The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has been distributing a draft Environmental Impact Statement regarding the proposed Blackfoot Bridge phosphate mine. Parent-company Monsanto and subsidiary P4 Production LLC intend to make the site one of the most environmentally advanced, with laminated geosynthetic clay liners (GCLs) designed for covering selenium waste rock piles. But despite these measures, the recent discovery of 18 cattle found dead–and believed to have been poisoned by exposed selenium–threatens to slow the mine’s acceptance. The Capital Press, an agriculture publication covering the American west, reports.

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