(Missoula) The supreme court doesn’t always stay in Helena to hear oral arguments, and last week they went to Missoula, for a case that centers on the language of state water law and what it means for mining operations.
The meeting took place at the University of Montana campus, where justices heard a challenge to the permitting process for the Black Butte Copper Project, a planned underground mine north of White Sulphur Springs.
This is a hearing that continues on last months ruling upholding the BBCP, with the plaintiffs in that case arguing the state hadn’t done enough research on how the mine could affect water quality.
This new hearing is examining water rights rather than water quality, with those same plaintiffs from last months cases arguing that BBCP should have to get an additional water permit.
The court has also scheduled an oral argument at Montana State University for April 22.
