[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 48 (Thursday, April 25, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Page S3443]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BURNS:
  S. 2334. A bill to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to accept 
the donation of certain land in the Mineral Hill-Crevice Mountain 
Mining District in the State of Montana, and for other purposes; to the 
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
 Mr. BURNS. I am pleased to announce the introduction of the 
Mineral Hill Historic Mining District Preservation Act of 2002. The 
purpose of this Act is for the Forest Service to accept a donation from 
TVX Mineral Hill, Inc., an inholding of approximately 570 acres of 
private land in the Gallatin National Forest. This inholding overlooks 
the Northern entrance of Yellowstone National Park and is within well 
known elk habitat. The donation also includes 194 acres of mineral 
right underlying federal lands.
  This bill provides a win-win situation with benefits for the 
community, for wildlife, for the company, and for the environment. 
After a rich and storied history, the Mineral Hill mine is played out 
and the opportunity to extract minerals has passed.
  The property is in very good condition and is being reclaimed in 
accordance with a reclamation plan approved by the Montana Department 
of Environmental Quality. The Forest Service has been closely involved 
during the reclamation planning and implementation processes to make 
certain that the property will remain in the excellent environmental 
state it is in today.
  As an added guarantee, the United States will also be the beneficiary 
of a $10 million insurance policy provided by TVX to clean up the site 
in the unlikely event that hazardous materials are discovered in the 
future.
  The Mineral Hill Mine is located in the historic Jardine Mining 
District which was established during the 1860s. Many of the buildings 
at the site go back to that time period. Some of the buildings will be 
preserved for interpretation purposes and will be available to the 
public. In addition, the site will be used in cooperation with Montana 
Tech of the University of Montana for mining and geologic education.
  The Mineral Hill property is being donated by TVX to the government 
without the necessity of a payment. There will be ongoing permits 
issued by the State of Montana and by EPA for monitoring of water 
discharge. This bill allows for those permits to be upheld and for the 
water processes to be maintained. In a letter to my office dated June 
25, 2001, the Greater Yellowstone Coalition observed that ``we believe 
that there would be no adverse impact to the agency and indeed would be 
a benefit to the public that this donated land is conveyed with the 
obligation to maintain the NPDES permit already in force.'' This is 
exactly what the bill provides in Section 11.
  I am pleased to say that this is a bill with the support of all key 
parties. The Forest Service has agreed to the transfer and management 
of the land and has been actively involved in this process. The 
Gardiner Chamber of Commerce supports the project, as do the 
Commissioners of Park County. The Greater Yellowstone Coalition also 
supports the donation.
  Simply put, this legislation is in the public interest. On behalf of 
the people of Montana, I look forward to its passage.
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