By: John Imsdahl

The United States House of Representatives voted on January 21 to pass House Joint Resolution 140 on a mostly party-line vote. The resolution, if passed in the Senate, would be a reversal of Public Land Order 7917 which withdrew nearly 226,000 acres of National Forest Land from the possibility of mineral and geothermal exploration and development.

This Public Land Order was originally put in place during the Biden administration in 2023 with the intention of protecting the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and the Rainy River Watershed from the potential pollution that could result from proposed mineral extraction projects.

The Joint Resolution, introduced by Representative Pete Stauber (R) of Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District, means that two potential mines are one step closer to becoming a reality. Polymet (now known as NewRange Copper Nickel) and Twin Metals each have ambitions to mine the Duluth Complex, a large deposit of minerals located in northeast Minnesota. NewRange is owned by Glencore, a Swiss-based corporation, and Twin Metals is a subsidiary of Antofagasta, a Chilean conglomerate.

The proposed projects have faced stiff opposition from a coalition of environmental organizations who are concerned that any proposed copper-nickel mining projects would cause irreparable harm to the environment.

The passing of HJ Res. 140 in the House does not mean that mining will be allowed to go forward immediately. The resolution still faces some procedural obstacles in the United States Senate and would need to pass through committee before being voted on. If the resolution manages to pass in the Senate, it would only allow for the application of mineral leases at the federal level. Minnesota state law requires that permits would also need to be approved at the state level before any projects could break ground.

Still, this is a setback for those concerned about the prospect of copper-nickel mining in
Minnesota. Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness, the Campaign to Save the BWCA, and
Sportsmnn For the BWCA have all released statements condemning the vote and vowing to
continue the fight in the Senate.