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Let’s Update Minnesota’s Environmental Laws

The two proposed copper-sulfide mines, PolyMet and Twin Metals, have been at the center of one of the largest and longest environmental controversies in Minnesota’s state’s history. 

The permitting process for PolyMet began almost two decades ago. In that time, many flaws and weaknesses in the state’s laws and permitting process have come to light. In short, Minnesota’s environmental laws are outdated and inadequate.

In addition to the Prove It First Bill, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness has drafted a suite of laws designed to update our laws and allow agencies to better serve Minnesotans and the water and wilderness we’re so famous for.

Taxpayer Protection Act

Copper-sulfide mining has a terrible history of pollution around the world. Unfortunately, Minnesota’s current financial assurance requirements, the amount of money a mining company must put up as insurance, are woefully inadequate to protect against, or clean up after, an environmental disaster.

As evidenced by the $7 billion settlement Vale mining company paid to the country of Brazil after just such a disaster, the clean-up costs for mining disasters can be astronomical.

The Taxpayer Protection Act would require nonferrous mining companies to fully fund any financial assurance package upfront and in cash. This would ensure Minnesota’s taxpayers are not left on the hook for potential multi-billion-dollar clean-up costs from a devastating environmental catastrophe.

The Bad Actor Bill

In addition to being the most polluting industry in America by chemical releases, the copper-sulfide mining industry is home to some of the world’s most notorious corporate bad actors. Antofagasta, the owner of the now-canceled Twin Metals mine, has polluted its home country of Chile multiple times, has a history of bribery at home, and has shown its willingness to overlook ethical considerations in the United States and use its considerable financial resources to lobby for its proposed projects.

Glencore, owner of the proposed PolyMet mine, has an even worse history, if that is possible. Named one of the worst companies to work for by the United Steelworkers, Glencore has a history of pollution, corruption, and human rights violations – including child labor – around the world. Glencore’s own Sustainability Reports show the company paid over $10 million in environmental fines in the last decade alone. Finally, in 2017, Glencore received a state medal from Vladimir Putin for its “contribution to strengthening cooperation with Russia.”

Remove DNR Conflict of Interest to Promote Mining

Despite false claims by copper-mining lobbyists, Minnesota does not have a strict environmental review system that prevents pollution of the state’s clean water.

One of the most glaring instances of this problem is that Minnesota’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has both an obligation to protect Minnesota’s natural resources and an obligation to promote mining.

These two missions frequently create a conflict of interest for the DNR when deciding to promote projects that might pollute, with environmental protection often being ignored in favor of promoting industry when permits are issued. It is a disservice to the many hard-working scientists and dedicated employees of the DNR who joined the agency to protect natural resources, to continually see their work and best-available science ignored in favor of industry promotion on the part of DNR leadership, leadership that may feel their hand is forced due to the requirement to promote mining.

This bill would remove the responsibility to promote mining from DNR and shift it to the Department of Employment and Economic Development. Support for this legislation was voted into the DFL party platform by a super-majority of delegates at the 2022 state convention.

As an economic development agency, DEED is a more appropriate agency to handle this responsibility to promote mining. Removing this responsibility from DNR means the agency’s mission will no longer conflict with environmental protection concerns when issuing permits.

Permanently Prevent and Protect the Boundary Waters from Mining Pollution

Ask Federal legislators to permanently protect the 234,328 acres of federal lands and waters in the Rainy River watershed that were recently protected by the Biden Administration’s 20-year mineral withdrawal.  The Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection and Pollution Prevention Act (H.R. 668)would ensure that the critical resources within the Boundary Waters and Superior National Forest are protected against international corporations from pollution and extraction.

Keep Sulfide Mining away from the Boundary Waters

Contact your U.S. Representative today and ask them to oppose H.R. 3195 to ensure we keep sulfide mining away from the Boundary Waters! This legislation would overturn a 20-year moratorium on all mining in the Boundary Waters watershed implemented by the Department of the Interior last year, and reinstate mineral rights and leases to companies like Twin Metals, which has proposed a sulfide copper mining project near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. H.R. 3195 would be a huge setback in our work to protect clean water and the Boundary Waters from dangerous sulfide copper mining in its watershed.