LAPWAI, ID — The Nez Perce Tribe has filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho challenging the U.S. Forest Service’s approval of the Stibnite Gold Project, a proposed open pit gold mine in the headwaters of the South Fork Salmon River.

The project, led by Perpetua Resources Corp., would include three open pits, ore processing facilities, new roads and transmission lines, and a tailings storage facility covering more than 400 acres of Meadow Creek valley. According to the Forest Service’s environmental review, the mine is expected to have long-term impacts on water quality, wetlands, fish and wildlife habitat, and Tribal access to the area.

The Tribe’s lawsuit argues the project would infringe on treaty-reserved rights established more than 170 years ago, which include fishing, hunting, and gathering within the Tribe’s homeland. The Forest Service analysis also notes the project would divert the East Fork South Fork Salmon River into a tunnel for more than a decade, limiting access to a traditional fishing area.

Tribal officials said they have raised concerns about the project for nearly a decade. Shannon F. Wheeler, Chairman of the Nez Perce Tribal Executive Committee, stated that the Forest Service “dismissed requests to consider alternative approaches that would avoid and minimize harm” and said the lawsuit seeks to require the agency to fully address impacts to treaty rights.

The Tribe also noted it has ongoing efforts to restore fish populations in the watershed, with its Fisheries Department investing about $2.8 million annually in salmon, steelhead, and bull trout restoration.