Speak Up to Protect Minnesota's Boundary Waters From Mining

On Wednesday, November 28, the full House of Representatives is voting on a bill to force through two controversial mining projects on the edge of the Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota. In addition to the documented harmful effects of these mines, H.R. 3905, the “Minnesota’s Economic Rights in the Superior National Forest Act,” would undercut core conservation laws, including the Antiquities Act (by blocking any potential future presidential Monument declarations in Minnesota) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

The Boundary Waters—the most heavily-visited Wilderness Area in the United States every year since 1964—is a breathtaking expanse of water, forest, and wetlands that covers 1.1 million acres of the Superior National Forest. Every year, more than 150,000 people from all over the world visit the Boundary Waters to camp, paddle, fish, hike, hunt, snowshoe, ski, and enjoy its pristine beauty.

The bill would have serious detrimental effects on the recreational value of national public lands and waters in Minnesota and set a terrible precedent regarding management for an array of conservation and resource development values.

Today, Outdoor Alliance and the Outdoor Industry Association sent a letter to Paul Ryan, Speaker of the House of Representatives and Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, voicing our opposition to H.R. 3905. This bill is deeply problematic because of its effects on important recreation and conservation values, and recreation jobs and economies, as well as the precedent it sets in undermining the processes by which we manage our country’s public lands and waters. Read the full letter here.

Please contact your Representative here to share your concerns with this legislation.