McCollum Bill to Permanently Protect Boundary Waters Passes Committee

Congresswoman Betty McCollum (MN-04) released the following statement after the Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection and Pollution Prevention Act (H.R. 2794) passed the House Natural Resources Committee today:

"Water is the world's most critical natural resource, and it must be protected not only for today, but for future generations," McCollum said. "I thank Chair Grijalva and the House Natural Resources Committee for recognizing its value and marking up my bill to ensure the fragile ecosystem in the federal Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is never polluted by sulfide-ore mining. There is no room for error; no level of acceptable risk. Once damaged, it would be damaged forever. Protecting this national treasure in perpetuity ensures it will never again be treated as a political pawn – and will instead remain a source of clean fresh water and respite, recreation, and resilience into the future."

Background:
Congresswoman McCollum introduced the Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection and Pollution Prevention Act (H.R. 2794) to permanently protect federal lands and waters within the Superior National Forest from risky sulfide-ore copper mining. In October 2021, the Biden administration announced it would complete an environmental analysis of the potential impacts of mining within the watershed of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW). The U.S. Forest Service submitted a withdrawal application to the Bureau of Land Management, initiating the consideration of a 20-year withdrawal of 225,378 acres of federal lands and waters within the Rainy River Watershed from new mineral leasing. In January 2022, the Biden administration Interior Department reinstated the Forest Service's decision to deny the renewal of Twin Metals' leases. Last month, the U.S. Forest Service released its draft environmental assessment for the proposed 20-year withdrawal, which details the substantial risks posed by sulfide-ore copper mining on federal lands within the Boundary Waters' watershed.

To avoid the type of blatant political intervention that imperiled the Boundary Waters during the Trump administration, H.R. 2794 would protect this federal Wilderness – and the interests of the American people – in perpetuity.

• The BWCAW contains nearly 2,000 freshwater lakes and 1.1 million acres of federal lands and waters.
• The BWCAW contains 1,500 cultural resource sites, including 17 historic Ojibwe village sites and Native American pictograph panel sites.
• The BWCAW is our nation's most-visited Wilderness Area.
• The Rainy River Watershed lies within the Superior National Forest, which contains 20% of the fresh water supply in the entire National Forest System.
• At 13 of the 14 U.S. sulfide-ore copper mines (92%), water collection and treatment failures significantly harmed water quality.

Learn more about the bill here. Find letters of support from Minnesota state legislators as well as conservation groups in support of the bill.

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