Six years ago, residents of San Juan Ridge organized to stop the re-opening of the Siskon Mine. This was the second time many of them had fought this battle. The lessons learned from that experience are still relevant today for anyone considering Rise Gold Corporation’s application to re-open the Idaho-Maryland Mine in the heart of Grass Valley. Here’s the original introduction to the video from Vimeo:
“In the foothills of the Sierra Nevada lies the San Juan Ridge. On the Ridge, tucked away amongst towering pines, flanked by two forks of the Yuba River, is a thriving, independent community. There is also a huge gold mine – a vestige of California’s mining era. A mine that, in the 1990’s, caused water to pour out of the aquifer scouring creeks and dewatering wells; a mine that wreaked havoc on the community; a mine that is proposed to reopen. This is the story of what a community can do when they decide that enough is enough, and that they will not trade water for gold.”
OTHER RESOURCES REGARDING THE OPENING OF THE IDAHO-MARYLAND MINE
Minewatch website
Community Environmental Advocates Foundation
(Idaho-Maryland webpage)
Nevada County Mine Talk 