Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Mining Permitting topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Heckler Mining updates commissioners on Libby exploration, says dewatering and permitting remain before field work
Summary
Heckler Mining told Lincoln County commissioners its Libby exploration project cleared the Forest Service decision process and must dewater flooded tunnels and secure a DEQ discharge permit before mobilizing contractors; company estimates 14–16 months to prepare and 3–5 years of delineation drilling to define a deposit.
Heckler Mining Company representatives briefed Lincoln County Commissioners on Oct. 29 about the company’s Libby exploration project, the federal permitting timeline and the steps needed before exploration drilling can begin.
Mike Satri, Heckler’s director of governmental affairs, told the board the company pursued an exploration‑only plan to collect geotechnical and hydrologic data without new surface disturbance on Forest Service lands. He said the Forest Service issued a finding of no significant impact and a final decision on Oct. 3, 2025 after an objection period, allowing the exploration program to move forward.
Satri said immediate next steps include dewatering and rehabilitating existing underground drift/tunnel infrastructure using the company’s current water‑discharge permit and treatment plant. He said the company is pursuing a modified discharge permit from the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) that the company hopes to secure in six to eight months; Satri estimated it would take about 14–16 months to pump water and prepare underground workings before contractors can mobilize, and that definition drilling and data collection could stretch three to five years.
Heckler emphasized that prior inferred resource numbers are based on historical data and that the exploration work is intended to collect modern data to determine economic feasibility; Satri stressed there is no guarantee a mine will follow exploration. He noted prior litigation and remands involving earlier plans and said the company withdrew an earlier larger plan in 2022 to pursue a limited exploration track and to avoid new surface disturbance on federal land.
Commissioners asked about workforce size and local impacts; Heckler said early development would likely involve 30–35 people on site (employees and contractors) and said additional contractors would be brought in for drilling. Satri also said the company would continue community outreach, including a public meeting the same evening.
Next steps: Heckler intends to begin dewatering under current permits, await DEQ permitting for expanded discharge, and complete the subsurface work needed to determine whether an economically feasible mining plan exists. County commissioners said they would invite updates as the project reaches permitting milestones.
