Conservationists Join the Fight
The Nez Perce case is the second major lawsuit to challenge the mine. Earlier this year, the Idaho Conservation League, Center for Biological Diversity, and American Rivers sued in Idaho federal court, accusing the USFS of rubber-stamping the project without weighing its true environmental toll.
Those groups argue the mine would expand disturbance across 3,600 acres and double its footprint. They contend that the agency’s own documents admitted the “no-action alternative” was the only environmentally superior option.
What Comes Next
With billions of dollars, national security stakes, and tribal sovereignty on the line, the Perpetua Idaho Gold Mine suit may set precedent for how far corporations can push projects onto treaty-protected lands under the banner of economic development and defense.
The Nez Perce Tribe is represented in-house by Michael A. Lopez and Joseph J. Bushyhead. Perpetua Resources Idaho Inc. is represented by Laura K. Granie, Amelia Yowell, Murray Feldman, and Austin W. Jensen of Holland & Hart LLP.
Counsel for the U.S. Forest Service was not immediately available Monday.
