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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
A recently released study of mining in Minnesota finds that its economic impact in the state is significant, tied to 34% of gross regional product and poised to grow.
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.
By Charlie Mahler, Wilderness News Contributor Three new mining projects inside and adjacent to the Superior National Forest signal a new era in northern Minnesota mining. In a region known world-wide …