Trump is expected to make the right decision to lift the ban on mining in the Minnesota wilderness near the Canadian border
Congressional Republicans have sent President Donald Trump a resolution that would lift the ban on mining near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, hoping to pave the way for South American companies to extract precious metals from the region’s pristine forests, lakes and swamps.
House Republicans approved the measure last month despite warnings from conservationists that the measure would lead to devastating pollution in one of the country’s remaining wilderness areas. The Senate followed suit on Thursday, voting 50-49 to send the measure to Trump for his signature.
Democrats argued on the Senate floor that removing the ban would set a dangerous precedent that could lead to the removal of protections in public spaces across the country. Minnesota Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith have warned Republicans about becoming part of their state’s identity.
Klobuchar, who has supported iron ore mining in the past but is now running for governor of Minnesota, called the Boundary Waters a place of “fog over the meadows” and “sunshine on the leaves.” Smith said the GOP was ignoring the people of Minnesota who don’t want to see the wilderness destroyed.
“You can support mines, but that doesn’t mean you support every mine in every place,” said Smith.
No Republicans have talked about lifting the ban.
The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness covers approximately 240 kilometers (150 miles) of the Superior National Forest along the Minnesota-Canada border. About 160 kilometers southwest of Thunder Bay, Ont.
It is a land of clear lakes, vast pine forests, spruce and birch trees, spectacular sunsets and clear, starry nights. For those willing to paddle and get off the beaten track, the region offers solitude and peace broken only by the cries of loons and the occasional howl of a wolf.
Logging is prohibited, aircraft passing over it cannot be submerged below 1,220 meters (4,000 feet) except in emergencies and motorized aircraft are limited to certain areas. Tens of thousands of boaters, kayakers and campers explore the wilderness each year, according to US Forest Service data.
The company’s optical district instruments
The portion of the national forest that includes the desert sits on what is known as the Duluth Complex, a rock formation that contains copper, nickel, lead, zinc, iron, silver and gold, according to the Forest Service.
Twin Metals Minnesota LLC, a subsidiary of Chile-based Antofagasta Minerals, submitted a plan to the US Department of the Interior in 2019 to mine copper, nickel and other precious metals in the national forest. Company officials said in an operating plan that year that the mine would create hundreds of union jobs, more than 1,000 “spinoff jobs” and tax revenue for struggling communities in northeastern Minnesota.
“With this plan, Minnesota can be a model for modern, sustainable and environmentally and socially responsible mining,” the plan said.
The first Trump administration renewed the company’s mineral lease at the site through 2019, but internal Biden officials cut the deals early in 2022. The following year the administration imposed a 20-year moratorium on mining in just over 1,000 square kilometers (400 square miles) of forest. Officials say the ban will protect the waterways and boats.
Twin Metals filed a federal lawsuit seeking a declaration that the lease remains in effect. The judge dismissed the case in 2023. The company’s appeal is pending.
The president called for increased domestic energy and mineral production, declaring an energy emergency after taking office again in January 2025.
His administration last fall reinstated a 2017 legislative opinion that allowed Twin Metals to renew its lease in the Superior National Forest. Minnesota regulators approved the company’s test plans in December.
U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber, a Duluth Republican, introduced a resolution to repeal the declaration in January. He said the ban has cost people jobs in Minnesota and put the country’s mineral security at risk.
He commented on the floor of the House before the vote in that chamber that it is better to mine in Minnesota than to face China or Russia for important minerals.
Environmentalists are backing down
Lifting the ban would allow mining in the national forest along the boundaries of the Boundary Waters, not in the wilderness.
But ending the ban has hit a sore spot with environmentalists and outdoor enthusiasts. They warn that waste from the mines will flow into the aquifers of the desert and contaminate the region with mercury and sulfides, chemical compounds that contain sulfur.
They believe that fish, wildlife and plants will suffer, especially the wild rice that plays an important role in the culture of the Chippewa nation of Minnesota.
Teddy Roosevelt’s grandson and other relatives wrote a letter to members of the Republican Party urging them to keep the suspension in place. Friends of the Boundary Waters, a group working to protect the area, held a protest in front of Stauber’s office in Hermantown, Minn., and held a rally at the Capitol building in St. Louis.
The issue has become another point of contention between the state and the Trump administration after immigration officials shot and killed two Minneapolis residents in January.
The company disputed its 2019 plan to mine the mine in northeastern Minnesota, noting that the area around the site was home to 11 mines.
Mine may be years away
The company also emphasized that new low-carbon technologies designed to combat climate change require precious metals. Wind turbine construction requires copper, lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles require cobalt and nickel is an important component of stainless alloys in desalination plants.
The $1.7 billion mine would operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, according to the proposal. But this program was accompanied by promises to protect the environment. The company said the mine will be underground and no waste rock will be stored above ground, which will eliminate the potential for acidification, and the area will be replanted after the mine is closed, among other promises.
Trump is expected to sign the decision, but even without the suspension it could be years before the mine opens. Twin Metals said in its 2019 proposal that construction could take two to three years, but that would be optimistic.
Trump could immediately renew the company’s lease and push government agencies such as the US Forest Service and the US Army Corps of Engineers to issue permits. Twin Metals will still need up to 18 approvals from state officials, according to the 2019 proposal, and will face a battle if voters elect Klobuchar as governor in November.
And environmental groups can challenge any of those permits in court, blocking potential construction for years while the lawsuits are resolved.
