Tag Archives: Ashland

Assembly Mining Committee set to Meet on Wednesday

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The Penokee Hills, Image: Mario Quintana

The Penokee Hills, Image: Mario Quintana

On Wednesday, the Assembly Mining Committee is meeting to discuss the mining bill. While they say they’ll consider changes to the environmentally devastating mining bill, we know that the only way to “fix” this mining bill is to start from scratch.

As written, AB 1/SB 1 (the mining bill) cuts the public out of the process and ties the hands of the DNR in protecting our air and water. It grossly rolls back current protections for wetlands, groundwater and lakes, rivers and streams. In short, it swings the door wide open for environmentally destructive mining in our Northwoods and beyond.

Tell your legislator today: Don’t roll back environmental protections for mining.

We know that just one legislator’s vote can make the difference on this devastating legislation and over the next month or so, we need you to continually remind your legislators of what’s at stake to make the difference on this issue. They need to hear from people like me and you, people who don’t want our Northwoods sold to the highest bidder or our pristine waters turned to a toxic stew. From here on out, every voice, every contact matters.

Tell your legislators we don’t want to sacrifice our health, air, water and special places for mining companies – keep mining legislation strong and protective!

Post contributed by Sam Weis, communications director.

Digging Up Dirt: Acid Mine Drainage 101

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-Kenyon College’s Microbe Wiki, Acid Mine Drainage

See this? It’s not lava, or blood. Water laden with metal particles turns a bright, rusty color — not unlike an old faucet. It kills living organisms that live in streams, and endangers the drinking water of nearby residents. This phenomenon is happening all over the world, and it’s called acid mine drainage.

With current mining practices, where there is a mine that disrupts sulfide materials, there is also a high potential for Acid Mine Drainage. Acid Mine Drainage is one consequence of mining that has become a major concern for Wisconsin residents during recent debates over mining legislation.

But how does it happen; how does a clear Northwoods stream become a Day-Glo nightmare?

The mining process begins when large amounts of waste rock are removed from above iron ore deposits, then dumped into a nearby basin. Once iron ore is removed, it is mixed with huge volumes of water and separated by magnets. The slushy mixture of water and waste rock (known as tailings) is then also dumped into basins near the mine site.

Unfortunately, this isn’t the end of it. Often, waste rock and tailings contain sulfides disturbed during mining that react with oxygen and water — creating acid. That orange ooze blocks sunlight like a thick, wool blanket, and anything in the ecosystem that can’t handle the higher acidity levels will die. We’re talking plants, fish and other animals — plus acid isn’t the best for humans, either, as you might imagine.

When it comes to sulfides draining into water, here’s the rundown according to the EPA. Cadmium can cause damage to kidneys, which we rely on to filter our blood. Long-term exposure to copper can lead to liver and kidney damage, and upset stomachs with short-term exposure. Lead causes developmental disabilities. Iron in water does not directly cause health problems, the Wisconsin DNR says, but can cause discoloration in drinking water.

Any of these sulfides could turn up in a mine. And whether the acid forms right away or years later, things don’t look good for the environment. This uncertainty of the timeframe is exactly why water quality of the surrounding area must be monitored and treated for decades after a mine has closed.

Wren Falls on the Tyler Forks, Sam Weis

The high risk of acid mine drainage at open-pit mine sites is one of many important reasons Clean Wisconsin fights hard to make sure Wisconsin’s mining laws remain strong and continue to protect our environment and the health of our families. Especially when you consider the beauty of the area just below the proposed mine site.

 

-Digging Up Dirt is a series of blog posts that highlight the environmental dangers of mining. This post was contributed by Sarah Witman and includes research by Laura Green.

 

Mark your calendars! Green Bay Mining Forum Scheduled for Thursday

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Tyler Forks River located near the proposed mine. Photo Credit: Mario Quintana

This Thursday, February 23rd, residents of Northeast Wisconsin will have a great opportunity to learn more about proposed mining legislation and the impact it could have on Wisconsin’s natural resources at a public forum in Green Bay. The event is sponsored by the Brown County Conservation Alliance, the Green Bay Chapter of Trout Unlimited and the Penokee Hills Education Project. Here’s some information sent along by the organizers:

What: A public educational forum to discuss current mining law in Wisconsin and current legislation proposed in the state legislature.
Panelists will include:
George Meyer, Executive Director of the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation and past Secretary of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Mic Isham, Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) Board of Commissioners chairman and Lac Courte Oreilles tribal council officer
Jennifer Giegerich, Legislative Director of the League of Conservation Voters
When: Thursday, February 23rd, 6:00-9:00 pm

Where: UW Green Bay, Phoenix Room C

Notes: Each of the panelists will have 25 minutes of presentation about their expertise. The second half of the program will be dedicated to a question and answer portion led by the moderator. The audience is encouraged to ask the panelists questions about the regulations of mining and the legislation that is currently being debated in the Senate. Verbal and written questions will be accepted
-Contributed by Sam Weis, Communications Director

Second Time, Same As the First…

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Photo: Bad River, Joshua Mayer/Flickr

There’s a little ditty that goes “Second verse, same as the first…”

It’s been stuck in my head since I first glanced at the new draft of the mining bill Assembly Republicans put out today. This draft is as bad as the first in terms of its implications for the environment and public input. Here’s our initial take on it. Rest assured that our legal staff and government relations director are combing through the 180-page draft.

Assembly Republicans’ Mining Bill Bad for the Environment

New draft much like the first, cutting environmental protections and slashing public input

December 8, 2011

MADISON  — Despite public outcry earlier in the year, Assembly Republicans released their draft of a new mining bill today that is very similar to the draft mining bill shelved earlier this spring. The bill introduced today still slashes public input and exempts iron mining from existing environmental laws.

“They obviously haven’t listened to the people and didn’t learn from the last fiasco, the draft mining bill leaked last spring,” says Amber Meyer Smith, director of government relations for Clean Wisconsin. “I don’t know how anyone could say with a straight face that this bill doesn’t contain huge rollbacks to environmental laws and gut the public input process.”The Legislature is rewriting Wisconsin’s mining laws as Gogebic Taconite, a subsidiary of a West Virginia-based mining corporation called the Cline Group, proposes to build a massive strip mine near Ashland, Wisconsin. The corporation has leased the mineral rights to 22,000 acres in the Penokee Range, at the headwaters of the pristine Bad River. A draft mining bill released this spring contained language that would have fast-tracked mining proposals, limited public input and provided for an unprecedented elimination of environmental protections. That bill was shelved after immense public outcry.Written in secret, the bill introduced today, LRB 3520, has many of the same egregious provisions the original contained. The new bill still takes away citizens’ legal rights and eliminates other avenues of public input during the permitting process. The bill eliminates any meaningful DNR review of a mining permit, and at the same time denies the public the chance to hold mining companies accountable for their actions.The bill takes aim at current laws that protect high-quality wetlands, drinking water sources, trout streams, and clean air and water. The language of the bill actually states that the destruction of natural resources “is presumed to be necessary” for a mine.

Assembly Republicans will hold a public hearing on the bill next Wednesday, Dec. 14 at 10 a.m. at Wisconsin State Fair Park. Leadership has indicated this is the only hearing they will have on the bill.“This bill clearly puts the profits of wealthy out-of-state strip mining executives ahead of public health and environmental protections in our state,” says Smith. “A majority of Wisconsinites have already said they don’t support changes to mining law that are detrimental to the environment, but today’s bill ignores that.”

Bad River Tribe’s 10 principles for mining legislation

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The Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians held a press conference this morning before meeting with Governor Scott Walker to outline ten proposed principles for any new mining legislation introduced in the state.

The press conference started out with a prayer from a Tribal Elder in the native Ojibwe language followed by a traditional “Honor Song.” The drumming and voice of the member of a Bad River Tribe echoing through the Senate Parlor was a powerful reminder of the rich history and cultural importance of Native Americans to Wisconsin.

Following the Honor Song, Bad River Tribal Chair Mike Wiggins Jr. and members of the Bad River Tribal Council outlined the many reasons why the tribe opposes Gogebic Taconite’s proposed open-pit iron mine located at the headwaters of the Bad River.  “This is where we live,” said one Tribal Council member. “We can’t just pack up and move. Our land is our culture, our history which runs deep. We came here today to protect it.”

After explaining that the mine represents an imminent threat to the fish members of the tribe eats, the wild rice they harvest and the water they drink, representatives of the tribe released ten proposed principles for mining legislation. These principles are common-sense proposals that are based on science and law. Here is the press release that highlights the ten principles:

BAD RIVER BAND OF LAKE SUPERIOR TRIBE OF CHIPPEWA INDIANS TO MEET WITH GOVERNOR WALKER AND RELEASE ITS POSITION STATEMENT ON THE PROPOSED GTAC IRON MINE AND PROPOSED IRON MINING LEGISLATION IN WISCONSIN

Madison, WI — The Tribal Council of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians (“Band”) is meeting with Governor Scott Walker today to discuss the Band’s opposition to the proposed Gogebic Taconite LLC (“GTAC”) iron mine in the Penokee Hills of Ashland and Iron Counties, and set forth its position on proposed iron mining legislation in the State of Wisconsin.

According to Mike Wiggins Jr., Chairman of the Bad River Tribal Council, “The Band opposes development of the proposed GTAC taconite iron mine in the Penokee Hills of Ashland and Iron Counties in Wisconsin, because it is clear, based on available geologic and environmental information, that such an open pit mine cannot be developed and operated using current mining technologies and practices without destroying the environmental quality, including the waters, wetlands, streams, rivers, air lands and forests of the Bad River watershed, the Bad River Indian Reservation, and Lake Superior.”

Wiggins further stated that “the Bad River watershed is a Wisconsin gem and pristine environmental resource, and the Band’s cultural identity and way of life is highly dependent upon maintaining the health and integrity of the watershed.”

Notwithstanding the Band’s position on the proposed GTAC iron mine, the Band understands that Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker and some members of the Wisconsin Legislature are proposing to change Wisconsin’s metallic mining laws to distinguish between ferrous or iron mining and other metallic sulfide mining, to shorten the state’s permitting process, and otherwise change the permitting and regulatory process for new iron mines.

As such, the Band views the process of changing state law as being distinct from the question of whether or not the proposed GTAC mine should be permitted, noted Wiggins.

“The Band’s position on proposed iron mining legislation is that such legislation should be based on sound science and sound legal principles,” said Wiggins. “The Band opposes the proposals that were included in LRB 2035, which was leaked to the public in early 2011, to streamline and weaken the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (“DNR”) permitting process.” According to Wiggins, “any new proposals to change Wisconsin’s metallic mining laws should include ten principles, which are being presented to the governor, although the Band also reserves the right to propose other provisions if legislation is actually introduced.” The ten principles being proposed by the Band are:

1.    THE DEFINITION OF IRON MINING SHOULD BE CLEARLY SET FORTH TO EXCLUDE ANY PROJECT PROPOSAL THAT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO CAUSE ACID MINE DRAINAGE.

2.    THE COMPLETENESS OF IRON MINING PERMIT APPLICATIONS SHOULD BE CLEARLY DEFINED AND THE BURDEN OF PREPARING AND SUBMITTING A COMPLETE APPLICATION SHOULD BE ENTIRELY ON THE PERMIT APPLICANT.

3.    THE PERMITTING TIME FRAME SHOULD BE REASONABLE, FLEXIBLE, AND CONSISTENT WITH FEDERAL AGENCY TIME FRAMES. IT SHOULD ALSO PROVIDE SUFFICIENT TIME FOR THE DNR, THE PUBLIC, FEDERAL AGENCIES, AND AFFECTED INDIAN TRIBES, TO FULLY REVIEW AND PARTICIPATE IN THE PERMITTING PROCESS.

4.    EXISTING WETLAND PROTECTION STANDARDS SHOULD BE MAINTAINED    AND    THE    FEDERAL/STATE    PARTNERSHIP    IN    THE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW PROCESS UNDER STATE AND FEDERAL LAW SHOULD NOT BE JEOPARDIZED.

5.    FEDERAL CLEAN WATER ACT IMPLEMENTATION BY THE DNR SHOULD BE CORRECTED AND NOT WEAKENED.

6.    THERE SHOULD BE CONTESTED CASE HEARINGS TO ALLOW FULL PARTICIPATION BY INTERESTED PARTIES, INCLUDING INDIAN TRIBES.

7.    THERE SHOULD BE NO PREEMPTION OF LOCAL CONTROL.

8.    CITIZEN SUITS SHOULD BE MAINTAINED TO MAKE SURE PERMIT PROVISIONS AND LEGAL RESTRICTIONS ON NEW MINES WILL BE ENFORCED.

9.    CONSULTATION WITH INDIAN TRIBES BY THE DNR SHOULD BE REQUIRED AS PART OF THE PERMITTING PROCESS.

10.    INTERESTED PARTY FINANCING SHOULD BE PROVIDED FOR THE CONTESTED CASE HEARING PROCESS.

—-End—-

-Contributed by Sam Weis, communications director.

Petition to Preserve the strength of Wisconsin’s mining laws

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An out-of-state mining company called Gogebic Taconite is proposing to build a massive open-pit iron mine in the heart of Northern Wisconsin, at the headwaters of the Bad River. Such a mine would scar the Northern Wisconsin landscape, use massive quantities of water and threatens to pollute the area’s pristine lakes, rivers and streams.

Perhaps most concerning is that fact that these out-of-state mining interests are currently trying to rewrite Wisconsin’s laws to fast-track this proposal.

This Spring, a bill was circulated in the state capitol that would have gutted the environmental review and public input processfor permitting new mines.

In a telling statement, the bill admitted “it is probable that mining [iron] deposits will result in adverse impacts to areas of special natural resource interest and to wetlands.” It included a “legislative finding” that this environmental destruction is “presumed to be necessary,” and would have made it legal to dump toxic mine waste in floodplains, rivers, and lakes.

Luckily, grassroots outcry helped encourage legislators to pull back, and the bill is now being redrafted. The success in slowing down this bill demonstrates the strong power grassroots activism holds in the fight to protect Wisconsin’s environment from dangerous mines. While grassroots opposition helped slow down this bill, it is expected that legislators will introduce new mining legislation early in the upcoming session.

Do you oppose weakening Wisconsin’s mining laws? If so, you should make sure to sign the Bad River Watershed Association’s petition asking legislators to maintain the strength of Wisconsin’s laws.

It reads as follows:

Dear legislator:

Companies seeking to establish mining operations in Wisconsin should meet requirements that protect water quality and supply, and give citizens the opportunity to be heard about their concerns. The existing laws that protect our land and water should not be weakened.

To sign the petition, click here!

-Contributed by Sam Weis, Communication’s Director.

 

Mining Legislation Seeks to Gut Environmental Protections and Public Input Process

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A bill was released late yesterday that seeks to fast-track the approval process for iron mines such as the 22-mile-long mine proposed by Gogebic Taconite in Northern Wisconsin.

The bill is riddled with provisions that cause us great concern at Clean Wisconsin.  Here is a copy of the press release that we sent out this afternoon:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 12, 2011

Proposed Bill Would Gut Environmental Review and Public Input Process for Proposed Iron Mines

MADISON – A 186-page bill released yesterday seeks to fast-track iron mine projects in Wisconsin by making the expansion of mining a state policy, slashing opportunities for public input and eliminating environmental protections.

“This bill was written by the mining industry to gut the environmental review and public input process for proposed mines,” said Katie Nekola, attorney for Clean Wisconsin. “It serves the interests of wealthy out-of-state mining developers who contribute heavily to political campaigns at the expense of Wisconsin’s Northwoods.”

The bill would allow dumping toxic mine waste in floodplains, near rivers and lakes, and near the boundaries of neighboring properties. It would eliminate the requirement that the application includes an assessment of the risks of soil erosion, flooding, pollution of ground or surface water, damage to public health or threats to public safety.

In a telling statement, the bill admits that “it is probable that mining those deposits will result in adverse impacts to areas of special natural resource interest and to wetlands.” The bill includes a “legislative finding” that this environmental destruction is “presumed to be necessary.”

“Mining companies know that their operations can’t meet Wisconsin’s legal standards for environmental protection, so they’re working to get rid of those protections and shut the public out of the process,” said Nekola.

The release of the bill comes as the mining company Gogebic Taconite conducts exploratory drilling in the Penokee Range, located at the headwaters of the Bad River near Ashland. The company has leased the mineral rights to 22,000 acres in order to construct an open-pit iron ore mine there.

“Approving a strip mine in a region known for Class A trout streams, high-quality wetlands, pristine parks and national forests without thorough environmental analysis and the opportunity for the public to have a voice is outrageous,” said Nekola. “Instead of trying to rewrite our laws to accommodate polluters, we should ensure that they operate within current law.”

For a brief summary of the provisions included in the bill, please visit www.cleanwisconsin.org

 

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Clean Wisconsin, an environmental advocacy organization, protects Wisconsin’s clean water and air and advocates for clean energy by being an effective voice in the state legislature and by holding elected officials and polluters accountable. Founded in 1970 as Wisconsin’s Environmental Decade, Clean Wisconsin exposes corporate polluters, makes sure existing environmental laws are enforced, and educates citizens and businesses. On behalf of its 10,000 members and its coalition partners, Clean Wisconsin protects the special places that make Wisconsin such a wonderful place to live, work and play. 608-251-7020, information@cleanwisconsin.org, www.cleanwisconsin.org.

Proposed Northern Wisconsin Mine Warrants Concern

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The mining company known as Gogebic Taconite is busy selling the economic benefits of its proposed 22-mile-long strip mine in Northern Wisconsin, while understating the environmental risks such a mine would bring.

As John Muir once said, “Nothing dollarable is safe, however guarded,” and the mining company is using this logic to sell its proposal to the public.

The front page of today’s Wisconsin State Journal reads “Mine seen as economic boon.” The subhead reads “But the taconite proposal first must pass environmental muster.”  The article focuses on the 2-3 thousand jobs that the company claims the mine would create in Northern Wisconsin, then mentions some ambiguous environmental threats the mine would bring.

Because an environmental impact study has not yet been conducted, it is difficult to determine precisely how dangerous the proposed mine would be, but there is certainly reason for concern.  Just a few of these concerns include:

  • Past shaft and pit mines in the Lake Superior basin have impacted ecosystems through deforestation, erosion and sedimentation, acid drainage and industrial development.
  • The Bad River Watershed (that drains the area the mine is proposed in) contains 72 rare and endangered plants and animals.
  • The Bad River empties into Chequamegon Bay through 16,000 acres of wetlands, woodlands, and sand dune ecosystems, is one of the largest undeveloped freshwater estuaries in the world, and is home to waterfowl, songbirds and several species of fish.
  • The mining company has said it would need to construct a 300 megawatt power plant to provide for the energy needs of the plant.  It has told local officials that it would like to use coal, which emits extremely high levels of pollution.
  • The mining operation itself would likely entail significant emissions of silica, asbestos, and dust.

This is by no means a comprehensive list of the environmental threats that the mine could bring, but it is more than enough to raise considerable concern about the project.  Northern Wisconsin’s pristine environment is one of our state’s most valuable economic assets, and it helps drive a tourism industry that supports 300,000 jobs in the state.

As Gogebic Taconite moves forward with its proposal, we will be watching carefully at Clean Wisconsin to make sure that the company and state officials adequately address these important concerns.

-contributed by Sam Weis, media specialist