U.S. Forest Service Superior National Forest Supervisor Brenda Halter attended the county board meeting on August 25 to give an update on the proposed Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) land trade and purchase. Halter said she is hopeful that a resolution to the long-standing land management dilemma involving 83,000 acres of school trust land will finally be resolved.
Joined by Lisa Radosevich-Craig, Superior National Forest partnership coordinator & tribal liaison and Executive Administrator Terry Williams, Halter recalled the 40-year process to exchange Minnesota school trust land within the Boundary Waters for U.S. Forest Service (USFS) land outside the wilderness.
Halter explained that when Minnesota became a state, the federal government granted school trust lands to the state to provide a source of continued revenue for public schools. However, when the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness was created in the Wilderness Act of 1964, those lands were off-limits to the state for generation of revenue through timber harvest, mineral leasing, user fees or through sale of the land.
To correct that situation and enable the state to generate revenue through land management, several attempts were made in the past to either exchange all 83,000 acres in the Boundary Waters for land outside the wilderness or to have the Forest Service purchase all 83,000 acres. Those attempts inevitably resulted in conflict.
In 1999, under the guidance of the Minnesota Legislature, the University of Minnesota-Duluth put a value of $72 million on the school trust lands within the BWCAW.
In 2012, the Permanent School Fund Commission which advises the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on school trust land management developed a “hybrid” model that combines the exchange and sale of school trust lands. This proposal, said Halter, is how the USFS hopes to proceed.
“We feel like we’re in a good spot,” she told the county board. “We’re at a stage where the state and the Forest Service have never been before.”
Before proceeding however, Halter said the USFS will be preparing a comprehensive environmental impact statement (EIS) of the proposed land exchange. She said public meetings on the land exchange had resulted in “a lot of good comments.”
Some environmental groups have argued the state’s guidelines surrounding the proposed exchange are too lax, and they called for the EIS. The Friends of the Boundary Waters claim that the exchange would “shrink” the Superior National Forest by 47 miles. Some of the lands “contain sensitive natural resources,” according to Friends Executive Director Paul Danicic.
Halter said she expects a decision in 2016 or early 2017.
The purchase component of the land management plan will proceed when the USFS has funding. Halter said the money to buy the land in the BWCAW would come from the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which is funded by the proceeds of federal offshore oil and gas leasing royalties. Congress appropriates these funds to purchase land for public benefit. Every year since 2012, the Superior National Forest has submitted preliminary proposals for purchase of 53,000 acres of school trust land.
In May 2015, the preliminary proposal was accepted and Superior National Forest was invited to submit a full proposal for funding to facilitate the purchase. If the proposal is accepted, Halter said USFS could proceed with purchase of the lands with payments of $15 million the first year and $10 million for another five years, adding $65 million to the state school trust land coffers.
In addition to those payments, Halter said after the sale, Cook County would be eligible to receive additional funds for wilderness land within its borders via the Thye- Blatnik Act. The Thye-Blatnik Act authorizes annual payments to counties in the amount of ¾ of 1 percent of “fair appraised market value.” For Cook County, about 24,000 acres of additional land would be eligible for Thye-Blatnik funds. Those funds are in addition to payment-in-lieu-oftaxes (PILT) already received.
Halter said this exchange is an example of state and the USFS working together that is not seen all that often. “Everyone has come together to resolve this longstanding problem. I feel really lucky to be in Minnesota,” said Halter.
Commissioner Frank Moe said, “It’s remarkable to see this coalition of groups on board—I have friends of mine on both sides—who are pro and anti sulfide mining—in addition to the implications of this land ownership and opportunity for increased revenue, it is good to see them on the same side of an issue.”
Commissioner Garry Gamble pointed out that the state is always looking for additional revenue from the school trust lands. He said he was comfortable with the Minnesota DNR managing those properties and was not comfortable with the federal government getting more jurisdiction on the local level, noting inconsistencies with the payment of PILT.
However, Gamble said his biggest concern with the possible purchase of school trust lands within the BWCAW is the question of whether it is actually legal under the Wilderness Act. Regarding the purchase of the land, he said he big question is “What is it that we can— and cannot do?”
Halter replied that the Wilderness Act has language that allows a land exchange, but it does not have prohibitive language on an outright purchase. She said for the land purchase the USFS would find authority under the Weeks Act, which she said is the primary legislation that the USFS uses to purchase land all the United States. She said they had talked to the Attorney General and to people who “really know the Wilderness Act and its history. “
She said, “We feel very comfortable that there is no prohibitive language in the Wilderness Act…. We feel we have clear legal authority to do it.”
Commissioner Moe asked if land would be available to trade all 83,000 acres. Halter said a full exchange would likely not be successful.
Gamble reiterated his concerns about the legality of the change and about an outright buyout. He said he would prefer to see the DNR receive lands that it could manage to benefit the school trust.
The board agreed to review the two draft resolutions it had received. Chair Heidi Doo-Kirk said the board would make its decision on whether or not to pass a resolution of support at the next meeting on September 8.
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