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Aquila changes Back Forty mine plan, won't appeal denial of Wetlands Permit

MENOMINEE COUNTY, MI--    Aquila Resources says it won’t appeal a judge’s denial of a wetlands permit for its Back Forty Mine in Menominee County.

The company says it’s conducting a feasibility study of the gold and zinc mine that would reduce surface impact—and therefore wetlands impact—by focusing more on underground operations. The study is evaluating open pit configurations and infrastructure layouts that avoid direct impact to regulated wetlands and planning more underground mining activity.

Aquila says changes to and enhancements of the original feasibility study in 2018 mean the company won’t appeal a January decision by an Administrative Law Judge to deny the prior issuance of the wetlands permit. Aquila also will not proceed with the contested case of its amended mining permit, as the amended permit only focuses the open pit portion of the project, which has changed.

After the feasibility study is completed Aquila will submit an application for a mining permit that reflects the optimized design, including the underground mine plan.

Nicole was born near Detroit but has lived in the U.P. most of her life. She graduated from Marquette Senior High School and attended Michigan State and Northern Michigan Universities, graduating from NMU in 1993 with a degree in English.