Op-Ed: “Sulfide-ore mining a lose-lose for Minnesota.” Duluth News Tribune: 5/21/25. From the column: “Mining should not take place in water-worlds like the BWCAW watershed.”[1]

In April, U.S. Sen. Tina Smith introduced a bill to protect the Boundary Waters wilderness, building on years of advocacy by U.S. Rep. Betty McCollum and support from Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, Sportsmen for the Boundary Waters, Minnesota Trout Unlimited, and others.

The historic legislation would forever safeguard the Rainy River watershed and Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness from proposed sulfide-ore copper mining (i.e., Antofagasta’s Twin Metals mine), preserving world-class hunting, fishing, and paddling opportunities for generations to come.

“Despite the removal of provisions to sell off public lands, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act still contains provisions strongly opposed by BHA, including: Reversing a 20-year mineral withdrawal in the Superior National Forest in Minnesota that threatens the health of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and reinstating Twin Metals’ mining leases, exempted from judicial review,” Nadia Marji, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers Vice President of Communications, explained.[2]

The copper deposits beneath the lakes and forests of Northeastern Minnesota are encased in sulfide ore. When that ore is exposed to air and water in the mining process, it produces sulfuric acid. Lakes, rivers, and entire watersheds can become so polluted and poisoned that wildlife like ducks and geese can die just from drinking the water.

Hunters and anglers have long advocated for safeguarding this watershed, which flows into the Boundary Waters and Voyageurs National Park. A sulfide-ore mine here is the wrong mine in the wrong place. In February, Minnesota Backcountry Hunters and Anglers posted a position statement on protecting the Boundary Waters.

“Proposed mining activities — specifically those related to sulfide-ore copper mining — pose an immediate and severe threat,” the statement reads. “Long-term risks associated with this type of mining in this area, such as acid mine drainage and contamination of surrounding water sources, would result in irreversible damage to the wilderness, the wildlife that calls it home, and the outdoor recreationists who depend on its pristine waters.”

In 2018, Minnesota Backcountry Hunters and Anglers posted its “Top 10 Reasons To Stop Twin Metal’s Sulfide Mining Proposal.” A year earlier, the chapter had posted a related report, “100-Plus Reasons To Protect Northern Minnesota’s Waterways, Watersheds and Wildlife From Proposed Sulfide-Ore Mining.” “Since … 2010, Minnesota (Backcountry Hunters and Anglers) has successfully fought for … the Boundary Waters watershed and we will continue to fight for permanent protections through Congress,” the position statement read.

Back in January 2023, the Department of the Interior announced a 20-year moratorium on all mining in the Rainy River Watershed. Unfortunately, U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber is pushing legislation aimed at reversing the mineral withdrawal and reinstating foreign mining leases, putting the Boundary Waters — and the communities that depend on its clean waters and intact habitat — at risk.

“Stauber attacked the Boundary Waters by proposing legislation seeking to … force a rapid approval of a flawed mine plan — all for the benefit of Antofagasta, a foreign mining company,” Becky Rom, chair of the nonprofit Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters, wrote in a November op-ed in the News Tribune.

“In his first term, when the Trump administration was finally compelled to release its own draft environmental review of the proposed mining ban, … it delivered a cover page followed by 59 blacked-out pages. Its entire review was hidden from the public. The Trump administration followed this with issuance of federal mineral leases that were later determined to violate federal law and were canceled — a result Stauber seeks to reverse.”

Rep. Stauber calls proposed sulfide-ore mining a “win-win for Minnesota.” It may be a win for the executives of foreign-owned mining companies, allowing them line their pockets at our expense, but it promises to be a lose-lose for state and local taxpayers who are likely to be left with polluted watersheds and associated cleanup costs, as I explained in an October op-ed in the News Tribune.

To be clear, mining has a place in North America, but it must be done carefully and with restraint. Mining should not take place in water-worlds like the BWCAW watershed, places that could be irreparably harmed — “nuked” may be the more appropriate word — by watershed-ruining sulfide-ore mines.

David A. Lien of Colorado Springs, Colorado, and formerly of Grand Rapids, is the founder and former chair of the Minnesota Backcountry Hunters and Anglers (backcountryhunters.org). He’s also a former Air Force missile launch officer and author. In 2014, he was recognized by Field & Stream as a “Hero of Conservation.” He wrote this commentary exclusively for the News Tribune and urges action at backcountryhunters.org/take_action#/.

[1] David A. Lien. “Sulfide-ore mining a lose-lose for Minnesota: ‘Mining should not take place in water-worlds like the BWCAW watershed.’” Duluth News Tribune: 5/21/25.

[2] Nadia Marji. “Public Lands Victory: BHA Applauds Removal of Land Sale Amendment from House Budget Bill.” Backcountry Hunters & Anglers: 5/21/25.