Viburnum Trend Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration Overview
The Southeast Missouri Lead Mining District natural resources Trustees recovered ~$7 million in monetary damages from Cyprus Amax in 2014 to settle certain legal claims concerning injuries to natural resources and their services associated with releases of hazardous substances from the Buick Mine, Mill, and Smelter.
Similarly, the natural resource Trustees recovered ~$1.25 million in monetary damages from Teck American Inc. in 2013 to settle certain legal claims concerning injuries to natural resources and their services associated with releases of hazardous substances from the Magmont Mine and Mill Site.
Feral Hog Removal for Ecological Restoration Project
The feral hog removal for ecological restoration project will protect existing high-quality stream, glade, riparian riparian
Definition of riparian habitat or riparian areas.
Learn more about riparian forest and upland habitats throughout priority watersheds in Iron, Reynolds, Washington and St. Francois counties in Missouri. Feral hogs are opportunistic omnivores who out-compete native wildlife for food resources, destroy sensitive plant and animal communities, and reach some of the highest densities in Missouri within the designated project area. Targeted removal of feral hogs will serve to improve landscape scale habitat and ecosystem processes, reduce destruction of migratory birds and their habitats, reduce degradation to aquatic and riparian ecosystems and improve habitat for federally threatened and endangered species including Hine’s emerald dragonfly and Mead’s milkweed populations.
The natural resource Trustees evaluated a range of restoration actions and alternatives which would provide benefits to natural resources to compensate the public for losses to natural resources injured by releases from mine and mill facilities in the Viburnum Trend and published the Final Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment for Feral Hog Removal in the Viburnum Trend.
Public Comments
The public was encouraged to provide comments on the Draft Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment (RP/EA). The Draft RP/EA was available for public comment from June 28-July 28, 2022. The Trustees considered the public comments received as they completed the Final RP/EA. A summary of public comments and the Trustees; response to them are described in Appendix A of the Final RP/EA.
