Congress opens Minnesota wilderness to copper-sulfide mining
Updated
Updated · The Wall Street Journal · Apr 30
Congress opens Minnesota wilderness to copper-sulfide mining
9 articles · Updated · The Wall Street Journal · Apr 30
Senator Tina Smith said the move affects more than 200,000 acres and warned ore from the proposed Twin Metals mine could be processed in China.
She said Antofagasta, the Chilean owner, won zero-cost processing agreements with partly state-owned Chinese smelters in 2025, raising national security concerns and doubts minerals would return to the US.
Smith said she supports bipartisan expansion of US critical-mineral production, but opposes this project because of environmental risks to a prized wilderness area and the prospect of foreign owners benefiting.
Why might a new U.S. mine, meant to counter China, end up sending its minerals there for processing?
Can Minnesota's state laws ultimately block this federally approved mining project near the Boundary Waters?