PolyMet and Teck Resources Announce Joint Venture

Better in Our Back Yard is excited about the news of PolyMet and Teck Resources’ joint venture, NewRange Copper Nickel LLC. These two Minnesotan projects coming together under a single business entity hold untold potential for responsible nonferrous mining development in Minnesota. Combining two excellent teams creates a powerhouse ready to navigate the permitting process and exceed all state and federal regulations. This is our chance to show the world that Minnesota stands at the forefront of clean, efficient, sustainable mining for the minerals required for clean energy technologies.

Better In Our Back Yard adamantly disagrees with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recommendation on PolyMet’s Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 404 permit.

We believe the CWA Section 404 permit should be reinstated as soon as possible.

PolyMet earned its permits by following the process. The company completed a nearly 20 year environmental review, concluding with a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) published by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Forest Service in 2015. The EPA didn’t raise objections back then. Why now, when there has been no new evidence presented to suggest that the NorthMet project will violate any state, federal or tribal water quality requirements?
Better in Our Back Yard trusts the scientific review the agencies used for the FEIS. We also trust that PolyMet’s water treatment plan will address legacy mining issues and reduce both sulfate and mercury in the St. Louis River. This project will mean cleaner water and a step toward accessing the minerals we need for clean energy infrastructure in a region that has been left behind economically. The benefits keep stacking up, but we’ll only see them if we follow the process and allow the project to move forward.

Better in Our Back Yard is extremely disappointed in the Biden Administration’s unnecessary demand for another generic 2-year environmental study on the Rainy River watershed. Twin Metals has already spent over a decade studying the surrounding environment and any potential impacts from mining.

This directive goes against all efforts to address the climate crisis. The clean energy sources and electric vehicles necessary for a more sustainable future are wholly dependent on domestic mineral extraction. Two years of study won’t uncover anything new. It will simply delay the project, again. This withdrawal action is completely unnecessary and unfortunate for Minnesota. We need Twin Metals and the 750+ jobs and significant private investment it will bring to our state now, not two years from now.

Yesterday was a huge day for responsible industry. Better in Our Back Yard (BIOBY) celebrates the official completion of the Line 3 Replacement Project! After eight years of steadfast work, Enbridge completed a full replacement of the 1,097-mile-long pipeline from Edmonton, AB to Superior, WI. 

Replacing the pipeline was an essential step in creating a more safe and reliable means of transport for natural resources. The new pipeline has been strengthened with state-of-the-art, thicker-walled pipe designed to protect the environment and support millions of people with access to a reliable, low-cost energy source.

The project proves northern Minnesota’s commitment to completing projects the right way. A thriving industrial sector depends on responsible, sustainable, safe work to repair aging infrastructure, explore metal and mineral resources, and manage natural resources. 
The Line 3 Replacement project has created economic benefits during unprecedented times for Minnesota’s small businesses, Native American communities and union members. Safe, reliable transportation of natural resources is essential to sustaining and strengthening Northern Minnesota communities for years to come.  

Better In Our Back Yard (BIOBY) applauds Twin Metal Minnesota on becoming the first mining company in Minnesota to adopt battery vehicle technology. Twin Metals announced today it is converting the mine’s vehicle fleets from diesel to electric and strengthening its commitment to the fight against climate change by further minimizing the project’s footprint. 

This is an exciting move, one that perfectly blends responsible industry with environmental stewardship. Electric vehicles will reduce the project’s onsite greenhouse gas emissions, decrease power requirements and maintenance needs, improve noise and air quality, and, most importantly, increase worker safety.

Lying. Misrepresenting facts to suit their own interests. Doubling down even when they’re wrong. When friends act like this, they’re on a fast track to ostracizing the people they care about most. It’s friendship-ending behavior, and it’s unacceptable.

Nobody should be friends with the Friends of the Boundary Waters anymore. They’re toxic. They’re so far down their self-created rabbit hole of stopping PolyMet that they’re clinging to untruths and refusing to accept the very facts and science they claim make their case. Why would “friends” operate in such a fashion? Well, to fund their very existence, that’s why. Misrepresenting facts is their attempt to draw in financial support and who wants to fund a losing cause?

The facts and science are on PolyMet’s side. Always have been.

Fact:

The Supreme Court was unpersuaded by Friends’ policy arguments and has limited a contested case hearing to only one narrow issue concerning bentonite.

Friends wanted a full, open-ended contested case hearing that would delay PolyMet’s progress significantly. This isn’t a win for Friends. Not by a long shot. But they want their supporters to think it is.

Fact:

PolyMet will NOT violate the Clean Water Act.

Friends wants to paint the MN Pollution Control agency as reckless, when in fact the PCA’s permit protects groundwater and surface water. It strictly prohibits PolyMet from violating water quality standards or degrading groundwater and requires more and better water quality protections than any mining permit in Minnesota history. There will be no Clean Water Act violations. Period.

Fact:

The Supreme Court found no broad effort to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from submitting comments.

There’s no dark underbelly here. Nobody tried to prevent anyone at the EPA from submitting comments or raising concerns. Friends wants their supporters to believe that the  PCA destroyed documents and concealed an EPA scientist’s concerns around Clean Water Act violations. It didn’t and this accusation is wildly ridiculous. The facts were all on the table. The court reviewed and addressed them all. Again, PolyMet will not violate the Clean Water Act.

Fact:

PolyMet will adhere to strict state and federal guidelines. One does not outweigh the other.

Friends wants their supporters to blindly believe that PolyMet is going to break the rules and violate Minnesota’s strict water quality standards. It’s absurd to suggest that PolyMet’s wastewater permit would allow the company to discharge at unallowable limits. The state’s standards are more stringent than federal limits, and PolyMet’s water treatment plan clearly demonstrates the company’s ability to operate within the required parameters.

Friends of the Boundary Waters is quite savvy at positioning their claims as science and fact-based, but in reality, they’re pulling at emotional strings and saying all the right buzzwords to fire up their support base. 

Look beyond these outlandish claims and trust the ACTUAL science. Remember that PolyMet’s permits were granted after 15 years worth of research and testing. Remember that PolyMet isn’t some big, bad corporation. It’s a company made up of people who live and work in Northeast Minnesota. They care about protecting the environment and our state’s future, too. They know mining and environmental stewardship go hand in hand, and they believe PolyMet is going to prove that we can do this right.