After receiving more than 90,000 comments during a 210-day public scoping period, the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service, with the United States Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management (BLM) as a cooperating agency, will prepare an Environmental Assessment (EA) to study the effects of a proposed withdrawal on the Superior National Forest. The Forest Service will cancel the Notice of Intent published in January 2017, which initially announced the agency’s intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).
While that change from an EIS to an EA will allow for a quicker determination because it is less detailed, it has ruffled the feathers of at least two environmental groups who aren’t happy with the recent Forest Service decision.
“We have many concerns about this mine and the risks that it would present not only while it operates, but for generations to come,” said the Friends of the Boundary Waters in a published statement on January 30.
The permit to mine, says the Friends of the BWCA, would allow PolyMet to dump its toxic mine waste behind an inherently risky dam. Not only will water leaking from the bottom of the dam need to be treated indefinitely (for hundreds of years, with no known end date), but the dam itself will need to be actively maintained for a thousand years or more in order to avoid a catastrophic breach like the one that happened in British Columbia three years ago.
Margaret Levin State Director of the Sierra Club North Star Chapter asked club members to “Tell the DNR: Sulfide mining posses unacceptable risks to communities in Northeastern Minnesota.”
Levin pointed to concerns that the PolyMet mine would threaten the largest tributary to Lake Superior, which flows through many communities including Duluth and the Fond du Lac Indian Reservation. “A failure of the tailings dam would be catastrophic for the people who depend on this river. This is an unacceptable risk to the people of Northeast Minnesota and our precious freshwater.
“After 20 years of operation, the mine would continue to pollute water for 500 years: 25 lifetimes. We cannot afford to leave this kind of toxic legacy for current and future generations of Minnesotans,” added Levins.
Congressman Rick Nolan supports the EA. He says, “If a mining project can’t meet state and federal environmental standards, it does not move forward. I have always supported high standards and a thorough process to ensure that Minnesota’s precious land, air, and water are protected.
“These rigorous environmental reviews by both state and federal entities often take years to complete. For example, the proposed Polymet land exchange has undergone seven years of environmental review, in addition to the 12 years of intensive review of the company’s proposed copper and nickel mining project. This type of science based process is essential to protecting our environment as we work to create good paying jobs.We have the brains and the science to create jobs and protect the environment.
“The simple fact, is we need strategic minerals to create the next generation of ‘green’ technology.
“New hybrid cars contain more than 1 ton of iron, steel, copper, nickel, and nickel-based aluminum.
“Wind turbines contain hundreds of tons of steel and copper—and reduce our air pollution.
“Every computer, television, light bulb, printer and iPad contains iron ore and precious metals that we mine in Minnesota and helps reduce our dependency on fossil fuels.
“We’ve got two choices on how we get these strategic minerals. We can import these minerals from foreign countries with terrible environmental standards and worker protections. Or we can mine them right here at home, where we control the process, creating good paying jobs, and follow the toughest environmental rules and regulations in the world. To me, the latter choice is just plain common sense,” Nolan said.
Leah Phifer, who is seeking the DFL endorsement in Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District from Nolan, has another take on the matter, “I was deeply disappointed by this decision,” Phifer said. “We are experiencing historically low trust in our elected officials and public institutions. To restrict public input into this process and deny decision-makers access to the most robust set of facts is not atypical of this administration. But it is distressing that our Democratic Congressman petitioned the administration to make this decision, further eroding public trust at this precarious time. I look forward to continuing my work with the people of our district to rebuild their confidence in our institutions and ensure their voices are heard in Congress.”
According to the Forest Service, based on comments received, and Council on Environmental Quality guidance, the Forest Service will conduct an EA due to the absence of significant environmental impacts identified during the scoping period. If the EA analysis reveals substantial ecological impacts, the Forest Service will prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), and the public will be invited to participate in that process.
“While the science indicates significant environmental impacts are unlikely to result from the proposed withdrawal, I am deeply aware of the controversy regarding socio-economic implications,” said Superior National Forest Supervisor Connie Cummins. “Our specialists are working hard to ensure the EA accurately describes all the facts of the proposal, to aid the Secretary of the Interior in his decision.”
Although the official comment period for scoping is complete, to ensure substantial opportunities for interested members of the public to share their views on the proposed withdrawal, the Forest Service will accept additional public comment until February 28, 2018.
Comments received will be considered in the development of the EA, and included in the project record delivered to the BLM once the EA is complete. To ensure timely receipt and consideration in the environmental assessment, comments must be received no later than midnight, February 28, 2018, and should be submitted via the project’s website at go.usa.gov/xnfQh, by selecting “Comment/Object to Project” link on the right-hand side of the page.
Leave a Reply