clipped from: www.commondreams.org   

by Elizabeth Bluemink

The U.S. Supreme Court's Monday decision allowing a gold mine near Juneau to discharge its waste into a fish-bearing lake could be the final word in the long-running dispute.

[Water quality hazard: Acid drains from rock near Lower Slate Lake at the Kensington Mine (photo: US Forest Service)]Water quality hazard: Acid drains from rock near Lower Slate Lake at the Kensington Mine (photo: US Forest Service)
But environmentalists hope that it is not.

Their lawsuit over the Kensington mine, 45 miles northwest of Juneau, fueled a bitter war between industry boosters and environmentalists in the state's capital.

[Water quality hazard: Acid drains from rock near Lower Slate Lake at the Kensington Mine (photo: US Forest Service)]Water quality hazard: Acid drains from rock near Lower Slate Lake at the Kensington Mine (photo: US Forest Service)

On Monday, Kensington's supporters -- including the entire Alaska congressional delegation and Gov. Sarah Palin -- hailed the Supreme Court decision as a positive step for Juneau and the state.

"If the Obama administration does nothing, it has busted the door wide open for destructive mining practices in other places," said Tom Waldo, a Juneau environmental attorney