The court said the state agency must determine, again, whether the planned expansion of a basin holding back mine waste near Lake Superior requires an environmental impact statement.
Under the 2018 settlement, Maplewood-based 3M agreed to pay the state $850 million for contamination from PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances.
The notice came after the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency denied U.S. Steel's request allowing downstream Hay Lake to have sulfate levels nearly 8 times higher than the state wild rice standard.
It's one piece of a broader land sale plan that would see the state of Minnesota sell its school trust land in the Boundary Waters to the Forest Service, which manages and owns much of the BWCAW.
From the editorial: "In Duluth, especially along the St. Louis River, the initiative has helped restore wild rice beds, sturgeon spawning grounds, and the habitats of piping plover and other nesting birds."
Audubon Great Lakes, in partnership with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and local stakeholders, is restoring habitat for marsh birds in the wetlands.
From the column: "The Boundary Waters wilderness ... is owned by the American people. The three Boundary Waters counties are (its) frontline of defense."
An official weighing whether to accept a judge's recommendation to reject it placed those proceedings on hold after NewRange said it is studying potential changes to its design.
From the column: "Why should we mine toxic, high-sulfide nickel in northern Minnesota when other areas of the world have nickel that is not in toxic, high-sulfide deposits?"
