Idaho Quarry Sale Scotched Again

CLAYTON, Idaho – Plans to sell federal land at the site of a stone quarry near here apparently failed again earlier this year.
The Challis Messenger reports that U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) declined to add the sale of the land containing the Three Rivers Stone Quarry to his Central Idaho Economic Development and Recreation Act (CIEDRA).
“The constructive feedback I have received over the past three weeks has made it apparent to me that including the quarry would tip the balance for many of those who have been working toward the overall goals of CIEDRA,” says Rep. Simpson in a Jan. 12 press statement
Simpson considered adding the sale to his legislation after it and other controversial provisions were stripped from a budget reconciliation bill late last year.
The expansion of activity at the quarry, worked by Orland, Calif.-based L&W Stone Corp., proved controversial last year after a preliminary approval by the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which oversees the federal land.
The Western Watersheds Project (WWP) opposed the BLM approval on environmental grounds, and filed suit in federal district court to stop the expansion and cause the BLM to review its initial approval. Judge Fred Winmill declined to approve an injunction against any expanded quarrying on the site, but limited the scope of the expansion pending further legal review.
Meanwhile, Rep. Richard Pombo (R-Calif.) included the sale of the land from the federal government to L&W in legislation attached to a overall federal-budget reconciliation bill late last year. The sale narrowly passed the U.S. House of Representatives, but the sale and changes to the Mining Act of 1872 were axed from the bill during Senate consideration in December.
The nearly 520-acre quarry site would’ve been sold for approximately $1,000 per acre. The quarry sale would also put mining jurisdiction under an Idaho state agency and stopped the WWP’s lawsuit.