A new deal between the state of Nevada and a gold-processing company located there is expected to mean less toxic mercury in Utah's air and water.

The Nevada Department of Environmental Protection and Queenstake Resources USA Ltd. signed a consent decree earlier this month that requires the company to do a better job of monitoring and reducing its mercury emissions. And additional controls could be required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as soon as next spring.

The company, which reported releasing 1,069 pounds of mercury off-site in 2007 from its Jerritt Canyon gold operations, has already started ramping up its "roasters" after being shut down over environmental violations in March 2008. After beefing up testing and equipment, Queenstake resumed gold processing for a month before the state ordered its operations shut down again for failing to meet a deadline on new control equipment.

Part of Vancouver, Canada-based Yukon-Nevada Gold Corp., Queenstake did not respond to requests for comment on the Oct. 12 consent decree. It also has agreed to pay a $550,000 settlement for the violations.

But Jill LuFrano, spokeswoman for the Nevada Department of Environmental Protection, said her agency will continue to monitor Jerritt Canyon closely.

"We haven't stopped our progress," she said, noting the state's efforts have evolved over the past four years. "We're continuing to make improvements.

Since Nevada's crackdown

began, suggested consumption limits have been issued over too-high levels of mercury in fish and waterfowl at more than a dozen locations in Utah. In addition, toxic mercury has been measured in the Great Salt Lake at some of the highest levels found anywhere in the United States.

Utah's efforts to understand the links between the gold mines and the Beehive State's mercury problem has been hampered by a lack of funding. Still, Cheryl Heying, director of the Utah Division of Air Quality, applauded Nevada for its aggressive approach.

"We do keep an eye on what's going on out there," she said. "Anytime we ask a question, we get a response quick."

Utah also will have representatives on hand for meetings about the emissions from Queenstake and other Nevada gold operations next month.

Meanwhile, there's a lot of interest in soon-to-be-announced federal standards, the first mercury-related rules for the gold industry.

The Sierra Club sued the Bush administration in 2001 over standards for toxic emissions that were due the previous year. Jim Pew, an attorney representing the environmental group in the case, said Utah should expect less mercury when the new regulations are finally in place.

"It's a good thing to control the pollution even when you don't have perfect information because [mercury] is so toxic."

fahys@sltrib.com