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The Biden administration’s decision to revoke federal mining licenses for the Twin Metals copper-nickel mine has reignited a controversy that has roiled this Iron Range hamlet for decades. According to the Interior Department, the Trump administration had revived the Antofagasta-owned Twin Metals Minnesota mining licenses without the required review.
This decision by the Biden administration has disappointed Twin Metals, and the company intends to dispute it. Twin Metals says it remains committed to delivering much-needed economic prosperity to the area while also providing the chance to properly extract the essential minerals that global climate-change efforts require. Renewable energy applications, including cabling and wiring, use copper extensively.
Boundary Waters Holds an Estimated Four Billion Tons of Copper and Nickel Ore
The revoked leases sit in the Superior National Forest, in the BWCA, roughly seven miles east of Ely — ground Twin Metals needs to reach the lucrative subsurface minerals it’s after. The Boundary Waters, a vast area of protected lakes and woods near the Canadian border, shelters thousands of species, including the gray wolf and the Canada lynx. Mining corporations have nonetheless shown long-standing interest in the region because of the estimated four billion tons of copper and nickel ore buried under the surface — one of the most significant untapped mineral reserves on the planet.
Interior Secretary Cites Consistent Enforcement
The Interior Department maintains that it takes its stewardship of the nation’s public lands and waterways seriously, and that all Americans are entitled to know that. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland stated: “We must be consistent in how we enforce lease conditions to guarantee that no lessee gets preferential treatment. A thorough legal assessment revealed that the leases had been wrongfully extended in contravention of the relevant legislation and regulations; thus, we are canceling them.”
Twin Metals called the decision “disappointing but not surprising given the administration’s previous attempts to shut down copper-nickel mining in northeast Minnesota.” Mineral leases have divided three successive administrations, and the Interior Department’s decision marks only the latest phase.
Obama Administration Denied the Mining Licenses in 2016
The Obama administration denied renewal of Twin Metals’ two 1966 leases in December 2016, based on a Department of Interior legal opinion. The following year, however, a Trump administration legal opinion found that the government lacked the authority to reject Twin Metals’ leases. The Bureau of Land Management then restored the leases and extended them for ten years. In 2019, Twin Metals officially submitted its mining intentions to state and federal officials, kicking off a multi-year environmental evaluation and permitting process.
New Ruling Puts Twin Metals’ Plans in Jeopardy
The Biden administration issued its declaration after a new judicial ruling on Wednesday overturned the Trump administration’s moves, putting these plans in significant jeopardy. The Minnesota DNR stated that the federal action “raises serious issues about the viability of Twin Metals’ project as envisioned,” and said the agency will consider the implications for the state.
Supporters argue the mine would create hundreds of high-paying jobs and pump billions of dollars into the local economy if allowed to proceed. Opponents counter that the project would destroy the Boundary Waters and the recreation-based economy they sustain.
Reactions Split Along Familiar Lines
Twin Metals supporters expressed fury and frustration at the decision to revoke its lease. The Biden administration has also recommended a 20-year ban on new copper-nickel mining plans in the Boundary Waters watershed, arguing that mining in the area creates a significant contamination danger.
Mining supporters argue that this move, together with the Twin Metals lease revocation, blocks projects that could supply essential metals for wind turbines and electric vehicle batteries.
