Proposed Federal Land Withdrawal Does Not Affect Taconite Mining
§ The proposed 20-year moratorium on new sulfide-ore copper prospecting/leasing/mining on federal lands within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) watershed does not affect any taconite mining operations.
§ Taconite (iron ore) and sulfide-ore copper deposits are found in different places and different rocks.
§ The sulfide-ore copper deposits come into contact with taconite at only one location, at the far eastern end of the Mesabi Iron Range. A planned mine pit expansion there is not obstructed by the proposed 20- year moratorium (see map on flip side).
§ The moratorium is proposed for federal lands within the BWCAW watershed because sulfide-ore produces acid and releases heavy metals when exposed to water and Taconite (iron ore) mines and pellet plants denoted by “Fe.” Copper oxygen. This acidic, heavy metal deposits and proposed projects denoted by “Cu.” Map modified pollution is especially toxic to fish and from MN DNR “Minnesota Minerals” 2016. other aquatic life, would damage the Wilderness, and poses a health threat to people.
§ Sulfide-ore copper mines have a 100% track record of polluting surrounding surface and ground water with toxic heavy metal and acidic pollution.
§ The U.S. Forest Service determined that the water-rich, Wilderness edge environment of the BWCAW is the wrong place for the inherent risks associated with sulfide-ore copper mining.
Proposed Federal Land Withdrawal Does Not Affect Taconite Mining
Boundary Waters Canoe Area
Bearhead Lake
Birch Lake
Northshore Mining Peter Mitchell Pit
0 1 2 4 6 8 Miles
Northshore Mining Peter Mitchell Pit
Source: Esri, DigitalGlobe, GeoEye, Earthstar Geographics, CNES/Airbus DS, USDA, USGS, AeroGRID, IGN, and the GIS User Community Legend 0 0.4 0.8 1.6 2.4 Miles Pit Boundary-- Proposed Created by: Abigail Miranda, July 2017 Pit Boundary-- Current Data Sources: US Forest Service, MN Department of Natural Resources, ESRI Federal Land Withdrawal Application Outer Boundary ³ Federal Lands Actually Proposed for Withdrawal from the Federal Mineral Leasing Program