Enviro, tribal groups upset with Gianforte over Hecla mining decision Bureau of Land Management historical photo The Pegasus Mine at Zortman By: Dennis Bragg and last updated 2021-07-16 10:58:08-04 MISSOULA â Environmental and conservation groups, and some tribal leaders, are saying they're "deeply disappointed" with the Gianforte administration for deciding not to use a recent ruling to press "bad actors" to clean up mine waste. A Gianforte spokesperson said the governor is simply empowering state agencies to act as they see fit. The question first came up in 2018, when the Bullock administration, through the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), faulted Hecla Mining President and CEO Phillip Baker Jr. for his involvement in the ill-fated Pegasus Gold operations in the Little Rocky Mountains.