Irreparable Harm: Sulfide Mining Interests and the Land Exchange or: What Is Wrong with Chip Cravaack’s H.R. 5544? – a dissection

In the interest of brevity, I assume that anyone reading this blog is familiar with the sulfide mining controversy for northern Minnesota. I have confined my comments to H.R. 5544. After reading this blog, please see the section on what you can do.
 

H.R. 5544 summary:

In 2012, the Minnesota Legislature passed SF 1750, which includes language enabling the federal government to proceed with an expedited exchange of land between land within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) and federally owned lands. https://www.revisor.mn.gov/laws/?id=236&year=2012&type=0 . 

This MN legislation facilitated the introduction of H.R. 5544  AKA 
Minnesota Education Investment and Employment Act by Rep Chip Cravaack, [MN-8]. Rep John Kline, [MN-2] is a co-sponsor for this legislation.  http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d112:h.r.5544:

H.R. 5544 purports to foster an expedited land exchange that will raise funds for the Permanent School Fund and provide mining-related jobs in northern Minnesota. H.R. 5544 incorporates language from SF 1750 giving priority to land that provides the most opportunity for revenue generation from mining. This proposed legislation is all smoke and mirrors, i.e. intentional misdirection to provide mineral-rich land in the Superior National Forest to facilitate opening of a sulfide mining district by international mining companies, and to strip citizens of any recourse.

H.R. 5544, if passed, removes environmental protections by removing traded lands from federal ownership, consequently allowing strip-mining on lands originally purchased and given watershed protection under the Weeks Act and other laws that protect our national forests.

H.R. 5544 specifically removes traded land from the National Environmental Policy Act, which requires environmental review, citizen input and the right to legal intervention.

Exchanged land will also lose protection under

• Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act  (ESA) which requires the Fish and Wildlife Service to consult with proposed projects on National Forest land to ensure ESA compliance.
• The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Act of 1978 that specifically requires that the BWCA be protected from the environmental impacts associated with mineral development "to the maximum extent possible".

H.R. 5544 bypasses Native American Tribal rights and is contrary to laws, policies
and Executive Orders requiring government - to - government consultation on
issues related to Federal actions.

H.R. 5544 does not prevent multinational mining corporations from attempting to sue the United States for their "right" to profit in Minnesota. Under Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), sulfide-mining corporations could attempt to sue for the value of minerals they are not allowed to mine in Minnesota, even if contamination of our waters would occur or had occurred. http://www.citizen.org/publications/publicationredirect.cfm?ID=7076

http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2012/08/29/arneson/

H.R. 5544 paves the way for the PolyMet land exchange, necessary to enable the permitting of its NorthMet strip/open pit mine. 

• Recall that the PolyMet DEIS was deemed
  unacceptable by the Environmental Protection Agency. 

To justify H.R. 5544, we, the public, are told that

Money  will be made available from this land exchange as a contribution to MN school funds…  (~$26.00 per pupil in an annual expenditure of  ~$9,000 per pupil)

• H.R. 5544 does not provide for an assessment to determine whether the land exchange provides the best return of revenue to the school trust fund. Is the land exchange more profitable than direct sale and reinvestment?
• The MN Constitution does not specify that the school trust land must generate income, rather the Permanent School Fund must be managed for “maximum income.”  H.R. 5544 misreads /misrepresents  this document.

http://www.minnpost.com/community-voices/2012/08/don%E2%80%99t-give-lands-mining-companies-name-schoolchildren

• There is no discussion of the role that the MN legislature has had in persistently removing funds from K-12 education.

jobs, jobs, jobs – High paying mining
industry-related jobs will be created in a region with significant unemployment.

• What are the safety track records for the sulfide
  mining companies eager to develop mineral mining in MN?
• What are the labor negotiation track records of
  these international companies?

Cumbersome environmental regulations will not apply to anything done on this traded land. Everything  will be expedited, which will greatly benefit industry.

• Sulfide mining can be done” without any of the past environmental damages.”
• Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm  Anyone want to buy a bridge in Brooklyn?

In addition, H.R. 5544

• Bypasses the Permanent School Trust Fund Advisory Committee working group recommendations for exchange and sale of school trust lands. In other words, disregard recommendations from an authorized advisory committee consisting of Forest Service, the State of Minnesota, and interested stakeholders including representatives of: the school trust, environmental concerns, timber industry, mining interests, and local
  government officials.
• In designating land for use by sulfide mining companies, it is highly questionable whether this land will remain available to citizens for outdoor recreation, hunting, fishing, snowmobiling, etc.
• In designating land for use by sulfide mining companies, what is the fate of critical habitats identified for lynx, moose, etc.?

So, H.R. 5544 must have a companion bill in the Senate in order to pass both houses of Congress. 

What can you do?

Call and E-mail Senators Franken and Klobuchar

Senator Franken:  http://www.franken.senate.gov/?p=email_al

(202) 224-5641 (D.C. office)

(651) 221-1016 (St. Paul office)

Senator Klobuchar: http://www.klobuchar.senate.gov/emailamy.cfm

(202) 224-3244 (D.C. office)

(612) 727-5220 (Minneapolis office)

• Tell them your position on the land exchange.  
• Ask them to oppose any kind of land exchange legislation that specifically benefits multinational mining companies.
• Ask them if they want their legislative legacies to include opening MN to environmental degradation and suits under NAFTA chapter 11. 

Contact your MN legislators and the legislative candidates. 

Hold them accountable, too.