Earth Watch: Strip Mining for Phosphate, the Footprint of Modern Food Production

Author: Charity Isely

Earth Watch: Strip Mining for Phosphate, the Footprint of Modern Food Production

Our modern farming system has replaced prairie grasslands with large swaths of genetically modified (GM) corn, soybeans, and other crops, in the name of progress.^{1 2 3} The fields are sprayed with increasingly more herbicides, and the yields are boosted with more synthetic fertilizers.^{4 5} Meanwhile, in a quiet corner of the country, far from the vast acres of farmland, nature is also being permanently rearranged to manufacture fuel for this agricultural machine.⁶ This is the story of the upstream impact of glyphosate, the most widely used herbicide in the U.S., and it begins in a place we may not consider—a mine.^{7 8}

Since the 1950s, southeastern Idaho has been a metaphorical gold mine for agribusiness because of its rich phosphate reserves, about 80 percent of which lie beneath the Caribou-Targhee National Forest.^{9 10} Several fertilizer manufacturers have set up shop here to mine and process phosphate alongside the “godfather” of commercial GM crops, Monsanto (now Bayer), which, in 1952, built a plant in nearby Soda Springs to refine phosphate ore into elemental phosphorous, which it uses to make glyphosate.^{11 12 13 14 15 16} In the years since, the company has operated five mines in the region, with plans to open a sixth.¹⁷

Bayer, and other companies with mining interests, claim sustainable processes and promise reclamation, yet they leave lasting scars on the landscape.^{18 19 20} Forested ridges and sagebrush-filled valleys have morphed into open pit mines and roadways connecting them to processing facilities.^{21 22} Long after the mines are inactive, the contaminants they produce persist, impacting water quality, fragmenting wildlife habitats, and degrading natural resources. The most significant contaminant is selenium, and while it’s an essential micronutrient, it’s hazardous at high concentrations.^{23 24} Selenium levels in the region's Blackfoot River reportedly exceed the aquatic life standard by more than 1,000 times in some spots.²⁵

The toxic legacy of Monsanto's first operation, the Ballard Mine, which closed in 1969, includes an estimated 19 million cubic yards of waste rock.²⁶ It contains elevated levels of selenium, naturally occurring uranium and its byproducts, arsenic, and other substances posing risks to human health and the environment.²⁷ As of 2019, this part of Idaho was home to 13 official "Superfund" sites, including Ballard; Superfund is an EPA program for industrial hazardous waste cleanup.^{28 29 30 31} Bayer's Soda Springs processing plant was listed as a Superfund site in 1990, but the remediation isn't progressing as projected.³² In the EPA's most recent 2018 review, groundwater performance standards still hadn't been achieved and weren't expected to be in the foreseeable future.^{33 34}

Wildlife and the indigenous Shoshone Bannock Tribes bear the brunt of Idaho’s phosphate mining consequences. The region forms part of the “Yellowstone to Uintas Connection”—a vital wildlife corridor historically traveled by now rarely-seen species such as Canada lynx and wolverine.³⁵ It also provides crucial stopover habitat for waterfowl during migration along the “Pacific Flyway.”³⁶ But mining leaves a heavy footprint on habitats, as native plants and food sources are lost, noise levels increase, and water is contaminated.^{37 38} And much of the mining happens on the ancestral land of the Shoshone and Bannock people, interfering with the natural resources they rely on for food, clothing, shelter, and sacred customs.³⁹ Investigators have determined that Native Americans here are at risk of exposure to mining-related toxins at rates far higher than the federal government’s maximum acceptable levels.⁴⁰

"...native plants and food sources are lost, noise levels increase, and water is contaminated..."

The permits for Bayer's new Caldwell Canyon Mine were revoked by a judge this year because risks to an imperiled bird, the greater sage grouse, hadn't been adequately assessed,⁴¹ but Bayer says it believes the "court's decision … is excessive" and plans to have the mine operational in the next few years.⁴² In the meantime, old toxins persist, and the wheels of agribusiness in this otherwise quiet corner of Idaho continue to leave enduring scars on the land.⁴³

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