wts,
Apparently permitting has been underway for a while, probably due to the enviromental sensitivity of the area. Here's a link to the website for Canadian Zinc discussing the permitting process:
http://www.canadianzinc.com/media/CanadianZincCorporationPrairieCreekMinePermitting.mht
Don't know enough about zinc mining to comment on the enviromental impact (perhaps someone else on the forum can answer).
Notably, they are also mining silver...
Bill