Rep. Stauber Reintroduces Bill to Overturn Mining Ban Near Boundary Waters

Rep. Pete Stauber (R) of Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District

A Minnesota Congressman has reintroduced a bill that would restore mineral permits and leases in parts of the Superior National Forest near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, a move opposed by environmental groups.

Republican Rep. Pete Stauber’s Superior National Forest Restoration Act would overturn the Biden administration’s mineral withdrawal of 225,504 acres in the Superior National Forest and restore long-held mineral leases.

Stauber, who represents Minnesota’s 8th Congressional District, says the Duluth complex, located within northern Minnesota’s Superior National Forest, is a “world-class mineral deposit containing nearly 8 billion tons of copper, nickel, cobalt, and platinum group metals.” He says these minerals “will soon see huge upswings in demand due to their use in defense applications, battery storage, electric vehicles (EVs), and other rapidly expanding sectors.”

A press release from Stauber’s office says on January 26th, 2022, the Biden administration cancelled two decades-old mineral leases held by a prospective mine operator in the region, Twin Metals Minnesota. A year later on January 31st, 2023, the Biden administration’s mineral withdrawal of the 225,504 acres in the Superior National Forest went into effect, blocking mining development for 20 years.

“Thankfully, with Donald Trump back in the White House and Republicans in control of both Chambers of Congress, we are well positioned to reverse the damage done by President Biden and turn Minnesota into a critical mineral powerhouse,” said Stauber in a statement. “All options are on the table to overturn this mineral withdrawal, including the Superior National Forest Restoration Act, which would also reinstate mineral leases in the area and ensure timely reviews of Mine Plans of Operation.”

Officials with the environmental group Save the Boundary Waters are calling Stauber’s bill “deeply unpopular, anti-Wilderness legislation” that “must be stopped in the Senate.” They added that the bill “undermines the robust record of science, public opinion, law, and economics that clearly demonstrates that this iconic American landscape is absolutely no place for our nation’s most dangerous industry.”