Sutter Gold finalizes key section 404 permit and provides permitting update for the Lincoln Mine Project

Thursday, Jun 21, 2012

Sutter Gold Mining Inc. (TSX VENTURE:SGM)(OTCQX:SGMNF) ("Sutter" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it will accept the terms of a permit proffered on June 15, 2012 by the US Army Corps of Engineers to fill wetlands under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act for the Lincoln Mine Project in California's Mother Lode Gold Belt. Having reviewed the permit terms and conditions, Sutter plans to sign and return the permit to the District Engineer for final authorization. In related news on June 1, 2012 the California Regional Water Quality Control Board issued a Water Quality Certification under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act. This was the last of the regulatory approvals the Company needed for the US Army Corps of Engineers to issue the permit to fill wetlands.

"The timing of the Water Quality Certification Order and the permit proffered by the US Army Corps of Engineers fits well with the Company's summer 2012 construction schedule," said Leanne Baker, President and CEO. "Sutter has worked very hard to minimize the environmental impacts of the Lincoln Mine Project and this permit allows us to move forward with construction of surface disposal facilities for waste rock and tailings, including a new access road to the tailings disposal unit."

The permit allows the Company to fill approximately 0.75 acre of seasonal wetlands and other waters of the United States while fully mitigating these impacts with higher value seasonal wetlands. The final stages of earthwork and construction of mine waste management units are scheduled to begin by July 1, 2012, consistent with Sutter's plans to put the Lincoln Mine into production in the fourth quarter of 2012.

The Company also is pleased to announce two other important developments on the regulatory and permitting front: First, on June 4, 2012 the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) notified the Company that it approved Sutter's Alternative Mine Rescue Plan. This will allow for the start of pre-development underground work leading to gold production by the end of 2012. Second, on June 12, 2012 Amador County issued a building permit for the Lincoln Mine Project's Shop/Staff Services Building.

"MSHA's approval of our mine rescue plan is a critical milestone towards bringing the mine to production and vacating the temporarily closed status approved by MSHA in 1994," said Matthew Collins, COO. "With the mill building construction well underway, issuance of the latest county permit should allow for planned completion of the Shop/Staff Services Building in time for the commissioning of the mill."

The material in this news release has been reviewed by Matthew Collins, COO, a Qualified Person as defined in NI 43-101.

Source: Marketwire