Groups want more say on Little Blackfoot mine exploration
Laura Lundquist
(Missoula Current) Conservation groups are asking for more time to comment on a mineral exploration operation a Canadian company has proposed near MacDonald Pass, but it is being fast-tracked by the Trump administration.
Five conservation organizations wrote to the Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest last week asking for an extension of the public comment period and a public hearing on an environmental assessment for the proposed Blue Copper Project. Helena District Geologist Hans Oaks published the environmental assessment on June 2 and opened a 30-day public comment period that ends on July 2. But since the project would potentially affect 17 square miles of public land, the groups requested an additional 30 days during which they asked that a public meeting and hearing be held.
The organizations include Clark Fork Coalition, Helena Hunters and Anglers, Montana Environmental Information Center, Trout Unlimited, Inc., and WildEarth Guardians.
“An exploration project of this scale – impacting thousands of acres of public lands, sensitive species and several imperiled waterways – deserves the highest level of scrutiny from our federal regulators,” said Andrew Gorder, Legal Director for the Clark Fork Coalition. “Rather than rushing to approve this sweeping exploration, the Forest Service should slow down and ensure that project information is transparent and fully accessible to the public.”
Friday was a federal holiday so the Forest Service could not respond to requests for comment.
The Blue Copper Project, proposed by Falcon Copper Corporation, is a large-scale copper, gold, silver, and tungsten exploration operation near the Continental Divide approximately 6 miles northeast of Avon. The proposed project area covers approximately 10,816 acres on Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest and Bureau of Land Management lands in Powell and Lewis and Clark Counties. The project overlaps with an 8-acre corridor of the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail.
If approved, exploration drilling would occur in eight areas, resulting in approximately 49 acres of disturbance on Forest Service land and 8 acres on BLM land, according to the environmental assessment. Falcon Copper is proposing up to 127 drill pads and up to 5 drill rigs that would operate nonstop. The company also plans to use approximately 41 miles of road, including the construction of 3 miles of new road.
Normally, a project proposal like this might have gone through more of a public process. But last August, the Blue Copper Project received a FAST-41 designation, along with another Falcon Copper project, the Schell Creek Project in Nevada, so they’re being pushed through with minimal oversight.
In 2015, Congress passed the FAST Act to streamline the approval of transportation infrastructure projects. But in April 2025, the Trump administration started using the Act to fast-track critical mineral production by limiting environmental review and reducing permitting requirements as part of Trump’s American Energy Dominance program.
“The FAST-41 designation isn't just a milestone—it's a signal. A signal to the U.S. government, our investors, and our partners that Falcon Copper is ready to lead. We're building the future of domestic copper, and we're doing it at scale, with speed and in full alignment with national priorities,” Matthew Hornor, Falcon Copper CEO, said in an Aug. 22, 2025, statement.
Montana has four mine projects in addition to the Blue Copper Project that have received FAST-41 designation: the Stillwater Mine; the Sheep Creek Project in the headwaters of the Bitterroot; the Libby Exploration Project and Becky’s Mine Modification on BLM land near Bridger.
Just as with the Sheep Creek Project, some Montanans have concerns about the environmental damage that could result not only from the exploration but also the mines that might eventually result.
For one thing, the project sits at the headwaters of the Little Blackfoot River watershed, directly affecting Ophir, Carpenter and Snowshoe creeks. The state has found that Carpenter and Snowshoe creeks are impaired for sedimentation, excess nutrients and habitat loss. The environmental assessment says the project could suck up to 24,000 gallons per day from these already stressed watersheds.
In addition, the Forest Service failed to consider how the project might affect species protected under the Endangered Species Act and other state species of concern. The project area sits within a prime wildlife corridor that allows animals to travel between the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. State bear biologists have identified the route as one that grizzly bears are most likely to use as they try to migrate between the two wilderness areas. In fact, the Helena-Lewis and Clark Forest was recently sued for approving the Larabee Hat logging project south of Avon and Elliston in that same migration corridor.
“This massive project would sit in the heart of habitat that grizzly bears, Canada lynx, and wolverine depend on,” said Lizzy Pennock, WildEarth Guardians carnivore coexistence attorney in a statement. “Not only does the public care deeply about these species, but the government is legally charged with protecting them. The public deserves more than thirty days to weigh in on a project that could further jeopardize the recovery of threatened species.”
The company behind the project, Lion Copper and Gold Corporation, formerly Quaterra Resources Inc., is based out of British Columbia, Canada, and aligned with Rio Tinto. Various U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings show the shell game that goes on with mining companies and their various subsidiaries.
According to a June 30, 2023, SEC filing, Blue Copper LLC, a Lion Copper and Gold subsidiary, acquired the Montana exploration opportunity in 2021. Then Blue Copper Resources Corporation conducted initial surveys of the area in 2022.
In mid-2022, Lion Copper and Gold Corp. transferred its 100% interest in the Blue Copper Project in Montana to Blue Copper Resources Corp. to shield itself from responsibility, but as of June 2023, Lion Copper and Gold Corp. held 48.8% ownership of Blue Copper Resources Corp. To divest further, on Dec. 13, 2022, Quaterra Alaska, which is wholly owned by Lion Copper and Gold, transferred its interest in Blue Copper LLC to Blue Copper Resources Corp.
On Oct. 28, 2022, Blue Copper LLC entered into a mining lease agreement with Snowshoe Creek LLC, a Montana limited liability company owned by the Lion and Copper Gold Corp. CEO, who at the time was Charles Travis Naugle. Snowshoe Creek LLC owns a 47-acre inholding along Snowshoe Creek and would lease the property to Blue Copper LLC for 20 years. As consideration, Naugle was issued 15,000,000 preferred stock in Blue Copper Resources Corp.
On April 18, 2023, Blue Copper Resources Corp. entered into the lease and paid an initial cash payment of $200. A month later, Blue Copper Resources Corp. made a payment of $60 for the Freedom and Cyclone claims in Montana.
Blue Copper Resources Corp. was renamed Falcon Copper Corp. on Oct. 6, 2023. A Lion Copper and Gold 2023 end-of-year SEC filing notes that the Blue Copper Property is held by Falcon Copper Corporation, in which Lion Copper and Gold owns a 47.7% interest. In addition to the Blue Copper project, Falcon Copper holds three other Lion Copper and Gold properties in the West but lists its address in Deer Lodge.
In August 2024, Helena District Ranger Katherine Bushnell issued a decision memo allowing Falcon Copper Corp. to conduct an initial round of exploration drilling on 12 drill sites and surveys in three areas along Forest Service Road 708. Since the project was short-term and along the road, Bushnell used a categorical exclusion so public participation was limited to scoping.
Contact reporter Laura Lundquist at lundquist@missoulacurrent.com.