Should Congress allow more mining in Minnesota?

Environment and Energy
Superior National Forest Restoration Act (H.R. 3195)
This bill has Passed the House of Representatives
Bill Summary

H.R. 3195 seeks to cancel a recent Bureau of Land Management regulation federalizing forests in Northern Minnesota. The bill would allow the land to be used for mining purposes so long as it complies with regulation from the National Environmental Policy Act 16 of 1969. The leases for mining use would be issued by the Secretary of the Interior and would not be subject to judicial review (the power of the courts to assess the constitutionality of any legislation). Sponsor: Rep. Pete Stauber (Republican, Minnesota, District 8)
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Opponents say

•      "NPCA urges members to oppose H.R. 3195, that seeks to overturn Public Land Order 7917, the 20-year mineral withdrawal in the watershed of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park. NPCA supports the 20-year withdrawal and will continue to seek permanent protections for this watershed against harmful mining projects. Public Land Order 7917 comes after a thorough environmental assessment demonstrated the risks sulfide mining poses to the Rainy River watershed in Minnesota, which includes Voyageurs National Park and Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. An NPCA hydrology report put a spotlight on the dangers mining activities pose, finding that sulfide mines as far as 100 miles upstream threaten the connected waterways in and around Voyageurs National Park. Even small amounts of this pollution are detrimental to public health and the world-class fishing, recreation and wildlife Voyageurs is known for." Source: National Parks Conservation Association 


•      "Representative Stauber’s bill puts America’s most popular wilderness at risk by opening the

headwaters of the Boundary Waters and Voyageurs to sulfide-ore copper mining—a destructive and poisonous type of mining that has never been done before in Minnesota… [T]his type of mining would cause irreversible damage to the Boundary Waters and Voyageurs National Park and proposed a 20-year mineral withdrawal on federal lands and minerals in the watershed. Since 2015, numerous polls… have found that Minnesota voters overwhelmingly support protecting the Boundary Waters from sulfide-ore copper mining. In what we all recognize as a highly polarized political climate, finding an issue that has this level of consistent support over the span of multiple years, through major events like the pandemic and economic uncertainty, and genuinely cuts across party lines, is extremely rare. These efforts to undo the Department of Interior’s ban on sulfide-ore copper mining go directly against the robust science, favorable public opinion, and the sound legal basis of Secretary Haaland’s decision. Considering this legislation also sets a very dangerous precedent for our nation’s cherished places." Source: 65 conservation, environmental, and cultural organizations in a joint letter to Congress

Proponents say

•      "All options are on the table to overturn the Biden Administration’s mineral withdrawal and let miners mine in the district I represent, [...] I have been working with my colleagues to build support for these proposals, including through hosting a field hearing on the Iron Range earlier this month, and I’m glad to see prompt movement through the Natural Resources Committee. I am thankful for the growing support on this issue, not only with my colleagues on the House Natural Resources Committee, but in Congress as a whole. More and more of us know that our mining way of life is at stake, and today we are one step closer to getting shovels in the ground to create jobs, secure our domestic supply chains and reestablish American mineral security." Source: Rep. Pete Stauber (Republican, Minnesota, District 8)


•      "If the proposed rule is adopted, access to public lands for all purposes, including energy, material development, grazing, forest management and recreation would become more difficult, bringing substantial and adverse modifications to the Bureau's management approach for the 245 million acres of land under its supervision. For the aggregates industry, the process of sourcing and supplying materials used to create building blocks for our nation does not need to be more stringent, and this rule will significantly impact our ability to access needed construction materials for infrastructure projects. As America begins to rebuild our aging infrastructure, the aggregates industry needs continual support rather than forced limitations." Source: National Stone, Sand, and Gravel Association 

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