Idaho
Idaho Antimony Mine Finally Receives Final Permit
US President Joe Biden (L) speaks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the … [+]
As President Joe Biden’s remaining days in office count down with many of his top energy and environmental priorities remaining unfulfilled, his regulators managed to publish a final record of decision (ROD) related to a major Idaho mining operation targeting the production of antimony, a key mineral integral to batteries and other aspects of green energy. The decision comes amid a rising trade war between the United States and China as the Biden Administration prepares to leave office.
On Friday, the U.S. Forest Service approved the final permit necessary for the Stibnite Mine, operated by Perpetua Resources, to proceed to production after a permitting process that consumed well over a decade. “I have taken into consideration the degree to which the (mine’s) environmental design features, monitoring, and mitigation measures will, where feasible, minimize adverse environmental impacts on (federal lands),” the Forest Service’s Matthew Davis said in a report published along with the permitting decision.
The Conclusion Of A Long, Complex Permitting Process
Perpetua estimates the mine will be able to provide as much as 35% of the nation’s antimony needs once it becomes fully operational in 2028. The mine will also produce a substantial amount of gold, which was the original target of the Stibnite mine when it was first opened in 1927. The mine was later re-tooled and was able to produce about 90% of U.S. antimony needs during World War II.
The additional gold production will serve to enhance the mine’s revenue stream, but in today’s world, antimony is the main prize being sought by Perpetua in its efforts to reopen a mine that has been inactive since it was shut down in 1996. In addition to its applications related to renewable energy, antimony is also integral to the production of tungsten steel and is used in a wide variety of other military applications.
The military considers access to domestic stores of antimony such a critical need that it contributed $60 million to help fund the permitting effort of the Stibnite Mine, the total cost of which was estimated to come in at a whopping $1.3 billion in 2020. That number will have likely risen substantially due to the high rates of inflation and supply chain issues that have run epidemic over the last four years.
The project was opposed by Idaho’s Nez Perce Tribe, which expressed concerns the mine could impact the state’s salmon population. The mitigation plans for the mine were modified at several points in response to Nez Perce concerns.
China’s Antimony Export Restrictions
The last-minute approval of the final ROD by the Biden Forest Service comes a month after China’s government invoked restrictions on the export of antimony and two additional critical energy minerals, gallium and germanium, in response to enhanced U.S. semiconductor export controls specific to China. It was the third such crackdown by the Biden government in the past three years. The timing is critical given that the U.S. relies on imports for the vast majority of its antimony needs.
Anticipating a positive outcome to this permitting process, Perpetua Resources announced in December the execution of a non-binding agreement with Sunshine Silver Mining & Refining to explore the potential for the domestic processing of the antimony recovered from the Stibnite mine.
“We are thrilled to receive our Final Record of Decision from the Forest Service,” said Jon Cherry, President and CEO of Perpetua Resources said Monday in a release. “This approval elevates the Stibnite Gold Project to an elite class of projects in America that have cleared NEPA. The Stibnite Gold Project can deliver decisive wins for our communities, the environment, the economy, and our national security.”
Judy Nissula, Mayor of nearby Cascade, Idaho, said she was pleased by the final decision. “Perpetua Resources has been part of our community for more than a decade. During this time, they’ve shown us the type of company they are. They’ve invited us to provide feedback, answered our questions, supported causes that matter to our community and looked for ways to partner with local businesses and provide well-paying jobs for Valley County residents.”
Perpetua estimates the mining operation will provide “substantial environmental and economic benefits to the region,” including “more than one billion investment dollars and an average of 550 jobs.”
The Bottom Line
In light of the growing trade war with China related to energy minerals, it is difficult to overestimate the importance of this final permitting decision. The successful outcome for Perpetua Resources is especially impressive given the complex nature of the federal, state, and local permitting process, as well as the work involved in satisfying the concerns of local communities and the Nez Perz Tribe.
The federal government has for more than 40 years been very reluctant to permit the opening of domestic mining operations. It will need to permit many more such mines if this energy transition is going to continue to move forward.
BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — A man wanted in connection with a robbery at a Meridian home where a firearm was allegedly stolen has been arrested after investigators tracked him to eastern Idaho.
The U.S. Marshals Service located and arrested Francisco Salazar on an arrest warrant issued May 7, 2026, in Ada County. Salazar was wanted in connection with a robbery that occurred at a Meridian, Idaho, residence on March 16, 2026. During the robbery, it was alleged that a firearm had been stolen.
On May 11, 2026, the Meridian Police Department forwarded the arrest warrant to the U.S. Marshals Service for investigation. Investigators determined Salazar had fled the Treasure Valley area.
On June 29, 2026, the U.S. Marshals Task Force received a tip about Salazar’s location in the Idaho Falls area. The U.S. Marshals Service said it maintains a network of agencies throughout Idaho as members of the Greater Idaho Fugitive Task Force.
During the operation, task force members from the Ada County Sheriff’s Office, Chubbuck Police Department, Rexburg Police Department and Idaho Falls Police Department joined with U.S. marshals to locate and arrest Salazar.
On June 30, 2026, investigators said task force members were led to a residential area of Idaho Falls, where they positively sighted Salazar. After brief surveillance, they followed him to an unoccupied area adjacent to the Walmart in Ammon, Idaho.
Authorities said an arrest action was initiated as Salazar was exiting a vehicle. Task force members detected Salazar may have been about to flee on foot and deployed a distraction device, which authorities said de-escalated the situation and allowed Salazar to be taken into custody safely.
BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — The firing squad will become the primary method of execution in the State of Idaho starting July 1, 2026. Those in support of the change argue it’s a more humane and efficient method, while some are more skeptical.
Idaho is now one of five states to authorize the firing squad as a means of execution. Other states include Mississippi, Oklahoma, Utah and South Carolina. Where Idaho differs, it’s the only state to make it the primary method.
The death penalty in Idaho
In 1977, the Supreme Court of the United States reinstated use of the death penalty in the case Gregg v. Georgia. Leading to states updating their death penalty statutes and procedure.
Since then, Idaho has successfully carried out three executions through lethal injection. In 1994, 2011 and 2012.
The last attempted execution was in February of 2024. Thomas Creech, the longest serving inmate on death row in Idaho, received the death penalty after beating another inmate to death in 1981.
On the day of Creech’s scheduled execution, the execution team failed after eight attempts to find a vain to set the IV that would administer the lethal injection.
Rep. Bruce Skaug co-sponsored House Bill 803 in the 2026 legislative session. The bill made the firing squad the primary method as well as added new provisions to protect parts of execution procedure from review.
He said in an interview that the lethal injection has the possibility to fail about six or seven percent of the time.
“We needed something that was sure and humane, and firing squad is humane because it is sudden, it is quick and it is certain,” Skaug, R-Nampa said.
The firing squad
Since capital punishment was reinstated, there have been six firing squad executions according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Three of those six took place in South Carolina in 2025.
Robin Maher, the executive director for the Death Penalty Information Center, told IdahoNews.com that two of those three in South Carolina “went badly.”
“One of them, only two bullets were found in the prisoner. The third bullet didn’t even hit him and neither of those bullets hit his heart,” Maher said. “So it tells you that the firing squad is not a fool proof method.”
An idea to carry out the firing squad through a remote controlled firing mechanism was considered in Idaho, ultimately being scrapped for a traditional three-member firing squad. Each member of the firing squad team will receive one live round of ammunition and on the call to “fire” will simultaneously discharge their weapons.
The Idaho Department of Corrections has detailed a series of qualifications and requirements to be considered as a possible member of the firing squad, since it operates on a volunteer basis.
Volunteers must hold a Peace Officers Standards and Training, or POST, certification for a minimum of three years, have no disciplinary action in the past 12 months relating to firearms or use of force and be able to demonstrate a proficiency in firearms.
Volunteers must pass a test in which they:
- Fire each IDOC provided firearm with 100% accuracy from at least 21 feet.
- Hit a target of the same size, shape and height as will be used in an actual execution
- A volunteer fails the test if they are unable to hit the target with one round from each of the firearms
The volunteers also cannot have any blood or legal relation to the victim, victim’s family, the prisoner and prisoner’s family.
Maher believes the firing squad fell out of favor due to the method being “graphic” and “bloody.” Leading to the public with a want to move away from the method.
Public opinion of the death penalty
According to a Gallup poll, public support for the death penalty is at a five decade low. While 52% of people still support capital punishment, the amount of people not in favor has steadily grown since the mid 1990’s.
“There are rising concerns about the evidence of bias and of error, the accuracy and whether the death penalty even works, keeps [people] safer,” Maher said.
Are you in favor of the death penalty for a person convicted of murder (Gallup)
Skaug told IdahoNews.com that in Idaho, favor for the death penalty isn’t losing any support. That he has heard from constituents voicing their support for both the death penalty as a whole and the firing squad specifically. Saying some have even expressed a “too eager” desire to be on the firing squad.
“We go through a lot of time and expense to get someone on death row and then ultimately to carry out the justice for the victims and their families,” Skaug said.
The cost of the death penalty
As part of approving the firing squad, IDOC needed to retrofit the execution chamber at F-Block at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution to accommodate the change. Originally being appropriated $750,000 from the legislature in 2023.
For phase two of the update, IDOC estimates the cost at about $910,802.
Skaug said he doesn’t like the up-front cost to retrofit F-Block, but he said “it needed to be done.” He also said it will be easier to acquire ammunition and firearms than it is to acquire the drugs needed for lethal injection. Saying that a manufacturer offered to donate ammunition to the state which was refused.
Exterior of IMSI (Courtesy Idaho Department of Corrections)
Maher said many people are shocked to hear the cost to carry out the death penalty is higher than expected.
“As soon as the prosecutor decides to seek death, the price tag goes up,” Maher said referring to a long series of appeals and security costs required.
As the new procedure is set to take effect July 1, Skaug says that they are ready to carry out the firing squad. There are currently eight people on Idaho’s death row.
NORTON, Kan. (WIBW) – A man was transported to a Denver-area hospital after he was seriously injured in a truck-motorcycle collision Monday morning in Norton County in northwest Kansas, officials said.
The crash was reported at 10:25 a.m. Monday on US-36 highway at Timber Ridge Lane, on the west side of the city of Norton.
According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, a 2010 Ford F-150 pickup truck that was westbound on US-36 attempted to turn south onto Timber Ridge Lane when it collided with a 1997 Harley-Davidson motorcycle that was traveling east on US-36.
The motorcycle collided with the passenger side of the Ford truck, which had turned in front of the bike, the patrol said.
The motorcycle rider, Frank J. Daniels, 73, of Boise, Idaho, was transported to Swedish Medical Center in Englewood, Colorado, for treatment of serious injuries. The patrol said Daniels wasn’t wearing a helmet.
The driver of the Ford truck, Ronald B. Zwickle, 77, of Norton, was reported uninjured. The patrol said Zwickle was wearing his seat belt.
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