OUR GEM: Annual public basin tour set for August
Every August, you can count on a few things.
The weather in our area is typically dry and hot, perfect for a dunk in the lake. The North Idaho Fair takes over the Kootenai County Fairgrounds for close to two weeks. Finally, the Basin Environmental Improvement Project Commission hosts their annual Basin Tour.
The educational tour may not be as exciting as the fair, but it is free, highlighting the work that has and is being done in one of the largest superfund sites in the country.
The Basin Tour occurs as a part of the quarterly BEIPC meeting. The tour typically begins from the Panhandle Health District in Kellogg shortly after the commission addresses any pressing action items and pertinent educational presentations. Tour attendees then get in a bus for a ride through the Silver Valley, making stops at predetermined locations where Basin Partners highlight work that is being done to protect human health and the environment.
This year’s tour will be a little different than those in the recent past. Instead of focusing on work that is still on going in the Upper and Lower Basin, this year’s tour will highlight activities in the Box, the 21-square-mile area near the city of Kellogg.
The tour will begin at the Kellogg School District offices, highlighting one of three stormwater upgrades for the city of Kellogg funded by Idaho Gov. Brad Little’s Leading Idaho initiative.
From there, the tour will proceed to East Smelterville Flats area where IDEQ and EPA will be working on a 16-acre remediation and potential future redevelopment project.
Next, the tour will highlight economic development that is happening in the Silver Valley, starting with a visit to the Bunker Hill Yard to hear about the innovative ideas Bunker Hill Mine has for starting production at the mine as well as compliance with environmental regulations.
Another stop on the tour will be Galena Ridge, where the general manager of Silver Mountain will discuss their golf course expansion plans.
The final stop will be an area that has been considered a successful remediation and restoration project completed by the Forest Service along with other Basin Partners, where they will discuss the ever-important part of the work being done in the Basin, the operations and maintenance of these remedies, which means checking the site regularly to make sure the remedy is still functioning properly.
Of course, there is much more work being done in the Basin. Recent water quality reports from USGS prove much of the work being done in the Upper Basin and Box is improving water quality in the South Fork of the Coeur d’Alene River. Cleanup is currently being done in canyons outside of Wallace in East Fork Ninemile and Canyon Creek. Work in East Fork Ninemile will conclude this year and the Waste Consolidation Area being utilized to store contaminated waste will be closed out.
In Canyon Creek/Burke, work is just beginning and will continue for several years. In the Lower Basin, work continues on the Greys Meadow agriculture to wetland conversion with plans to also finish up this year. The area is one of the largest constructed wetlands in the world and will provide a clean habitat for waterfowl.
Each project provides incremental improvements in the area’s water quality, protection for human health and clean habitat for wildlife. Cleanup will continue for many years to come, but things are slowly improving.
For those interested, please join the Basin Tour on Aug. 7 from 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. It is free and open to the public, but space is limited, so register today. For more information contact Gail Yost at Gail.Yost@deq.idaho.gov.
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The Our Gem Coeur d’Alene Lake Collaborative is a team of committed and passionate professionals working to preserve lake health and protect water quality by promoting community awareness of local water resources through education, outreach, and stewardship. Our Gem includes local experts from the University of Idaho — Idaho Water Resources Research Institute, Coeur d’Alene Tribe, Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, the Basin Environmental Improvement Project Commission, Kootenai Environmental Alliance.