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KALISPELL - A proposed coal mine in southeastern British Columbia will be examined here Monday at a public meeting the governor and Montana's senior U.S. senator plan to attend.

The session is an opportunity for the public to provide comments, which will be sent to the provincial government ''as part of Montana's ongoing effort to make B.C. aware of opposition'' to the mine, the Flathead Basin Commission said.

The Montana-based commission announced the meeting, which Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., plans to attend along with Gov. Brian Schweitzer.

Canada's Cline Mining Co. wants to develop an open-pit coal project just north of the Montana-British Columbia border. The provincial government has prepared draft terms and conditions that would be required in operating the mine, a draft Montana officials find unsatisfactory.

In Montana, the mine has raised concern about effects on the quality of water in the transboundary Flathead River system. The North Fork flows into Montana's Flathead Lake and serves as the western boundary of Glacier National Park.

Speakers at the meeting are to include representatives of the park, state and federal wildlife agencies and the Flathead Lake Biological Station. The commission said the meeting is part of its effort ''to inform Montana residents of the range of environmental threats posed by the proposed mining project.''

The meeting Monday at the Red Lion Hotel in Kalispell is scheduled for 9 a.m. until noon and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Baucus and Schweitzer plan to be at the early session. A similar meeting is scheduled for Jan. 24 in Missoula.

Cline plans to discuss its proposed mine at public meetings in British Columbia. They are scheduled for Jan. 16, 17 and Jan. 18 in the respective communities of Elko, Sparwood and Fernie. The Montana meetings are necessary in part to accommodate Montanans who wish to speak out but may not be in a position to travel to British Columbia, said Caryn Miske, executive director of the Flathead Basin Commission.

Years ago the Montana Legislature established the commission, which has 23 members, to monitor and protect water quality in the Flathead Basin. The commission has asked the Legislature to appropriate about $308,000 for work, during the next two years, related to the Cline proposal.

Likely expenses include water quality monitoring, travel to participate in the Canadian environmental assessment process and the hiring of a ''transboundary specialist,'' the commission said. The specialist would collect and analyze data, and coordinate Montana's involvement in the province's regulatory process.

On the Net: Flathead Basin Commission: www.flatheadbasincommission.org

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