Hi Tom, Happy New Year to you. I’m currently living in Colorado enjoying my newborn granddaughter and the skiing.

Hey, Paul, good to hear from you! Hope everyone is safe and having fun. Maybe keep the newborn off the skis for a bit, tho!

Thanks for joining, Paul! Good to hear from you.

What a difference an election makes huh?

It is a whole new game; a much brighter future ahead of us. Feels like the night has ended…

I am not able this hear

Yup. I feel like I’m breathing again for the first time in four years.

Can't Biden just undo Trump's Executive Order, like he has already done for several other of Trump's E.O.'s ?

Yes, he has done that on many EOs already.

Why not the one relating to BWCA then?

so dose this means that we can camp 🏕 up in bwca and enjoy wildlife

Michael S.: Many of the environmental attacks during the last administration were carried out by the Trump Admin.’s executive branch agencies, not through Executive Orders.

What does she mean by "climate velocity centrality"

Trump didn’t do an EO on the BWCA; his administration reversed mineral leases.

Michael S.: that means the speed with which climate change is changing habitats, and the speed with which plants and wildlife living there now will have to migrate to survive.

What about Canada right across the border. IF we ban mining in MN, but Canada continues to mine in the same watershed, how is that fair?

Nate: the mine will degrade water quality in the BWCA

Kate: Canada’s mining is happening much further west, outside the watershed of the BWCA.

Tom- so the mining won’t happen.

Kate P.: Two points in response. 1. The inability of the U.S. to control everything does not mean we should not control what we can. 2. In the history of protecting the Quetico-Superior, often one country has moved first to provide a protection, and the other country has followed.

Mining invariable is disastrous to water quality!

Nate: Trump opened the possibility, but we are using all these tools to try to kill the project

Mark:

Mark: climate change is only one of the issues that relates to land conservation and protection of the BWCA. The Biden administration’s actions that will prevent mining happen to fall under his climate change EO

Kate: Agreed!

All? Including iron mining?

Minnesota has some of the worlds largest deposits of Copper and Nickel. We are looking at ramping up production of EVs, solar, & wind in the US. Other countries don't have the same stringent protections for miners & for the environment, but if we don't mine it in the US, it will have to mined elsewhere. Can you justify this?

Rikki: No, not iron mining, gravel or granite

got it

Kate: Yes, copper is abundant across the globe and there is no shortage. Just because the minerals are found in a place doesn’t mean that is where we should mine. Grand Canyon is a good example, BW as well.

what’s that legislation again?

Mark: thanks, regrettably, it is these deeply bureaucratic actions that we must take and which will ultimately be the only successful path for us. Don’t take the jargon to doubt our determination!

so if they fill out the application process would that protect us from mining

Rikki: legislation in Congress (Rep. McCollum’s BW Protection and Pollution Prevention Act) and the Boundary Waters Permanent Protection bill to be soon introduced in MN legislature.

I meant the one passed in the 70s that he mentioned

Note: If the application is filed, it puts a temporary moratorium on mining that gives us the time to pass the permanent protection bills.

Mark: Endurance!

thank you

IT's more than Cu & Ni; MN has Colbalt & Palladium. Other places in the world may have these minerals, but then we become dependent on them. Our national security depends on these minerals.

Rikki: I missed that one, probably the 1974 Wilderness Act.

wilderness act was passed in the 60s 😉

Will you alert us to public comment periods?

he mentioned one about federal lands management.

Kate: Twin Metals is owned by Chilean Antofagasta. All the ore they mine will be shipped out of the US. It doesn’t reduce our dependency on other countries one bit.

BWCA was declared wilderness in 1974

Are there any indications the Forest Service will make the application?

Yes, absolutely.

Probably FLPMA - Federal Lands Protection and Management Act

yes! that’s it!

Yes, we are working on them.

Can a 20-year withdrawal be overturned by a subsequent secretary of the interior if Congress does not make it permanent? Does the existing rights limitation apply to current mining proposals?

And yes. But The Wilderness Act was passed in 1964.

My bad; Lauren caught me!

All? Would you mind giving sources please?

Yes, which is why we have to get the legislation

Thanks

Twin Metals Mine Plan of Operations and Antofagasta’s 2019 Annual Report.

Do Minnesota’s senators support the McCollum bill?

We are working to get them to support

Does permanent protection cover all forms of mining adjacent to the BWCA?

No, iron mining, gravel mining and granite would still be allowed.

Please explain the status of the two Twin Metals mineral leases. Isn't one of them further along?

I agree with the popularity of the bill but I continue to be miffed at the lack of support from Klobuchar and Smith. They need to get on-board

Where does Senator Klobuchar stand on the bill?

IF you do the 20-year ban. Couldn't the next president just reverse that?

What is Amy Klobuchar's stance on copper-nickel mining?

Great Presentation gotta go Christine Popowski

Would love to get this slide deck for use by Izaak Walton League. mreinemer@iwla.org

The federal legislation will apply to federal land--what about the state lands? Do we need separate legislation to prevent mining on state lands, or will a federal ban be sufficient to make a mine unworkable on state lands?

Deb Huskins:

A state equivalent is needed to cover state lands, but yes, the federal and state public lands are so intermixed that barring new leasing on federal lands will effectively block the Twin Metals and other sulfide-ore copper-nickel mining proposals.

Good info. thank you.

https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/updates/science-desk-critical-minerals-offers-poor-justification-twin-metals-mine

Could you share the name of the study/report that designated the BWCA as a “High Importance protection area across all three models?”

Do we have a new Secretary of Agriculture yet?

I am so grateful for all your efforts. Thank you so much and please keep up the great work!

Michael, this came from The Wilderness Society.

Thanks for the feedback, Mark!

Michael, I’ll email you after this presentation. Thanks for your interest!

Thank you for your work. It's so critical to have talented, knowledgeable staff devoted to preserving this national treasure

Is Antofagasta a Chilean company? Antofagasta is a city in northern Chile.

yes

thanks Matt. great info.

Matt - great comment on the product going to China for processing and then us needing to purchase it. This point needs to be more publicized!

Antofagasta is both a city and a mining company with a terrible track record in Chile.

Are they a Chilean firm?

yes. they’re Chilean.

Yes, Antofagasta is Chilean.

Take Action Here: https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/action

Thank you so much for this session!

can’t wait til Covid is over. I’d love to do outreach via tabling at locals events.

If you’d like to send a message to your Representative, you can do that here: https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/bwca-action-national-jan-2020

info@savetheboundarywaters.org and I would be happy to help you reach out to your members of congress, write a letter to the editor, host your own online gathering for friends and family, etc. lots we can do together!

Antofagasta is a Chilean company.

Ricki: We have ways you could host a socially distanced/online event as well. Please reach out and a member of our team will work with you!

👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

*Rikki* - sorry for name misspelling

lord knows, I’ve got the time!

what about a copper recycling plant up der

You can check out Northeastern Minnesotans for Wilderness at BoundaryWaters.org

Stauber will vote against her

thank you for share the info. I have to go know I will check out the website today. thank you for all you do

So excited about Deb Haaland

Thanks to everyone for attending! We can’t wait to work with you to save our favorite wild place!!!

Thank you for this presentation. Informative.

Don’t feel bad about asking for money. What you are doing is noble and true. Ask early and often.

thank you for this opportunity

Keep up the good fight! Thanks You!