BUTTE - A public meeting was held in Butte Tuesday on the progress of the continued cleanup of a former gold mine west of the Mining City.
The U.S. Forest Service updated the public and several agencies about reclamation work being done at the Beal Mine site located at the headwaters of German Gulch. The Pegasus Gold Corporation abandoned the mine after it went bankrupt in 1998 and the Forest Service has since taken responsibility for cleaning and pumping contaminated water from the site.
“Our main concern obviously is the fish and wildlife resources which is very important for everybody in Montana and we just want to make sure that the Forest Service is considering the fish and wildlife as they are doing their clean up at Beal Mine,” said Fish, Wildlife and Parks Biologist Vanna Boccadori.
Cost of the cleanup is estimated at $40 million and could take several more years to complete.
