RENO, Nev. — The Nevada Democrat who’s the heir apparent to the late Sen. Harry Reid’s role as chief defender of the mining industry across the West is for the first time feeling the wrath of environmentalists, who otherwise consider her an ally.
”We thought she was an ally of the environment,” said Fermina Stevens, spokesperson for the Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone in Elko. The Rosemont decision upended the government’s long-held position that the mining law automatically conveys the same rights established through valid mining claims to adjacent land for waste disposal without having to prove they've established the rights there.
Sen. Harry Reid, the former majority leader who served in the Senate from 1987-2017, often single-handedly killed conservationists' perennial attempts to reform the 1872 Mining Law and better protect fish, wildlife and water resources. And like Reid, she is committed to the tens of thousands of mining jobs in Nevada, the biggest U.S. gold producer. But across the landscape, the new “gold” has become lithium, and ramped-up production of electrical vehicles is a key part of President Joe Biden's clean energy agenda.
The senator's office also pointed to support for the bill from labor unions, a key constituency who helped reelect Cortez Masto in November.