EAST HELENA — You may have noticed the 16-million-ton slag pile if you've driven through East Helena. The black mini mountain is at the former ASARCO site and is a visual reminder of the town's smelting past. Now that pile could see changes with new partners found who are interested in the slag.
(WATCH: New companies interested in the East Helena slag pile)
"I have been working on this project since the day that ASARCO left Montana," said Cindy Brooks.
She is the managing principal of the Montana Environmental Trust Group (METG), which took title of the over 2,000 acres of land owned by ASARCO when the smelting and refining company officially left around 2009.
Brooks told MTN that they have initiated a new partnership with R-E-D Industrial Products, a Pennsylvania-based company that works with slag replacement, and CRH, an international company primarily focused on building materials.
Those companies now have a year to find purchasers for the slag.
"There are no companies in the United States that have the ability to process the material, because it's all about the Zinc," Brooks said. "Wherever it goes, it's going to have to leave the US."
As MTN previously reported, METG worked with Metallica Commodities Corp, which had a contract to provide slag to Korea Zinc in South Korea, but that contract fell through in June 2024.
With this new partnership, the work on the former smelter site could be nearing completion.
Brooks said, "We have one last corrective measure to implement - which is to grade and cap the slag pile."
The more slag removed, the less expensive the capping will be.
The land near the East Helena slag pile has come a long way. It's a significant community partnership among the City of East Helena, METG, Habitat for Humanity, and the Prickly Pear Land Trust (PPLT).
"Prickly pear elementary school, the high school, the highland meadows, the new town pump - that's on former trust lands," said Brooks.
Redevelopments are not done yet.
There are currently only 20 acres left for sale of the former ASARCO land.
Habitat for Humanity has purchased and is working to buy land near the site to build 1,500 new homes.
Oakland Companies has purchased 750 acres across from Prickly Pear Park to build approximately 4,000 homes.
"Once the developments start to take shape, we will then see where we need to put new trail heads, new parking lots, and things to accommodate the additional growth," said Mary Hallow, the executive director of PPLT.
She says, according to a counter at Prickly Pear Park, there have been about 20,000 visits since the park opened in May.
"This one has the ability to impact a much broader swath of the community than some of our other projects," said Hallow. "It's just really exciting. It's wonderful to be at this point and in this moment."
Exactly when and how long it will take to move the slag is still being ironed out, but the land in East Helena has come a long way since the site was shut down decades ago.
In August, those who have been working on the former East Helena ASARCO smelter site were named the recipients of the Phoenix Award for excellence in brownfield redevelopment.
