to include pieces of all five alternatives, said EPA community liaison Dick Martindale.

Last year, the mining companies submitted a cleanup plan that would cost up to $140 million. The EPA has three alternatives of its own, ranging from minimum to maximum removal/containment of contaminants. No price estimates have been placed on those, Martindale said.

Staff writer Julie Titone can be reached at (208) 765-7126, or by e-mail at juliet@spokesman.com.