Hey Hrdwk,
I think I read somewhere that Tiehm's has been on a request list from environmentalists to be listed as endangered for over a decade.
Originally INR did not disclose any information on the plant until a whistle blower was not happy with how they obtained the permits to the land. The whistleblower highlighted that INR has done two seperate permits for land as opposed to 1 big one to avoid permitting issue delays etc... either way wasnt happy and made some noise about it. This was after the BLM had already granted the permits but supposedly it was a bit "deviousness" is what they thought. I think cause INR has other related party companies it was put through a subsidiary or similar so two separate companies with 2 permits as opposed to 1 big one for INR). As it was done so to avoid drawn out environmental reviews before issue.
After the Center for Biological Diversity (enviro group) got wind of this whistleblower info, they came out to the site and saw damage to the plant during exploration and drilling. This then gave rise to the thorn in the side Buckwheat media bashing. So they put in a permit to have it express listed as endangered with BLM. It fell on deaf ears and the department went on to sue BLM for taking "to long" to get a finalisation on the matter. INR listed as a third party in the case but was never sued directly.
The lawsuit was dropped after INR relinquished all permit rights to drill or explore on the land and on that basis the environmental group ceased the lengthy court case with BLM on the basis no further drilling or issues would arise. INR at the time had finished all drilling and exploration necessary to prepare the finalised DFS. INR agreed with the Centre of Bio that when they put forward the plan of operation to BLM they would notify the Centre as part of the dropped lawsuit settlement.
INR has since put in the plans of operation. So I assume they have also informed the Environmental group. It has since been approved by BLM pending on the outcome of the EIS.
The EIS was started around 21/22 May 2020 as a full year annual review process. This is being done by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Originially, it was meant to take the shorter fast tracked route, but the Enviro group put forward a request for review at the same time as suing BLM to try to "stop INR in their tracks". While the lawsuit was dropped INR did get snagged on the US Fishers environmental review. They notified the public that a full annual review was warranted.
Originally the project timeline was production 2021. But that was in 2017 and a few delays here and there have dragged out the process. At this stage we are looking at 2023 production optimistically.
Towards end of last year 2020 the site had activity which decimated the plant population. A full review was conducted after the Enviros pushed that it was not animals and likely to be humans. They also pushed for an immediate listing of the plant as endangered. This immediate request has since been rejected and the activity was found to be rodents. Article here:
Environmental DNA analysis supports conclusion that damage to rare Tiehm’s buckwheat plants was caused by herbivory | Reno Fish & Wildlife Office (fws.gov)
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The plant is an issue for INR. It has already seen an increase in permitting time frames. But moving forward the issue is going to be how the plant will impact on mine structure and operations. A large part of the later part of the mine site includes Buckwheat population. The small scale starter pit does not. But will an environmental group with no money and many other environmental concerns actually help keep this plant protected into the future, or will a mining company situated on the site with security and fencing and also future funding to propagate give it a better chance?
The EIS is a huge factor. If it gives poor scenarios then a funding partner may prove difficult. Why would they want to invest in a 750M project that is disjointed and uneconomical/unviable when they could put the money to better use elsewhere.
Dont underestimate EIS its make or break. Keep in mind this is a 30c stock, if you want safe invest in the bank
DYOR
(20min delay)