mining

Could Land Swap Hamstring PolyMet?

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Could restrictions on the Superior National Forest land where PolyMet Mining wants to establish Minnesota’s first copper-nickel mine stymie the company’s plans to open its project in a timely fashion?

Friends of the BWCAW Criticizes PolyMet Plan

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Citing “numerous serious flaws in the environmental review process and the project proposal,” the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness called for no action to be taken to advance PolyMet Mining Company’s proposed copper, nickel, and precious metals mine near Babbitt.

Suit Planned Over Tailings Basin

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Three environmental advocacy a groups are planning a lawsuit over pollution violations from the tailings basins of the former LTV Steel plant near Hoyt Lakes which PolyMet Mining intends to use for its planned copper-nickel mining operation.

PolyMet Meetings Underway

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The first of two public meetings on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for PolyMet Mining Company’s proposed copper-nickel mine near Babbitt is history. Roughly a thousand citizens converged on Aurora last night to support or question the project.

Environmentalists Protest Meeting Format

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Environmental advocates are expressing concern about the format of the public meetings on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for PolyMet Mining Company’s proposed NorthMet project.

PolyMet Public Comment Meetings Ahead

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The two public comment meetings for PolyMet Mining Company’s proposed NorthMet projct take place tomorrow and Thursday in Aurora and Blaine, Minnesota respectively. The meetings are part of a 90-day public comment period for what could be Minnesota’s first copper mine.

Franconia Minerals Project Progressing

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With the stated goal of becoming the second operating copper-nickel mine in the Duluth Complex of Northeastern Minnesota, Franconia Minerals Corporation announced today that it is initiating waste rock characterization studies on its the Birch Lake deposit.

Precious Waters Debuts Wednesday

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“Precious Waters,” a film producers hope will help sway public sentiment against sulfide mining in Northeastern Minnesota, debuts Wednesday. The film will be shown at 7:00 p.m. at the John B. Davis Lecture Hall, Ruth Stricker Dayton Campus Center at Macalester College in St. Paul.

PolyMet Public Comment Meetings Set

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Two public meetings to hear comments on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for PolyMet Mining’s proposed copper-nickel mine near Babbitt have been scheduled, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced.

Activists Gearing Up for PolyMet Comment Period

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Environmental organizations are pouring over the more than 1500-page Draft Environmental Impact Statement for PolyMet Mining’s proposed NorthMet copper-nickel operation. The groups are preparing for the start of the 45-day public comment period which opens on Monday, November 2.

PolyMet Draft Enviromental Impact Statement Released

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The much-awaited Draft Environmental Impact Statement for PolyMet Mining’s proposed copper-nickel mining and processing operation near Hoyt Lakes, Minnesota has been released by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.

Forum Previews Sulfide Mining Debates

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A forum yesterday previewed the discussion that’s likely to take place in more official precincts when the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for northeastern Minnesota’s first non-ferrous mining project is released later this fall.

Forum to Discuss Non-Ferrous Mining

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Non-ferrous mining in Minnesota will be the topic of an afternoon-long discussion hosted by the Minnesota Environmental Initiative on September 15. Registration for the program is open until September 8, as space allows.

Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness

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Last spring, the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness welcomed new director Paul Danicic. Paul recently shared his thoughts on the state of the wilderness and the Friends’ role in protecting it with Wilderness News contributor Alissa Johnson. Originally published in part in the Summer 2009 issue of Wilderness News, read the full interview here.

Mineral Search Reaches BWCAW Border

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Exploration for copper and nickel resources in Northeastern Minnesota has reached the borders of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness of the Superior National Forest. While prospectors hope to find useful and valuable minerals, environmental advocates worry about impacts on the wilderness.

Friends Spotlight Carbon Impact of PolyMet

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The wilderness and environmental advocacy group Friends’ of the Boundary Waters Wilderness is concerned with the climate-change impact that destruction of 1000 acres of peat bog for the proposed PolyMet copper-nickel mine in Northeastern Minnesota will have.

Mining Projects Back in the News

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Copper-nickel mining projects in northern Minnesota continue to move forward as environmentalists question the impact of the proposed mines and proponents hail the economic benefits. Meanwhile, the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness notes that the land for the proposed PolyMet mine was once identified for its ecological significance.

PolyMet Environmental Statement Delayed

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PolyMet Mining, the Canadian company hoping to develop a copper-nickel mine near Hoyt Lakes, annouced in a media release this week that the draft Environmental Impact Statement for the project will not be released until the third quarter of this year.

The draft EIS was originally expected earlier this year.