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Enviro Groups Find Common Cause, To Hold Friday Stewardship Event

Courtesy of Silver Valley Community Resource Center

Earth Day will be formally celebrated on Thursday, April 22.

Three Inland Northwest environmental groups that share a common focus are combining their efforts to sponsor an early celebration. For about 35 years, the Silver Valley Community Resource Center has been monitoring the mining cleanup in north Idaho from Kellogg. On the other side of the border in Newport, Responsible Growth Northeast Washington was formed a few years ago to monitor efforts to build a new silicon smelter in Pend Oreille County.

“The activism is the same, no matter what the issue is. That is to hold our policy and government officials and corporations accountable for mitigation and cleanup and compensation once the damage has been done," said Phyllis Kardos, one of the founders of Responsible Growth.

The two organizations are planning what they call a Good Stewardship event Friday, April 16 in Kellogg. Kardos says they will share their stories and successes and those of a third mining activism group, the SHAWL Society. It has, for more than a generation, advocated for cleanup of an old uranium mine on the Spokane Indian Reservation.

“Basically we all got introduced when we were at other events and when we were pushing our causes. We certainly have a commonality as far as our activism goes. We certainly have a commonality as far as our activism goes in keeping our environment clean and healthy,” she said.

Kardos says Friday’s event will honor several good environmental stewards. It will begin at 1 at the Silver Valley Community Resource Center office. The public is invited to attend in person or via Zoom.