Wilderness in jeopardy!
Mining waste in the Boundary Waters?
One of my favorite places on Earth is threatened with potential devastation because of politics. The Trump Administration has renewed plans to allow Antofagasta Minerals, a Chilean mining company, to operate a huge copper-nickel mining complex just outside the boundaries of the one-million-acre Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) along the Minnesota/Ontario border. The mine would lie within the BWCAW watershed, with the very real potential for runoff of sulfides and other wastes to enter the relatively pristine rivers and lakes of the wilderness.
I’ve been enamored with the lakes, rivers, rocks, scenery, and wildness of the BWCAW ever since my first visit to the northeastern Minnesota treasure as a student in 1965. The campus of our Coe College field station on Basswood Lake included some log buildings salvaged from a resort that had been forced to close when the area was declared a wilderness the year before.
We studied the ecology of the area’s trees, ferns, mosses, mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians. That research, of course, required canoe trips where we paddled and portaged through the watery maze over routes charted centuries ago first by animals, then by Indigenous people and voyageur fur traders and trappers.
With family and friends, I’ve made dozens of subsequent return trips to the BWCAW – ranging from a honeymoon adventure to Boy Scout excursions to paddling vacations to fishing outings. Thus, the idea that this canoe country wilderness could be threatened by a Chilean company’s mining operations seems preposterous, unfathomable! And I’m confident that most of the thousands of Iowans who visit the BWCAW share that alarm. Mining opponents also point to several polls and research studies that show the tourism business based on the BWCAW would contribute more to the state’s economy that a nickel-copper mine would – especially if the mine polluted the area. economics
The threat of mining in the BWCAW watershed recently has become even more ominous, when the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution to overturn a Biden-era ban on mineral leasing in 225,000 acres of the Superior National Forest. The watershed feeds the BWCAW via the Kawishiwi River system, ultimately draining through Voyageurs National Park, parts of Canada’s Quetico Provincial Park, and into Lake of the Woods. path of mine waste runoff? (Video courtesy of “Save the Boundary Waters”)
Mining proponents argue that nickel and copper are critical elements in electronics and batteries, and vital to national security. The measure is awaiting consideration in the U. S. Senate, where a vote may come as early as the week of February 9.
In response to my letter urging him not to vote to overturn the mineral leasing ban, U. S. Senator Charles Grassley said he recognized “the value of protecting and utilizing public lands in a responsible way.” He said we need to get minerals from the U. S., rather than depend on other countries. “It is important to balance the need for critical minerals with the imperative of preserving America’s great natural treasures for future generations,” Grassley asserted. (Balance, IMHO, often is a buzzword for the environment be damned!)
Iowa Senator Joni Ernst similarly dodged the issue, writing in a form letter to my friend Dan Cohen. Cohen substack “Should this legislation come before the full Senate for a vote, I will keep your views in mind,” Ernst wrote. “I care deeply about preserving the beauty of our public lands . . .”
My Congressional Representative, Ashley Hinson, voted to overturn the mineral leasing ban, as did all three other Iowa members of the House. Here is Hinson’s response to my letter: “I understand the importance of preserving our nation’s environment for future generations. I believe we must champion a responsible, all-of-the-above energy strategy that supports robust job creation, respects our environment, and reduces our dependence on foreign resources. . . . . Any projects in this region must still complete rigorous permitting and regulatory review processes at the state and federal levels.”
If you believe the Trump Administration will conduct a “rigorous permitting and regulatory review,” you obviously haven’t been paying attention to Trump’s anti-environment policies. Here’s just one view, from the League of Conservation Voters: https://www.lcv.org/blog/trumps-first-year-8-ways-he-prioritized-polluters-over-people-number-7-will-shock-you/
In this era of oligarchs, it perhaps should not come as a surprise that Antofagasta Minerals is owned by Chilean billionaire Andronico Luksic, who has spent nearly $1million per year to lobby for Twin Metals. Luksic also reportedly bought a $5.5 million mansion in Washington, D. C., which he subsequently rented to Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, and her husband, Jared Kushner. Conflict of interest? What does that mean?
Although Antofagasta has claimed the mining would safeguard the BWCAW by using the latest technology to avoid pollution, it’s ironic that Chilean officials recently fined the company $775,000 for failing to comply with water management regulations at a copper mine in that country.
Ah, but if only a Chilean mining magnate were the only threat to canoe country! Now there could be ICE! Legislation proposed by Republican Utah Senator Mike Lee would allow Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) construction of roads, surveillance towers, and other infrastructure, and send ICE agents into the BWCAW. Can we hope (naively!) that the abuses by ICE in Minneapolis and elsewhere may bring an inflection point on actions that not only cost human lives, but also jeopardize public lands and waters?
Senator Lee’s “Border Lands Conservation Act” (S. 2967) would allow the Department of Homeland Security to build “border security” structures on federal lands within100 miles of our country’s northern and southern borders – which would include all of the BWCAW. That could allow roads, air strips, fences, video surveillance, and other encroachments on the wilderness. (Note: Lee is a long-time opponent of federal lands and has proposed transferring much of Utah’s federal property to the state.)
To make matters even worse, the U. S. House of Representatives on Feb. 4 passed the Critical Minerals Dominance Act (H.R. 4090), sponsored by Republican Minnesota Congressman Pete Stauber. The bill would codify several of Trump’s executive orders to weaken mining regulations and speed up mineral exploration and leasing on public lands. House Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) characterized that bill as “more sweetheart deals to multinational mining corporations . . .” That measure also is on its way to the Senate.
It’s imperative that Iowans and all others who care about preserving wilderness opportunities, maintaining access to public land, or protecting clean water contact Senators Ernst and Grassley to insist they act to safeguard - not exploit - the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
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I contacted both Ernst and Grassley and received identical form letters from them stating the need to use our resources instead of other countries blah blah blah. Do you know any MAGGOTS who might care about the Boundary Waters enough to resist? Thank you for caring and writing this essay, Larry.
Its like Ground Hogs Day, over and over...I remember the first go-round and all the letter writing and phone calls during tRUMP's first term...back into the fray with the same reactions from our "representatives"...and still the same grift and money exchanging hands, with no end in sight. We just cannot stop expressing the truth and demanding what is right for the world we're about to pass on to the next generations...