South Dakota’s Black Hills, a region steeped in both natural splendor and a fraught history, are once again at the center of a gold rush that’s drawing prospectors, stoking economic hopes, and stirring deep anxieties. On August 17, 2025, news broke that the price of gold had soared above $3,000 an ounce—a staggering leap from the $300 mark seen when the storied Homestake mine closed in 2002. This dramatic surge is fueling a new wave of mining interest, with companies eager to capitalize on the boom, even as local communities and Native American tribes brace for the potential fallout.
The Black Hills, sprawling across more than 1.2 million acres in southwest South Dakota and stretching into Wyoming, have long been a magnet for fortune-seekers. The area’s jagged, pine-clad peaks are more than just a scenic backdrop; they’re sacred ground for the Lakota Sioux and a playground for millions of tourists who come to marvel at Mount Rushmore and the region’s state parks. But as mining companies eye lucrative new opportunities, a familiar tension is resurfacing—one that pits economic development against environmental preservation and cultural respect.
At the heart of the current debate is the way modern mining operates. Gone are the days of panning for gold in shallow streams. Today’s extraction methods are massive in scale and impact, relying on fleets of trucks and diggers to carve deep, multitiered open pits into the landscape. Chemicals like cyanide are used to dissolve gold from the rock, making the process far more efficient—but also far more intrusive and potentially hazardous.
"These impacts can be long term and make it so that tourism and outdoor recreation is negatively impacted," Lilias Jarding, executive director of the Black Hills Clean Water Alliance, told the Associated Press. "Our enjoyment of the Black Hills as a peaceful place, a sacred place, is disturbed." Jarding’s concerns are echoed by many in the region, who worry that the influx of mining could forever alter the character and ecology of the Hills.
Currently, only one gold mine operates in the Black Hills—Coeur Mining’s Wharf mine. Yet, the landscape may soon change dramatically. Several companies, including Dakota Gold, have proposals before state and federal agencies for a new open pit mine, as well as exploratory drilling sites that could pave the way for even more extraction. Dakota Gold’s president and COO, Jack Henris, estimates that their open pit mine could create up to 250 jobs and generate up to $400 million in tax revenue for the state over its lifetime. "Most of the people that work here are from this area and just love to live here," Henris said. "So we’re a big part of the Hills and we love them just as much as other folks." The company plans to begin operations in 2029 and is also exploring the possibility of an underground mine near the old Homestake site.
But for many, the economic promise comes with significant caveats. Environmentalists and Native American tribes have voiced strong opposition to the new mining projects, citing the risk of chemical spills, water contamination, and irreversible scarring of the landscape. Past experience has given them ample reason for concern. Coeur Mining’s Wharf mine has reported nearly 200 chemical spills, and the closure of the Homestake mine was tied to the contamination of a nearby creek. Coeur’s environmental manager, Jasmine McCauley, responded to criticism by stating that each spill is "thoroughly investigated, mitigated, and corrective actions are put in place to prevent reoccurrence." She added that the company is always working to improve its processes.
Jarding, meanwhile, points to the sheer scale of recent mining activity as cause for alarm. "It’s really important that people understand the exponential growth in mining activity that’s been happening in the Black Hills over the last five years or so," she said. "There are currently active mining claims on 271,000 acres in the Black Hills. That’s 20% of the whole Black Hills that is potentially going to be subject to mining." The numbers are staggering—and for many, deeply unsettling.
The Black Hills are not just another mineral-rich region. Their significance runs far deeper, rooted in both spiritual tradition and a long, complicated history with the U.S. government. In 1868, the federal government signed a treaty with the Sioux Nation recognizing their rights to the Black Hills. But that agreement was soon broken after gold was discovered, and settlers poured in, displacing Native communities. The U.S. Supreme Court later ruled that the Sioux were entitled to compensation for the seizure of their land, but the tribes have refused the money, insisting on their claim to the territory.
"There’s a central truth about mining in the Black Hills in that it was never the most mineral rich place there ever was," Taylor Gunhammer, a local organizer with the Indigenous advocacy group NDN Collective and an Oglala Sioux, told the Associated Press. "It’s not even the actual mineral content of the Black Hills that is so attractive to mining companies. It’s the permissive nature of the officials who oversee mining." Gunhammer and others argue that regulatory leniency, rather than geological bounty, is drawing companies to the region—potentially at the expense of Indigenous sovereignty and environmental stewardship.
The debate isn’t just about economics or the environment; it’s about identity, memory, and the future of a place that means different things to different people. For some, mining represents a vital source of jobs and state revenue, especially in uncertain economic times. Joseph Cavatoni, senior market strategist at the World Gold Council, told the Associated Press, "Gold tends to be a stable asset. That actually performs well in inflationary times, and holds its value in recessionary times. That’s why gold as an asset in investment." The recent price spike, he said, is a direct response to global economic uncertainty.
For others, however, the rush for gold is a painful echo of the past, threatening to repeat old injustices under the guise of progress. The Lakota Sioux and their allies continue to resist what they see as the ongoing desecration of their sacred lands. Environmentalists warn that the region’s natural beauty, which draws millions of tourists each year, could be irreparably damaged by open pit mines and chemical runoff. The stakes, they argue, are nothing less than the soul of the Black Hills.
As Dakota Gold and other companies move forward with their plans, the region faces a crossroads. Will economic opportunity outweigh the risks to environment and heritage, or will the voices of those seeking to protect the Black Hills prevail? The answer may shape the destiny of this storied landscape for generations to come.
