Julia Doney, President, Fort Belknap Tribal Council
"The 1872 Mining Law has left us with a legacy of poisoned water. Clear-running streams that once supplied clean water for our people to drink and for farming, ranching and wildlife, now bleed acids and toxic metals from the bankrupt gold mine next to our reservation. We cannot afford to wait any longer for a new law that will protect the clean water we depend on here in Montana and across the West."

David Ellenberger

Ed Tinsley, Lewis and Clark County Commissioner
"Local government has a stake in federal mining law reform. Our county is full of abandoned mines that are polluting community drinking water supplies, jeopardizing public safety and damaging favorite hunting and fishing areas. We need to modernize the law so that local government has a say in protecting these resources, and the mining industry pays a fair share towards cleanup."

Pat Williams, former Congressman
"Mining reform, which many of us have sought for a decade and a half, is now within grasp. We all need to urge the good members of Montana's Congressional Delegation to put their shoulders to the wheel to assure passage of the necessary changes to this antiquated law. We all have a stake in their success."

Stan Frasier, past president and current board member of Montana Wildlife Federation
"Sportsmen have a stake in mining reform. Our public lands are the source of our best fishing, hunting and wildlife habitat, and support Montana's recreation industry, the sector that vies for No. 1 in the state. But our fisheries have been hit hard. I support meaningful mining reform, because those who are making the profits should bear the cost of the cleanup."

Kelly Flaherty Settle, ranch owner near Canyon Creek
"Ranchers have a stake in mining law reform. We have direct experience with abandoned mines polluting the water resources that our cattle drink. Water is limited, and every drop is precious. The Senate bill needs to include a source of funding to cleanup abandoned mines and provisions to protect agricultural water resources."