Lithium Nevada Beats Thacker Pass Mine Challenge in 9th Cir. (1)

Lithium Nevada Corp. can proceed with construction of its mine in Thacker Pass, Nev., the Ninth Circuit ruled Monday, upholding a lower court’s approval of the controversial project.

The judges declined to vacate a US Bureau of Land Management permit that allowed waste rock to be buried on a 1,300-acre section of the site, holding that the agency took a sufficiently hard look at the project’s potential environmental impacts.

A coalition of Native American tribes, ranchers, and conservation groups claimed that approval for the Lithium America Corp. project—which aims to supply the accelerating demand for batteries for the electric vehicle ...