Will Trump move to pave the way for mining near the Boundary Waters next week?
Backers and opponents of a proposed copper mine near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area are gearing up for anticipated action from the incoming Trump administration that could reopen a path for mining — possibly as soon as next week, after President-elect Trump is sworn into office on Monday.
While on the campaign trail, Trump said he would reverse a 20-year mining ban imposed by President Biden on about 350 square miles of the Superior National Forest, just south of the Boundary Waters, in “about 10 minutes.”
Trump could also move to reinstate two federal mineral leases the Biden administration pulled from Twin Metals Minnesota. It is the company vying to build an underground copper mine near Ely, Minn., near the edge of the wilderness area.
“We are fully expecting action within the first week,” said Ingrid Lyons, executive director of Northeastern Minnesotans for Wilderness, which leads the Save the Boundary Waters coalition.
Trump is preparing more than 100 executive orders starting on the first day of the new White House on a wide range of issues.
Lyons said she was recently in Washington D.C. for several days, in part to watch oral arguments in a federal court case in which Twin Metals has sued the federal government to try to win back its mineral leases.
“We are basically just trying to get everybody prepared for the onslaught that’s to come,” said Lyons. “Find our opportunities to introduce legislation, to draw hard lines in the sand, to sue. I think litigation will be a huge strategy and tactic for lots of organizations.”
Shortly after Trump won re-election, Sen. Grant Hauschild, DFL-Hermantown, and Rep. Roger Skraba, R-Ely, sent Trump a letter urging him to reverse the 20-year mineral withdrawal.
“The 20-year moratorium on the development of these critical minerals runs counter to recent efforts in shoring up our domestic supply chains, investing in the green economy of the future, and supporting the men and women of labor throughout our country,” the lawmakers wrote.
In an interview with MPR News, Skraba said he doesn’t know when Trump might reverse the mining ban. But he expects him to act early in his administration.
“I think the area is ready,” said Skraba. “A majority of the people in our district want to see economic development. I think we’re far enough along in technology that, you know, we’re not going to pollute the Boundary Waters.”
Mining opponents say a copper mine is too risky so close to the federally protected wilderness. And they argue mining would threaten the thriving regional economy built around outdoor recreation and tourism.
“There are some landscapes that are just too risky,” said Lyons. “This is the most toxic industry in America, next to the most visited wilderness in America.”