The announcement that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued the wetlands permit for PolyMet marked an end to a frustrating and opaque permitting process. Since 2015, the public has learned little about the content of the permit, which allows for the largest permitted destruction of wetlands in Minnesota’s history. The public has not been given the opportunity to comment.
Read MoreWhile you wait for the ice to melt, check out these five classic films about adventures in the northland.
Read MoreWatch Representative Alan Lowenthal (D-California), chair of the House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources, ask questions into the nefarious nature of the relationship between the Trump administration and Antofagasta.
Read MoreFriends has partnered with artist and photographer Benjamin Olson, who has set out on an ambitious project to document the effects of climate change in the Boundary Waters and the surrounding ecosystem. Captivated by his work, and by his belief that art is powerful means to create connections and make people feel the magnitude of environmental issues, we are proud to be part of his work.
Read MorePolyMet is the snowplow that will clear the way for more sulfide mines in northeastern Minnesota, including Twin Metals and numerous other sulfide mines that are being explored around the Boundary Waters. These mines would permanently damage the water, the wilderness, and the ecosystem that includes the Boundary Waters.
Read MoreThere is troubling evidence that a foreign corporation, Antofagasta, lobbied the Department of the Interior to open up the area around the Boundary Waters to copper-sulfide mining. Now lawmakers are demanding DOI officials hand over documents related to their decision.
Read MoreIn the 1920s, the issue of where to build roads and how to manage the wilderness character of northeastern Minnesota, led to one of the first big fights in the modern history of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
Read MoreThe creation of BWCAW was mired in controversy. The disputes surrounding the 1978 bill that gave the area full wilderness protection may have died down, but tensions still exists between those who advocate for wilderness for its own sake and those who see an economic opportunity in the land. Commemorating the 40th anniversary of the act is a reminder that the wilderness needs friends, it needs people like you to advocate for it.
Read MoreTo protect the Boundary Waters, we need make the fight against sulfide mining a national issue. An abundance of pristine water is nothing to take for granted. Fresh water shortages affect almost every corner of the globe, and clean water is becoming increasingly scarce. Globally speaking, northern Minnesota’s clean, water-rich environment is a rarity. It should be cherished as a national treasure.
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