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SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

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The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

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Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

Groups Object to "Heavy Hand" in Golden Hand Mine Plan

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Tuesday, March 17, 2015   

BOISE, Idaho - A plan to allow dump trucks, bulldozers, new roads and drilling rigs into the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness has led to several conservation groups filing an objection.

American Independence Mines and Minerals wants to work a claim at the old Golden Hand mine to validate possible gold claims, and the Forest Service is leaning toward allowing the work to move forward because of court rulings connected to the Mining Law of 1872.

John Robison, public lands director at the Idaho Conservation League (ICL), says the Forest Service has a legal responsibility to limit industrial activities in a Wilderness area.

"Right now, we think a lot more work remains to be done to find that balance in protecting Idaho's wilderness values," says Robison.

ICL, The Wilderness Society, Earthworks, Friends of the Clearwater and Wilderness Watch have filed an official objection. The Golden Hand Mine is located 40 miles northeast of McCall.

The mining company says the validating claims process is needed so it can decide whether to proceed with exploration, development and possible production. Robison questions whether validation needs to include drilling, and wants the Forest Service to consider less invasive methods.

"Drilling simply doesn't make any sense, because those are deposits that were not accessible, and not previously discovered," he says. "It's quickly turning into a treasure hunt."

The plan would allow drilling to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and authorize nearly 600 truck and vehicle trips into the Wilderness each year for three years.


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