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The question of whether a proposed mine on the edge of the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness should be judged on its predicted impact or its ongoing development went before a federal judge Thursday.

“If this is not the point where the (U.S. Fish and Wildlife) Service has to determine the straw that breaks the camel’s back, where is it?” Earthjustice attorney Timothy Preso asked U.S. District Judge Don Molloy. “By then, we’re in a world where it’s far too late to do anything about it.”

Montanore Minerals Corp. attorney Mark Stermitz retorted that the whole point of a permitting process was to evaluate a project’s impact over time, as new information develops.

“Sometimes you end up with the impression that the parties are speaking completely different languages,” Stermitz told Molloy. “Each of the plaintiffs’ complaints concern an aspect that isn’t on the table at this time or are a misinterpretation of what the record shows.”

Montanore wants to build its copper and silver mine on the edge of the Cabinet Mountains Wilderness about 18 miles south of Libby. Its presence would require about 13 miles of paved or expanded roads, 14 miles of electric transmission line, wastewater treatment and holding, and tailings and seepage storage.