Boundary Waters mining bill approved by Senate after Sen. Smith protest
Senate votes 50-49 to open mining near BWCA
The Senate voted 50 to 49 on Thursday morning to pass a bill that would allow mining near Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area, reversing a 20-year ban. FOX 9’s Bill Keller reports.
(FOX 9) - Despite a protest by Sen. Tina Smith the night before that delayed the vote, U.S. Senators have approved a bill to allow mining in Minnesota's Boundary Waters watershed.
BWCA mining bill approved
What we know:
Senators voted to approve the bill Thursday morning after final discussion. The bill was approved on a narrow 50-49 vote Thursday morning.
The bill will now head to President Trump for approval.
Advocacy group Friends of the Boundary Waters says this would clear the way for copper-sulfide mining projects by a Chilean mining company. The group also says it would prevent future administrations from rolling back those protections.
What they're saying:
In a post overnight, Senator Smith said Senate leadership was "abusing the Congressional Review Act to get around the filibuster."
She goes on to say: "I am reserving some of my time so I can make closing remarks in the morning before the final vote. Maybe they’ll listen to reason after a night’s sleep. Stay tuned. Save the Boundary Waters."
Before the bill was approved Thursday morning, Sen. Smith spoke on the floor.
"You're going to come down on the side of a Chilean billionaire... who's going to take our minerals, ship them to the Pacific coast, where they're going to go to China to get smelted, where this company has a sweetheart deal with China with their smelters," said Smith And then, if we're lucky, that copper is going to be sold back to us at a profit. That is not an America first strategy, colleagues, that is a Chilean billionaire first strategy."
Senate delays vote to lift mining ban for Boundary Waters
The U.S. Senate has delayed a vote to revoke protections for the Boundary Waters. FOX 9's Leon Purvis has more.
What would the bill do?
Local perspective:
To be clear, this bill does not allow mining directly within the Boundary Waters itself. That has been banned since 1978. But it would allow mining within the Boundary Waters watershed, including within the Superior National Forest. The project planned by Twin Metals would be located just south of the Boundary Waters in the national forest near Birch Lake. Advocates are concerned about how the project's proximity might impact the Boundary Waters.
The backstory:
In January, the U.S. House approved H.J. Res.140. The bill would remove protections put in place by the Bureau of Land Management and allow for mining on 225,504 acres in the Boundary Waters watershed. The Boundary Waters are some of Minnesota's most pristine natural areas, known for camping, hiking, and canoeing, located along the Canadian border in northern Minnesota.