The mine was closed in the late 1980s leaving contaminated water and a superfund site.

[4][7][8] Blackbird mine operated steadily from 1949 to 1959, supported by the federal government's demand for cobalt during the Cold War.

[4] By the early 1960s, contaminated water had resulted in the Snake River spring/summer Chinook salmon being eliminated from Panther Creek.

The sludge is hauled in water tankers to be dried in open air basins elsewhere on the site.

Water treatment is ongoing, and reclamation managers did not foresee its end, stating "It’s really a very long way off,"[4] In October 2022, Jervois mining company began production in the Idaho cobalt belt at a site adjacent to Blackbird mine.