A US federal judge ruled that, Lithium Americas Corp could carry out excavation work at the Thacker Pass lithium mine in Nevada and rejected demands from environmentalists who said the excavation could harm sage grouse and other wildlife.
The ruling marks a rare victory for important US mining projects as environmental groups increasingly put pressure on courts and regulators to block mining projects, even if they produce metals vital to the manufacture of electric cars.
Chief Justice Miranda du of the Federal Court in Reno, Nevada, said on Friday night that whether to allow excavation will need to determine whether the land is of historical significance to Native Americans, and environmental groups cannot prove what specific damage the excavation will cause. It's just a hypothetical guess at the moment.
Lithium Americas, based in Vancouver, Canada, has agreed not to dig until July 29, while du reviewed it. It is not clear whether the company now plans to start digging on that date.
In a project with an area of about 18000 acres, less than 1/4 acres of land were affected, which du said was a factor influencing her decision.
Kelly Fuller of the Western Watershed Project, one of the environmental groups blocking the project, said:'we are disappointed by the court's decision to allow the company to excavate and remove cultural and historical artifacts.
Fuller said the group looked forward to holding hearings with Mr du in the future to discuss whether the entire project should be cancelled.
