Black Hills Bentonite LLC of Casper, WY has asked for a permit to mine bentonite a couple miles south of Pine Haven and the Land Quality Division of the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) invites all area residents to a public meeting at the Pine Haven Community Center to share in the discussion on August 31, at 6 p.m.
According to the Wyoming Mining Association, the process of mining bentonite involves removing the top soil with heavy equipment, removing the bentonite and refilling each pit created with the soils from subsequent pits while the site is active. This process is called back-casting.