Oregon lawmakers are considering a moratorium on suction-dredge mining.
Oregon lawmakers are considering a moratorium on suction-dredge mining.
The moratorium would ban motorized mining on the full length of rivers and creeks that contain habitat for ocean-traveling salmon and bull trout. The moratorium is estimated to affect 84 percent of the state’s waterways and would run until January 2018.
Miners say federal law protects their right to search for gold and other valuable minerals in the state’s waters and accuse environmentalists of exaggerating the science on the effects of mining.
Read more at OregonLive.com.
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