Another Key Vote Near on Allowing Mining Near Boundary Waters

(Adobe Stock via Minnesota News Connection)

(By Mike Moen. Minnesota News Connection) – The U.S. Senate returns from recess this week and could vote early on whether to reverse a ban on mining near Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Recent House approval set off alarms about what it would mean for America’s most-visited wilderness area.

In 2023, the Biden administration enacted a 20-year moratorium on mining within a watershed upstream from the Boundary Waters. The move was made to prevent pollution, namely sulfuric acid, amid one company’s long-standing efforts to build a copper-nickel mine in the northeast part of the state. Republican lawmakers and the Trump administration insist the project is needed for critical minerals.

Brad Gausman, executive director of the Minnesota Wildlife Federation, said it wouldn’t be worth it because the region’s tourism economy would suffer.

“If those waters and landscapes are degraded, people aren’t going to want to go fish and swim and recreate,” Gausman pointed out.