The Better in Our Back Yard community is devastated with the news Verso will indefinitely idle the Duluth paper mill this month. Employing over 200 professionals, the mill has been a cornerstone of our regional economy since 1987, providing a market for our naturally renewable resources in the logging industry.

This news comes on the heels of additional idles and closures due to the pandemic. Now more than ever our region could use the economic boost of large-scale projects like PolyMet’s NorthMet project, and Enbridge’s Line 3 Replacement project. Managing our natural resources economy responsibly must be part of a solution to mitigate and move through these difficult times.