In August 2020, KORE Mining (see page 34) submitted a Notice of Intent to the Inyo National Forest to do exploratory drilling for gold along Forest Service road 3S307 (aka Claypit Cutoff) off of Antelope Springs Road at the Hot Creek end. KORE Mining amended their plan and a scoping document was released April 7, 2021 asking for public comments. The Forest Service approved the project in September 2021 under a categorical exclusion, a "scope and go". Four environmental groups including the Sierra Club filed a NEPA complaint requesting an environmental assessment due to the impacts to wildlife and risk to Hot Creek. A hearing on the lawsuit was July 29, 2022 and we are waiting for the judge's decision. Meanwhile KORE Mining could have, but didn't drill this fall. The Forest Service imposed a black out period from March 1-June 30 to protect the sage grouse during their mating season. The soonest KORE Mining would be drilling is July 1, 2023. The Forest Service calls the project the Long Valley Exploratory Drilling Project, but locals have nick-named it the Hot Creek drilling or KORE Mining project.

KORE Mining wants to drill in 12 locations concentrated in four areas. Each drill site would have a scraped drill pad with a two-track road to it. Initially, Kore Mining planned to use sump pits to collect the muds and drill cuttings. Instead, the waste water will go into a tank, recycled, and the sludge be hauled off. There are few details on the project, e.g. where Kore Mining will get the water needed for drilling and how much water do they need, where the waste water/cuttings will be hauled off to, how deep they plan to drill and in what direction, how many truck trips/day, what route they will take, etc. There is no mention in the scoping document about the impacts of this project to wildlife, recreation, and the tourist economy.

The project site is in Bi-state Sage Grouse country. Over the years tremendous efforts by ranchers, US Fish and Wildlife Service, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the US Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and many conservation groups to protect this species. The Greater Sage Grouse are in decline across the west, the Bi-state Sage Grouse (a sub-species of the Greater Sage Grouse) are stable, however, the Bi-state Sage Grouse in Long Valley are in decline. This project is likely to negatively impact them. 

Unfortunately, the US Forest Service can't deny a mining project, but can impose mitigations to lessen the impacts. The 1872 General Mining Law allows claim owners the right to access their minerals despite any impacts exploratory drilling or mining would have on the surface, the environment or on wildlife. The purpose of the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) is to document all the impacts before a decision is made, even if the decision must be to approve. The Range of Light Group will ask for an environmental analysis of the impacts; impacts to the Bi-state Sage Grouse and other wildlife and to recreation and tourism on which Mono County's economy depends. 

Royal Gold and others before them did exploratory drilling at Hot Creek in the 1980s and 90s. Here, and in other areas in the Eastern Sierra, gold exploration companies are looking at ancient hot springs. The hot waters from millions of years ago brought gold up to the surface. These companies are looking for the veins, the source of the gold, further down. Royal Gold created many roads in the 90s that have healed over since then. The faint lines of those roads can only be seen from above, not from the ground. Now the sagebrush and bitterbrush is tall and healthy and great sage grouse habitat. All Kore Mining roads will be new roads, new scars.

The Inyo NF approved this project as a categorical exclusion under the National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA). This allows the public to comment only at the scoping phase of the project.  Many people and organizations spoke out and did commented. Thank you! Although many companies have explored in this location in the past, there is always the potential that one of them will turn into an open pit gold mine! KORE Mining has a graphic on their Long Valley webpage that says, "Simple open pit & heap leach, Simple = low cost"!