[dropcap]I[/dropcap]magine you are in a place where you can experience the serene, unbothered beauty of nature. A place where the trees meet the sky and the colors of the dark green and bright blue harshly come together to make a landscape only our eyes can capture. A place where the sound of the northern cardinal and many other birds sing all through the warm weather, followed by the hum of the crickets through the night. Alas, a place so beautiful when you look through the mirror like waters you can see the world through a whole different perspective.

Photo by Josh Hild found on Unsplash

This place is in fact not just a fantasy, it is a place known as The Boundary Waters.

To bring attention to the matter, this wilderness is in danger. Feds reopen mining exploration near BWCA state, “The Boundary Waters is a national icon, one of the last truly wild places on earth, and a major economic driver for Northern Minnesota”. However, there has been an announcement by President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence that mining will begin on hundreds and thousands of federal land near the Boundary Waters, which will have a great effect on the wilderness there.

What is the Boundary Waters and where is it located?

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area is a boundless preserve of lakes and woods situated in northeast Minnesota. Explore Minnesota writes, “Spread within the BWCAW are over 1,500 miles of canoe routes over more than 1,000 lakes, rivers and streams linked by trails called “portages””. Not to mention the beauty being its solitary, while still being a highly visited place. Explore Minnesota also mentions that “200,000 people visit annually”. This region is any off-the-grid campers dream, with campsites and plenty of water for canoe voyages.

How the problem started

September 6th was a sorrowful day for many people as “Trump Administration officials announced that they canceled the application for a mineral withdrawal that would have protected Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Wilderness from the threat of sulfide-ore copper mining” says the Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters. Trump’s proposal for mining in the federal forest lands goes against the protection over that area. The same Campaign expresses that the Trump Administration “did not complete a promised study on the social, economic and environmental harm that sulfide-ore copper mining would do to America’s most popular Wilderness”. Overall, this proposal for mining near the Boundary Water Canoe Area (BWCA) is going to create a great amount of destruction to the wilderness there, were many people visit.

Effects Mining has on the BWCA

The lands that are to be mined on are all within the Rainy River Watershed where lakes, streams, and wetlands all drain into the Boundary Water Canoe Area. Sulfide-ore and copper are harmful to the water when exposed to it, and will pollute the ever-so serene water in the area. If the Trump Administration goes through with this mining proposal, I cannot even fathom the effect on water.

A similar situation occurred in Colorado in 2015, when polluted mine waste water reached the Colorado river. The Denver Post explains in their article, “the EPA inadvertently triggered the release of 3 million gallons (11.3 million liters) of water tainted with heavy metals while doing excavation work at the mine.” The pollution in the water created a yellow-orange discoloration all throughout Colorado, New Mexico, and all the way to Utah. This photo is an example of the effects mining has on water and what that looks like in Ontario Canada.

Photo by Black Tusk

This is a huge concern for many Minnesotans who fear this possible future for their ever so tranquil northern lakes and wilderness. 

Once crystal clear lakes and rivers will turn to a yellow-bronze backfire.

Water is needed in plentiful measures and it is scary to think we are putting it in danger. This may sound dramatic, but if the Trump Administration keeps it up the only water we will be drinking in the future is our own tears. [perfectpullquote align=”right” bordertop=”false” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””] if the Trump Administration keeps it up the only water we will be drinking in the future is our own tears.[/perfectpullquote]

StarTribune includes a statement by then-chief of the U.S. Forest Service Thomas Tidwell, “Copper-nickel mining might cause serious and irreparable harm to this unique, iconic and irreplaceable wilderness area [BWCA].” This area contains some of Minnesota’s finest natural landscapes and inhabits many animals from beavers, and fish, to bears and moose. It is important to notice that mining in this area affects all aspects of life. It is not just harmful to the beauty of the BWCA, but could create a downward spiral in the livliehood of the species of all wildlife living there.

Economically, is this a good thing?

Now don’t get me wrong, if one were to head up to Ely Minnesota in the dead of winter you wouldn’t see too many people out and about. This creates a problem for workers, and their need for customers in order to stay in business and create profit. Mining in this federal forest land could create a job boom. StarTribune agrees mining would, “create badly needed jobs in a part of Minnesota that has suffered economically as the taconite industry declined.” This is important for Minnesota’s economy and invites a new pathway of revenue for workers as well. However, professor of political economy, James Stock challenges that mining might not be such a good thing for Minnesota’s economy in his letter to the Forest Service. He argues, “Over time, the economic benefits of mining would be outweighed by the negative impact of mining on the recreational industry and on in-migration.” In the letter Stock explains the impact on the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) from mining will result in more losses of jobs and visitors, which overall decreases income in the Ely area.

Another opposition to the idea that mining is “good” for the economy, is to think about the question: “what if this backfires?”. Going back to the Denver Post, their article conveys, “hundreds of business owners, property owners and others are seeking millions of dollars in economic losses.” This is all from the spill of tainted waters from mining, which decreased the usage of this much needed resource.

As a result, mining will hurt the economy in the long run more than it will help it right now and in the future.

We can all stand up for nature

Nature gives us our main sources of life; food and water. It is not only courtesy to protecting the beauty of this land, but courtesy to mankind itself in making sure our well isn’t dry and animals are not disappearing. Alex Falconer, Executive Director of the Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters points out, “It’s clear whose interest this Administration is really serving, and it’s not that of the American people”. This action by the Trump administration doesn’t include the judgment of the people especially us as Minnesotans who hold the Boundary Waters so near to our hearts.

Photo by Pixabay

Star Tribune explains in their article Feds reopen mining exploration near BWCA, “The forests and lakes in that part of Minnesota lie above a geologic formation known as the Duluth Complex, one of the largest such untapped mineral resources in the world.”

Tell me this, would you want to taper with something so unbothered? It’s like picking the best, most pigmented, sharpest crayon in the box only to break it in half. Doesn’t make any sense, does it? Taking something so iconic to this state and destroying its lakes and streams with pollution. The place where the birds sing, and where you can see the stars dance in our own galaxy because there are no lights around to dull the view. The Boundary Waters is a sharp unused crayon, and we can’t let a foolish, irresponsible child break it in half.

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Featured Image by Josh Hild on Unsplash