Controversial site near Blackfoot River chosen for mine tailings

State and federal regulators have settled on a controversial repository site they believe will safely contain 1 million cubic yards of toxic mine tailings that are shored up behind the Mike Horse Dam.

The $39 million project to remove the dam, an earthen berm at the headwaters of the Blackfoot River, and extract the impounded waste behind it has been on hold while the Montana Department of Environmental Quality searches for a safe repository.

And although agency officials say they still must conduct a more detailed investigation of the site – a 360-acre triangle on the east side of Highway 279, called Section 35 – they said it appears to be the best option.