NEWS RELEASES
Zinke Closes Yellowstone Region To Mining
Editor's Note: This news item was retrieved and first published through The U.S. Department of the Interior's website.
PRAY, Mont. – More than 30,000 acres of federal lands at the northern gates of Yellowstone National Park in southwest Montana will be protected from mining for 20 years, according to a Dept. of the Interior press release. U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke is withdrawing the historic Emigrant Gulch and Crevice mining districts in a region known as the Paradise Valley from any new mining activity, subject to valid existing rights. Twenty years is the longest period possible under the Secretary's authority.
"Access to public lands and water has allowed the Paradise Valley to build a world-class hunting, fishing, tourism and recreation economy. Whether it's enjoying the natural hot springs, fly fishing the Yellowstone, or hiking up Emigrant Peak, there's no shortage of ways to enjoy this beautiful region," Secretary Zinke said at a signing ceremony attended by local small business owners and conservation advocates. "There are places where it is appropriate to mine and places where it is not. Paradise Valley is one of the areas it's not. The 20-year withdrawal will set that land aside and allow the local tourism industry to grow."
Visit the DOI's website for a full report released last week.