First Independent Water Monitoring Program Results Released
Donnelly, ID – The first results of the Stibnite Advisory Council’s Independent Water Monitoring Program showed consistent water quality data reported by Perpetua Resources and an independent third-party. The data analyzed at the two, different labs was consistent for surface water and for ground water and was in line with anticipated variances.
“We are excited to give the community independent data, so they can fact check the water quality information provided by Perpetua Resources,” said Riggins Stibnite Advisory Council member, Bob Crump. “The Independent Water Monitoring Program was launched in order to bring increased transparency to Perpetua Resources and this first data release is a big step forward in achieving that goal.”
The Independent Water Monitoring Program was launched in the summer of 2021. The Stibnite Advisory Council contracted the University of Idaho’s Idaho Water Resources Research Institute to conduct the independent monitoring and reporting. Team members from the Idaho Water Resources Research Institute went to site to collect ground and surface water samples on July 29 and August 26, 2021.
Water samples were collected from nine different sampling sites, plus two quality control sites in order to analyze 25 chemical components, known as analytes, for each location. This means a total of 275 samples were evaluated for both ground and surface water. The samples were collected from the same locations and split between Perpetua Resources and Idaho Water Resources Research Institute for analysis. Perpetua Resources sent its samples to SVL Analytical and Idaho Water Resources Research Institute sent its samples to Anatek Laboratory. Both are EPA-certified labs.
“The findings between the two laboratories were very consistent,” said Crump. “The data shows neither lab consistently over or underestimated the other. My hope is by regularly providing the community with access to this type of information we can continue to build trust in the data collection and reporting procedures being used by Perpetua Resources and develop a clear understanding of the environmental conditions that exist at site today and insight into the conditions at the project should it move into operations.”
“Transparency is very important to our company,” said Laurel Sayer, CEO of Perpetua Resources. “We are grateful for the opportunity to work with the Stibnite Advisory Council to lift the curtain on the work we are doing and build trust within the community.”
Community members can review all of the data, a summary report and the full findings from Idaho Water Resources Research Institute on the Stibnite Advisory Council website at www.StibniteAdvisoryCouncil.com/water-monitoring.
This summer, Idaho Water Resources Research Institute is scheduled to visit the site in order to collect its next round of surface and groundwater samples from nine different sampling sites, plus two quality control sites.
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The Stibnite Advisory Council provides a collaborative environment for local communities to work with Perpetua Resources throughout the life of the project and establishes a venue for cities and counties to address concerns and opportunities directly with the mining company. The council is comprised of the eight cities and counties that signed onto a community agreement with the company in late-2018. To learn more visit www.StibniteAdvisoryCouncil.com.