MN Supreme Court to Hear Challenge to Canceled PolyMet Permits

A dispute over the future of the proposed PolyMet copper-nickel mine goes before the Minnesota Supreme Court on Tuesday.

The state Department of Natural Resources and PolyMet are challenging a ruling by the Minnesota Court of Appeals that canceled three major permits for the project. The appeals court ruled in January that the state agency should have conducted a trial-like proceeding known as a contested case hearing before it issued PolyMet a permit to mine, as well as two dam safety permits.

The court sent the case back to the DNR to conduct that proceeding, which could mean a lengthy delay.