Protecting the Kootenai River from Mountaintop Removal Coal Mining

Pollution from five mountaintop removal coal mines in the Canadian Rocky Mountains is flowing downstream through the Elk River Valley of British Columbia, into the transboundary Koocanusa Reservoir, and then into the Kootenai River of Montana, Idaho, and beyond. Selenium and other contaminants threaten drinking water, fisheries and Tribal cultural resources. The crisis has been escalating since the mining began in the 1960s. 

Glencore, a multinational mining and commodities trading corporation with a deeply troubling human rights and environmental record, owns the mines. They sell the metallurgical coal to steel manufacturers on the other side of the world, primarily in Japan, China, India and other countries in Asia. While cleaner steelmaking technologies are emerging and may eventually render metallurgical coal obsolete, Glencore continues to pursue short-term profits: tearing down mountains, shipping coal through the Port of Vancouver, and pocketing the profits while leaving local and downstream communities to bear the consequences.

Yet despite the scale of the problem, this is a very hopeful moment of possibility—marked by growing public awareness, international diplomacy, and a rising movement demanding accountability. 

The Boundary Waters Treaty

A major reason for hope lies in the historic referral of the Elk–Kootenai watershed crisis to the International Joint Commission (IJC) under the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909. For the first time in history, this formal multinational diplomacy effort to address the impacts of the coal industry includes Indigenous peoples. The Kootenai Tribe of Idaho, as part of the larger transboundary Ktunaxa Nation, has their rightful seat at the negotiation table as they work to defend their sustenance fisheries, culture, and way of life.

As a member of the Public Advisory Group, ICL is advocating for strong regulatory recommendations—and, just as importantly, that those recommendations are implemented by the regulators that oversee the mines. Without sustained public pressure, even the most robust recommendations risk becoming little more than reports on a shelf.

The IJC is expected to release its recommendations in early 2027. The period surrounding the release will be pivotal: decision makers will either enact those recommendations to protect water quality and communities, or continue to defer to industry.

Stopping the Castle Mountain mine expansion

In the meantime, Glencore is seeking approval for a massive expansion of the Fording River Mine that would entirely obliterate Castle Mountain—locking in decades of additional pollution and harm.

This expansion would destroy a rare and sensitive high-elevation landscape, extend mining operations into the 2060s, and increase pollution loads in an already stressed watershed. It is difficult to overstate what is at stake. Because of this, we have joined with partners on both sides of the international border to ask the Canadian government to assign an Independent Review Panel, which would ensure a transparent and thorough review of the proposed expansion. Castle Mountain will go down in history as a symbol of whether regulators are willing to draw a line.

Permits for this expansion should not even be considered until the IJC process is complete, its recommendations are implemented, and selenium levels are reduced to meet truly protective standards downstream.

Shared Waters: a film to amplify a movement

To bring these issues into focus—and ensure the public understands what is at stake—ICL is producing a documentary film: Shared Waters.

The film tells the story of a watershed under pressure and the people working to protect it. It centers the leadership of the Kootenai Tribe of Idaho and the broader Ktunaxa Nation, while also highlighting the lived realities of communities in places like Fernie, BC, where drinking water is compromised. It also underscores the economic stakes—particularly for outdoor recreation economies where livelihoods depend on clean water and healthy fisheries.

But Shared Waters is more than a film. It is the foundation of a broader campaign.

When the IJC releases its recommendations in early 2027, ICL and our partners will launch a coordinated screening effort to bring these issues in the spotlight and create public accountability at a critical moment. 

Screenings will take place in key communities, creating opportunities for the public to engage directly with decision-makers in a timely manner. Public officials will be invited to participate in panel discussions—offering a platform to demonstrate leadership and accountability. Attendees will be empowered with online tools to easily apply pressure to those decision-makers who choose not to take action on the issue.

The goal is simple but powerful: ensure that decisions about the future of the watershed are made not behind closed doors, but in full view of the communities they affect.

A defining moment for the watershed

The Elk–Kootenai watershed is at a crossroads. The combination of international diplomacy and a massive proposed mine expansion has created a rare convergence of risk and possibility. We are working diligently to ensure that this moment leads to meaningful, lasting change.

Through Shared Waters, we aim to build the public awareness and pressure needed to make that change inevitable—and to offer something that has been missing for far too long: real hope for the future of the Kootenai watershed. Please join us.