THE DIRT: Prichard Creek Restoration
Written by guest author: Cathy Gidley, North Idaho Program Manager for Trout UnlimitedIn 1879, AJ Prichard discovered gold in Prichard Creek, setting off the mining rush in the Coeur d’Alene basin. Prichard Creek is a tributary to the North Fork Coeur d’Alene River and was the site of several hard rock mines and mill sites in the 1900s. Placer and...
THE DIRT: How Flooding in the Bunker Hill Superfund Site is Different
While flooding in North Idaho is not uncommon, high flow events like the one that occurred in December 2025 can have consequences that extend beyond immediate water damage. When high flows sweep through the Coeur d’Alene River Basin, they interact with a landscape shaped by more than a century of mining activity. Historic discharges mean that floodwaters have the potential...
THE DIRT: December Flooding on the Coeur d’Alene River: An Unusual Early-Season Event
The flood event that struck the Coeur d’Alene River Basin around December 11, 2025, was unusual—not because flooding itself is rare in North Idaho, but because of when and how it occurred.December 2025 brought historically high air temperatures and was the second wettest December on record across most SNOTEL sites in the Basin. A SNOTEL site is an automated remote...
THE DIRT: Historic pollution study of the Coeur d’Alene Basin Pt.4
By the early 1930s, much of the Coeur d’Alene River was effectively lifeless. Fish had disappeared, plankton was dying, and long stretches of the river showed little sign of recovery. In 1933, federal scientists confirmed that mine-contaminated water was deadly to aquatic life—but their most alarming discovery came when they looked beyond the water itself, to what remained behind.The greatest...
THE DIRT: Historic pollution study of the Coeur d’Alene Basin Part 3
During the summer of 1933, Dr. Ellis and a team of scientists from the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries launched one of the first systematic investigations into the effects of mine waste on the Coeur d’Alene River system. Their work sought to understand how decades of mining activity had altered the watershed’s chemistry and biology.The study began with a review of...
THE DIRT: Part II of Historic Pollution Study of the Coeur d’Alene River Basin
After mounting local and political pressure, the Idaho state legislature authorized a study of the pollution problems created by Silver Valley mines directly discharging waste into area waterbodies. The Coeur d’Alene River and Lake Commission was created to direct the study, and the commission requested the assistance of the United States Bureau of Fisheries who authorized a survey and a...
THE DIRT: Historic Pollution Study of the Coeur d’Alene Basin
Today, the waters of the South Fork and the main Coeur d’Alene Rivers run clear as they meander across the lush landscape of the Idaho Panhandle, but in the not-so-distant past those waters ran cloudy gray with the discarded tailings and byproducts of mining in the Silver Valley. As one of the most productive mining regions in the country, the...
THE DIRT: Restoration work at historic Pine Creek mine sites
Abandoned mines and millsites throughout the Silver Valley are cherished by locals and visitors alike for their historic significance. These sites offer a glimpse into what daily life looked like for the hard-working men and women who ran these operations and developed the mining industry that shaped our local communities. As mentioned in part one of this series, the mines...
THE DIRT: History of mining in Pine Creek
While not as notable as Bunker Hill, Sunshine, or the Hecla Star, the mines of Pine Creek cannot go without proper recognition for their contributions to the Silver Valley. The Pine Creek Mining District, formerly known as the Yreka Mining District, is a smaller region within the larger Coeur d’Alene Mining District. Attributed to William Reineger in 1886, the discovery...
THE DIRT: Canyon Creek’s path to cleanup
Significant progress has been made in Canyon Creek over the past several years, with multiple major remediation projects recently completed or underway. These efforts are aimed at removing contaminated material, remediating and reconstructing stream channels to provide a clean habitat. Work in Canyon Creek has been prioritized to reduce risk for residents living in close proximity to mine-impacted materials with...