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Metallic sulfide mining threatens Minnesota's prized northern lake district.

RECENT NEWS

Mining safe, creates jobs? Be skeptical.   That's not what history has shown, so Minnesotans must demand protection.
By Scott Strand | August 17, 2010 |  Star Tribune

The Star Tribune's Aug. 10 editorial ("Mining should be on the radar in state") reported on the recent visit of top officials from Antofagasta, the Chilean mining conglomerate, touting the controversial Twin Metals copper-mining project proposed for land adjacent to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The editorial opined that the issues posed by the various proposals to open up copper-nickel sulfide mining in Minnesota deserved a more prominent place in the upcoming fall gubernatorial contest. I couldn't agree more.

The editorial should, however, have cast a more skeptical eye toward the claims of the "high-powered" Chilean copper delegation that "several thousand permanent jobs" will be created and that sulfide mining can "fire the state's economic engine for decades."  We've heard all that before. History tells a different story.    Read more ...
By C.A. Arneson | August 11, 2010 | MinnPost
 
We have all been watching reports of the Gulf oil contamination, hearing about the lack of regulation, mourning the loss of life, environmental destruction, and economic cost to the region because industry was not required to prove that it had the ability not only to clean up spills, but also to prevent them.

Oil contamination has one tragic advantage over sulfide metals mining [sulfide mining] contamination. You can see it. Waters in Minnesota could look just fine and still be devastatingly damaged by heavy metals from sulfide mining.

In northern Minnesota, contamination seeps through the fractured bedrock to our surface and groundwater, to our drinking water. The movement of heavy metals, sulfates, and acid would be insidious and unpredictable. Experts have said the best we may be able to do is damage control.   Read more ...

By Greg Seitz | August 9, 2010 | StarTribune
 
A high-powered Chilean delegation's visit to Minnesota last week signals strongly that a controversial new type of Iron Range mining isn't a matter of if, it's a matter of when. That should give Minnesotans pause, especially during this landmark election year. 

Ferried about in a fleet of limousines were the Chilean ambassador and the executive team from one of the world's leading mining companies -- Antofagasta, which is run by Chile's wealthy Luksic family. The delegation met with the governor, legislators and members of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, among others, attempting to generate support for a large underground copper-nickel mine near Ely.   Read more ...

Executive Order -- Stewardship of the Ocean, Our Coasts, and the Great Lakes

We are glad to report that on July 19th President Obama signed an executive order to establish the nation's first-ever comprehensive policy for our oceans, coasts and Great Lakes.  Just as we have a Clean Water Act for our water and a Clean Air Act for our air, we now have a national policy for our oceans that will help better protect, maintain and restore ocean ecosystems. Our oceans, coasts and the Great Lakes are valuable economic engines providing jobs, food, energy resources, recreation and tourism, and the administration's ground-breaking action will help ensure that our oceans are better managed to meet the needs of present and future generations.

 

 Dunka Pollution Violations:   Editorial note -- Polluters must pay.  Non-enforcement hurts all Minnesotans.with billions in state budget deficit looming and basic life-sustaining programs eliminated or cut to the bone, why would the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency fail to collect millions of dollars in legitimate fines while protecting the environment? 

When state and federal governments both fail to enforce regulations, the Federal Clean Water Act (Section 505) allows citizens to sue for compliance. The law allows up to $37,500 per day per violation. ...
As we know, in February, the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the NorthMet Project received the lowest rating possible from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), citing water quality impacts.
Then on March 25, the MPCA (Minnesota Pollution Control Agency) entered into a consent decree with Cliffs Erie, shielding the company from the intended lawsuit. It was a ludicrous settlement for excessive violations of Minnesota water standards that the company and agencies ignored for years.  ...
For example, one violation at $37,500 per day for 30 days would be an additional maximum penalty of $1,125,000 added to the $12 million total.  It’s impossible to fathom why the MPCA fined Cliffs Erie a paltry $58,000!
Consent decree or consent to pollute? 

We need to speak up in defense of what defines us: our waters. It is time for “prove it first” legislation. Wisconsin has such legislation. Are our waters worth less?

 Read the whole article ...

Is anyone protecting Minnesota's waters?     by C.A. Arneson, MinnPost   May 24, 2010

ELY, MINN –  There is a sardonic saying that "Dilution is the solution to pollution."  Agency actions in Minnesota say "Delusion is the solution to pollution" as officials disregard violations, make deals and deny pollution exists.

Cliffs Erie failed to correct pollution problems for decades when the LTV and Dunka mine sites were operating.  Then PolyMet purchased LTV for the price of scrap and set in motion events that could turn Minnesota's waters into sulfide-mining cesspools. PolyMet proposed using the old LTV site for the first "official" copper-nickel mine in Minnesota. … Since 2005 Cliffs Erie has violated water limits in its three permits.  The company did not correct the [309] violations on its own, the MPCA ignored the violations, and EPA oversight was nonexistent. …

Industry is essentially being told to come to Minnesota; in Minnesota we will allow you to circumvent and undercut our water regulations. Just bring jobs.

The public is being told our agencies and many politicians will trade our water, our health, our sustainable resources, our long-term economic welfare, and our matchless recreational opportunities for those jobs.

Sulfide mining would damage Lake Superior and the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

These waters "belong" not just to all Minnesotans but also to the nation.  Minnesota's charge is protecting them.

Twice the citizens of Minnesota have voted in favor of environmental constitutional amendments.  We need to speak up again, in defense of what defines us:  our waters.

Read the whole article and comments ...

Send PolyMet to Summer School campaign

Thanks for your signatures supporting the summer petition campaign, requesting  the responsible government agencies produce a supplemental or revised draft EIS (Environmental Impact Statement) for the PolyMet mine proposal, complete with an additional public comment period, before proceeding to the final Environmental Impact Statement. 

The lead agencies and the company haven't done their homework.  One must be very skeptical -- "If this is indicative of the quality assurance they would offer residents that this toxic type of mining new to Minnesota will not pollute the valuable freshwater resources of the state and Lake Superior basin?"

US EPA rates PolyMet Project & DEIS

"Environmentally Unsatisfactory" & "Inadequate"

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) gave its assessment of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) published for the first proposed sulfide mine in MN: the PolyMet NorthMet copper mine. 

"Based on our review of the DEIS, EPA has rated the DEIS as Environmentally
Unsatisfactory - Inadequate, or EU-3. Environmentally Unsatisfactory (EU)
indicates that our review has identified adverse environmental impacts that
are of sufficient magnitude that the EPA believes the proposed action must
not proceed as proposed."  READ more EPA Findings ...

The PolyMet DEIS flunked both tests used by the EPA. By giving the PolyMet NorthMet DEIS its lowest possible ratings, the EPA has confirmed our concerns that the PolyMet open-pit sulfide mine will result in unacceptable harm and that the DEIS underestimates project impacts.  Read WaterLegacy's press release. 

*     Also, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says "The anticipated environmental impacts of the proposed action are not fully and fairly addressed in the DEIS."

Recent News Articles about the EPA's Findings

MORE NEWS...

WaterLegacy comments on the inadequate PolyMet DEIS

What’s Wrong with the PolyMet DEIS?

Excerpt ...  "The purpose of an EIS under both federal and state law is to identify what mitigation would be needed to prevent a proposed federal or state action in permitting a project from resulting in pollution, impairment or destruction of human health and natural resources.  If the economics of extraction of ores from the NorthMet deposit don’t permit basic mitigation measures, such as building a lined tailings basin on a solid foundation, treating discharges to remove sulfates and heavy metals, mitigating water and air pollutants that impair human health and violate standards and replacing impacted wetlands, either PolyMet has created overly inflated expectations in its investors or the NorthMet site has an inadequately rich deposit to permit exploitation.  Part of the function of a properly written EIS is to assist project proponents in making the calculation of whether they can “do the project right” and protect the environment.  If investors cannot reduce their profits or commodity markets cannot support high enough metals prices to justify mining this deposit under environmentally protective conditions, this project should go no further."

WaterLegacy's SUMMARY comments on the inadequate PolyMet DEIS or WaterLegacy's full comments

WELCOME

Welcome to Water Legacy, a grassroots citizens’ group organized to protect and enhance Minnesota's precious freshwater resource and to ensure effective public participation in government and regulatory processes that impact the quality of fresh water and the health of communities dependent on that water.

Vision:  We value fresh, clean water as a legacy for generations to come.   We believe Minnesota’s freshwater is a precious ecological resource and is essential to the health of local communities and regional economies.  

This vital natural resource can be protected only if citizens are made aware of the threats to clean, abundant water and if citizen, legal and expert scientific resources are joined together to provide effective communication, advocacy, and regulation.

Purpose:  The purpose of WaterLegacy is to prevent environmental degradation.  To accomplish this purpose, we
·    conduct non-partisan research, education, and informational activities to increase public awareness of threats to clean, fresh water resources and of ways to preserve and enhance them;
·    encourage public participation and self-advocacy in government, regulation, and community decisions; and
·    develop grassroots, legal and expert advocacy to protect water resources, habitats and the communities that depend on them.

How we treat the water is how the water will treat us.    – Eddie Benton Benais, Anishinaabe Spiritual elder  

Join WaterLegacy (free)

 

Take ACTION:  You can download and print these OR save and email them as attachments.

  • a WaterLegacy handout with PolyMet EIS talking points on one side and WaterLegacy description on the other -- inform your family, friends and neighbors
  • a "NO Sulfide Mining" PETITION, because it has not been demonstrated safe -- collect signatures and distribute petitions

 How can you contribute to this work?  

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