Biden Admin. Protects Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Wilderness From Mining

The Biden administration has taken steps to protect the most visited wilderness area in the U.S.

Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland signed an order Thursday protecting around 225,504 acres of national forest surrounding Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness from mining operations. 

“The Department of the Interior takes seriously our obligations to steward public lands and waters on behalf of all Americans. Protecting a place like Boundary Waters is key to supporting the health of the watershed and its surrounding wildlife, upholding our Tribal trust and treaty responsibilities, and boosting the local recreation economy,” Haaland said in a statement. “With an eye toward protecting this special place for future generations, I have made this decision using the best-available science and extensive public input.” 

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness was federally designated in 1964, according to the U.S. Forest Service. It stretches for around 150 miles along Minnesota’s border with Canada and covers more than one million acres of boreal woodland in the Superior National Forest. As the only temperate lake-based wilderness area in the U.S. wilderness system, it is especially popular with paddlers and has more than 1,200 miles of canoe routes. Further, it provides habitat for non-human animals including 316 bird species, almost 50 percent of Minnesota’s native fish and federally threatened species the Canada lynx, the northern long-eared bat and the gray wolf, according to Save the Boundary Waters. Finally, the mix of forest and wetlands acts as a carbon sink, preventing carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere and contributing to the climate crisis. 

However, in recent years concern has emerged that the area could be threatened by a plan by Twin Metals Minnesota LLC to build an underground copper and nickel mine in Ely, Minnesota, as The New York Times reported. Save the Boundary Waters warned that the plan could pollute the area’s waterways with acid mine drainage, cut down trees that provide habitat and carbon storage and require as much power as the town of Duluth, Minnesota.  

In 2019, the Trump administration renewed two mining leases held by Twin Metals Minnesota since the 1960s, according to HuffPost. Twin Metals is owned by Chilean company Antofagasta, and the Trump family is connected to Chilean billionaire Andrónico Luksic who advocated for the mine. However, the Biden administration canceled the leases around one year ago, arguing that they were “improperly renewed” by the Trump administration, as the Department of the Interior (DOI) wrote at the time. 

Thursday’s decision does not cancel any existing leases. What the Public Land Order 7917 signed by Haaland does is withdraw additional portions of the Superior National Forest from mining leasing for 20 years, as the DOI explained. This could mean the end for the Twin Metals mine, according to HuffPost and The New York Times.

In a statement shared with HuffPost, the company said it was “disappointed and stunned” by the announcement, and said the minerals could have aided with the renewable energy transition. 

“This region sits on top of one of the world’s largest deposits of critical minerals that are vital in meeting our nation’s goals to transition to a clean energy future, to create American jobs, to strengthen our national security and to bolster domestic supply chains,” Twin Metals Minnesota added. “We believe our project plays a critical role in addressing all of these priorities, and we remain committed to enforcing Twin Metals’ rights.”

DOI said its decision was based on more than a year of study, more than 200,000 public comments and feedback from Indigenous tribes in the area. It was embraced by environmental groups. 

“Today’s science-based decision is a massive win for Boundary Waters protection,” National Chair of the Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters Becky Rom said in a statement. “You don’t allow America’s most toxic industry next to America’s most popular Wilderness. The Boundary Waters is a paradise of woods and water. It is an ecological marvel, a world-class outdoor destination, and an economic engine for hundreds of businesses and many thousands of people. This decision moves America ever closer to permanently protecting this beloved Wilderness.”