Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed an executive order on Tuesday morning directing state agencies to halt permitting and environmental review work for nonferrous mining projects in the Boundary Waters area as he responds to a recent move by Congress that overturned a 20-year federal ban on mining in the area.
The move by Walz directs the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) to stop all permitting and environmental review work on copper-nickel mineral mining projects in the Rainy River Headwaters Watershed.
“The Boundary Waters is a national treasure and home to some of Minnesota’s most pristine waters and wilderness,” said Governor Walz. “This place is deeply personal to me, to Minnesotans, and to people across the country who have paddled these waters. I am using my full executive authority to protect the waters and wildlife of the Boundary Waters and to ensure the outfitters, small businesses, and communities that depend on it continue to thrive for generations to come. It’s our duty as Minnesotans to ensure the sacred place remains wild, pristine, and unharmed.”
As part of Executive Order 26-10, Walz is directing the DNR to no longer issue any new leases or permits for nonferrous mineral mining projects in the Rainy River Headwaters Watershed (RRHW). All existing nonferrous mineral leases in the RRHW must also be reviewed.
“The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is a Minnesota treasure, and we have a responsibility as Minnesotans to ensure its long-term protection,” DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen said. “Today’s Executive Order and the work that follows strengthen those protections.”
Walz said Tuesday morning that mining proposals threaten the region’s water and wilderness, as well as the nearly $1 billion outdoor recreation economy.
“Tim Walz, Amy Klobuchar and Democrats in the legislature continue their hostility toward Minnesota mining, taking job growth opportunities off the table before they can even go through the regulatory review process,” House Speaker and gubernatorial candidate Lisa Demuth said in a statement released Tuesday morning. “Even if Amy Klobuchar claims to oppose this move, her strongest allies in the legislature remain fiercely opposed to mining and will fight mining expansion every step of the way."
Save the Boundary Waters executive director Ingrid Lyons tells Vineeta Sawkar on the WCCO Morning News the Boundary Waters likely wouldn't recover from the amount of pollution created from copper-nickel mines.
"There are jobs that are on the line, absolutely, but in reality, there are a limited amount of jobs when compared to not only the outdoor industry and the tourism economy, but everything else in that business ecosystem that really relies on the wilderness remaining clean and healthy," Lyons said Tuesday morning.
She adds that they feel this is good news for the area, despite pro-mining groups protesting the executive order.
"Congress overturned critical protections, using a completely unprecedented legislative tool," Lyons adds. "We needed a win, so we're really pleased today."
Governor Walz is holding a 10:00 a.m. press conference on Tuesday in Afton.
More reaction
In response, MiningMinnesota issued this statement:
"Governor Walz's executive order is a political decision dressed up as an environmental one, and Minnesotans deserve to know the difference. The Governor's own Department of Natural Resources concluded a six-year legal review that considered more than 4,000 public comments and the most current science available, and ruled definitively that Minnesota's nonferrous mining regulations are strong enough to protect the Boundary Waters and its watershed. With this action today, the Governor is bowing to the demands of special interests, ignoring the findings of his own government and causing even greater delays for workers who need jobs, to the detriment of the Minnesotans he serves. Even though the order itself lacks legal standing and precedence, the negative impact on Minnesotans remains the same.”
State Representative Alex Falconer, who authored legislation the past biennium to protect the BWCAW, released a statement as well:
“Between the Trump administration promoting toxic mining and this summer’s damaging forest fires, it’s been a rough year for the Boundary Waters. But today is a good day. I want to thank Governor Walz for his leadership and his dedication to the crown jewel of Minnesota’s public lands. This Executive Order reflects that the vast majority of Minnesotans will not stand by while Trump sells out our Boundary Waters to a Chilean billionaire. I hope the momentum of today’s actions by Governor Walz will carry into the next legislature and we can pass my bill to permanently protect the Boundary Waters from sulfide-ore copper mining."
House GOP Floor Leader Harry Niska, R-Ramsey, and Iron Range Representative Spencer Igo, R-Wabana Township, released the following statement:
"Governor Walz acting like a king and arbitrarily shutting down an entire industry on the Iron Range less than five months before he leaves office shows that he doesn't actually care about the people of Northern Minnesota," said Niska. "Removing any opportunity for these mining projects to even start through Minnesota’s incredibly rigorous environmental review and permitting process is short-sighted will damage the fragile economy in Northern Minnesota. Iron Rangers deserve better."
Igo added, "We have the ability to lead the world in safe, reliable mining. We have the best mining regulations in the country, and yet Governor Walz still says his own agencies aren't allowed to even use them. Governor Walz and our state agencies work for Minnesotans, but this executive order requires them to disregard the needs of every Minnesotan who relies on our mining industry. This is virtue signaling at its finest and northern Minnesota communities will suffer because of it."
