Blackbird Mine sits about 25 miles west of Salmon, Idaho, inside the Salmon-Challis National Forest. Mining ran from the late 1800s through 1982, leaving behind an open pit, nearly 5 million tons of waste rock, tailings ponds, and related structures across 12 acres. The site is proposed for the National Priorities List, which guides EPA decisions about sites needing formal cleanup.
The main contaminants are cobalt, copper, and arsenic. They come from acid rock drainage and leachate in old mine tunnels, waste piles, and tailings. These contaminants have spread into Blackbird Creek, the South Fork of Big Deer Creek, Big Deer Creek, and Panther Creek. Arsenic appears in soil, sediment, surface water, and groundwater. Cobalt and copper are found in sediment and groundwater. EPA determined all three pose unacceptable risk to human health or the environment.
Cleanup at the site has been organized into two units. Removal actions began in 1993 and ran through 2012, covering tasks like stabilizing the West Fork Tailings Dam, relocating and capping waste rock, building diversion and storage dams, expanding the water treatment plant, and removing contaminated soil near Panther Creek Inn. Since 1995, contaminated runoff has been collected and treated for cobalt and copper. A formal cleanup remedy was selected in March 2003, and construction began in August 2003. The long-term plan includes collecting and treating contaminated water, covering the West Tailings impoundment, removing and stabilizing contaminated creek bank sediment, and putting land use controls in place. The state of Idaho first responded in 1983, and the EPA has overseen work since then with support from responsible parties through consent decrees.
EPA assessments show human exposure is currently under control across the site, with no unacceptable exposure pathways active right now. Groundwater is also stabilized and not discharging at unacceptable levels to surface water. However, physical construction is not yet complete, and the site is not ready for its anticipated use. Some cleanup goals and land-use restrictions are still being finalized. The most recent five-year review took place in August 2023, and the next is estimated between August and October 2028. Operation and maintenance for the remedial unit is expected to begin between December 2026 and February 2027.
Community members with questions can contact the EPA Remedial Project Manager or the Community Involvement Coordinator. Site records related to Superfund work can be reviewed at the Salmon Public Library, 204 Main Street, Salmon, Idaho, reachable at 208-756-2311.
