Huber Engineered Woods is planning on building a new timber mill near Cohasset to manufacture oriented strand board (OSB) panels. Some see the mill as a positive for the area, while others are voicing concerns about the impacts it could have on the environment of northern Minnesota.

The Native-founded and led group Honor the Earth has stated their disagreements with the new plans for an OSB plant and is currently hosting sessions around the area to discuss it. A main concern abut the project is how it will affect the environment.

Honor the Earth focuses on the amount of trees that will be cut down in the area and the number of wetlands that the mill will disturb. However, those for the mill say that the state regulations and legislation are being followed to prevent extensive damage to the environment.

The timber industry of Minnesota did experience hardships when the pandemic hit, causing some mills to close and people to subsequently lose their jobs. The opening of the Huber mill in Cohasset will reportedly create around 150 direct jobs.

Those who attended the Honor the Earth session in Bemidji on Tuesday still felt uncertain about the plans for the mill, fearing that traditional practices will never be the same.

The Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe has filed an appeal against the City of Cohasset’s approval of the Environmental Assessment Worksheet for the project. They claim the decision violates the treaty rights the band has to practice fishing, hunting and gathering in the treaty lands.

By — Mary Balstad