Update: Monday, 3:36 p.m. The Studies Subcommittee of the House Committee on Rules voted 4-2 via party lines on Monday to recommend “laying on the table” of HB 250.
The proposed legislation, introduced by Del. Shelly Simonds, called for an evaluation of the impacts from large-scale copper, zinc, and lead mining operations, and a pause in permitting of operations during the study.
“We are disappointed in this morning’s vote to table HB 250,” Press Pause Coalition Coordinator Stephanie Rinaldi said. “No one spoke in opposition to the bill, which was written to address the potential impacts to the drinking water of Virginians across the Commonwealth. Even the regulatory agency representative in attendance acknowledged the regulatory gaps that this bill would help to address.
HB 250, which would not have interrupted any current business, would have prepared Virginia for possible future business with a large industry by providing the Commonwealth a chance to ensure its waterways and resources are protected.
First report: Sunday, 4:42 p.m. Del. Shelly Simonds (D-Newport News) has introduced legislation calling for an evaluation of the impacts of large-scale copper, zinc and lead operations in the Commonwealth.
The bill, HB 250, also calls for a pause in permitting such operations until the study is completed.
HB 250 follows a bill that passed during the previous General Assembly session to establish a study of the impacts of large-scale gold mining. Since the first bill’s passage, the Canadian company conducting exploration for gold in Virginia expanded its operations to copper, zinc and lead. Currently, exploratory operations for large-scale metals mining are taking place in the counties of Buckingham, Campbell and Pittsylvania.
The company, Aston Bay, and its subsidiary Blue Ridge Mining Inc., have also hinted at the possibility of large-scale metals mining across the Commonwealth along a geological gold-pyrite belt that spans the state. Such operations could affect drinking water sources of major population centers like Richmond, Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia, as these communities are adjacent and downstream to the gold-pyrite belt.
Major waterbodies like the James River and Chesapeake Bay could also be impacted.
“Large-scale metals mining has not happened in Virginia for 75 years in the case of gold and copper, and 40 years for lead and zinc, so this commonsense legislation calls for an evaluation of Virginia’s regulatory framework and a pause in permitting until this critical analysis is complete. I am proud to carry HB 250, a good governance bill that will protect our drinking water,” Simonds said.
“Industrial metal mining could potentially expose radioactive materials and make our water sources susceptible to contamination by these dangerous compounds,” said Del. James Edmunds (R-Halifax), the bill’s co-patron. “This, alongside other potential impacts to our resources, underscores the need for the evaluation of our regulations for these operations provided for in HB250. This bill allows Virginia to be proactive, instead of reactive, to the metal mining industry.”
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