Tiffany & Co. criticizes Rock Creek Mine

In a first for a major jewelry retailer, Tiffany & Co. bought an ad in the Washington Post on Wednesday and used it to lobby against the proposed Rock Creek Mine in northwestern Montana.

Running as an open letter to Forest Service Chief Dale Bosworth, the advertisement also took issue with the 1872 General Mining Act, contending it "virtually gives away public lands and the minerals under them to private interests."

By SHERRY DEVLIN of the Missoulian

http://missoulian.com/articles/2004/03/25/news/mtregional/news06.txt

"We at Tiffany & Co. understand that mining must remain an important industry," wrote Tiffany’s chairman Michael Kowalski. "But like some other businesses benefiting from trade in precious metals, we also believe that reforms are urgently needed.

"Minerals should – and can – be extracted, processed and used in ways that are environmentally and socially responsible. Government and industry each has a role to play in shaping sensible measures to achieve this goal."

The Rock Creek Mine "may well become an important icon" in the national debate over mining policy, Kowalski predicted.

The Kootenai National Forest approved the controversial silver and copper mine last year, over the objections of environmental groups and a coalition of businesses and politicians in the Clark Fork River basin.

The mine and its attendant processing facilities would be located along the lower Clark Fork near Noxon, not far from Lake Pend Oreille and Sandpoint, Idaho.

Those same groups hailed Tiffany’s for moving the issue onto the national stage with Wednesday’s ad.

"Thank you, Tiffany & Co., for helping raise awareness of this short-sighted mine proposal and helping Sandpoint protect its clean water," said Mary Mitchell, director of the Rock Creek Alliance.

Sunset Magazine recently named Sandpoint – population 5,500 – the best small town in the West.

But the mine could spoil the town’s trademark lake front, Mitchell said.

"Our business identity reflects the clean, flowing water of the Pend Oreille basin," said Dave Gunter, a spokesman for Coldwater Creek, a women’s clothing company headquartered in Sandpoint.

The Rock Creek Mine would release millions of gallons of wastewater into the Clark Fork River – and ultimately, Lake Pend Oreille – each day. Miners would tunnel under the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness Area to reach the metals.

"Lake Pend Oreille is pivotal to our choice to headquarter our company here and helps us attract high-quality employees," said Gunter. "We take the future of the lake very seriously, and expect the Forest Service to do so as well."

Kootenai National Forest Supervisor Bob Castaneda was out of the office Wednesday afternoon and could not be reached for comment.

In the past, he has defended the mine – and his decision to approve its development, saying the proposal meets all state and federal laws and regulations.

Sterling Mining Co. has rights to the project, which would extract 10,000 tons of copper and silver a day for up to 35 years.

"The fact that the Forest Service was compelled to approve the Rock Creek Mine plan is a classic example of all that is outdated and wrong with the 1872 Mining Law," said Stephen D’Esposito, president of Earthworks, a group previously known as the Mineral Policy Center.

"We applaud the leadership, vision and business sensibility of Tiffany & Co. on this issue," he said.

D’Esposito said he believes the advertisement could be an early sign that jewelers fear a consumer backlash against products that use gold, silver, copper and other metals.

"The business community is poised to take a leadership position and recognizes that mining does not have to be done at the expense of communities and the environment, and that there are some special places that should never be mined," he said.

Although approved, the Rock Creek Mine still faces legal challenges by several conservation and community groups.

Reporter Sherry Devlin can be reached at 523-5268 or at [email protected]

If you’re interested

To see a copy of the Washington Post ad, go to the Web site http://www.earthworksaction.org