Just in from the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness and the Center for Biological Diversity:
Today, the Minnesota Court of Appeals remanded the PolyMet air pollution permit back to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA). The Court found that the MPCA did not evaluate whether the air permit was a “sham permit” that does not accurately reflect the size and scope of PolyMet’s proposed mine. Notably, the Court of Appeals has rejected every PolyMet permit that it has reviewed.
“The Court of Appeals decision today makes it even more clear: the process that granted permits for the PolyMet mine proposal is broken,” stated Kathryn Hoffman, Chief Executive Officer of the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy (MCEA). “It’s clear that the permits that were issued to PolyMet did not protect human health and the environment, and it’s time for our agencies to acknowledge and address that.”
The Court found that MPCA did not adequately respond to evidence presented by MCEA about plans to expand the proposed mine. The decision remands the permit back to the agency to consider whether a stronger permit that includes the best available technology to limit air pollution is required. The air permit is issued under the Clean Air Act, and the proposed mine cannot operate until it has a valid permit.
This is the second time this year that PolyMet’s permits have been rejected by a Minnesota appellate court. In a January ruling, the Minnesota Court of Appeals overturned three permits issued to PolyMet by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR), a permit to mine and two dam safety permits.
“PolyMet has a long history of trying to cut corners to get around environmental protections and deceive the people of Minnesota,” said Chris Knopf, Executive Director of the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness. “This ruling, as well as the Court’s decision to strike down PolyMet’s permit to mine, show that Minnesotans will not be tricked by a multi-billion dollar Swiss mining company.”
“The losses keep piling up for PolyMet and the state agencies that are supposed to protect our citizens and our environment,” said Marc Fink, senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity. “This open-pit copper mine proposal has proven to be far too risky for the headwaters of the Lake Superior watershed.”
In addition to the four permits already rejected by the Minnesota Court of Appeals, several other permits issued under the federal Clean Water Act remain under appeal. The water pollution permit, also known as a National Pollution Discharge Elimination System permit, has been suspended, and hearings on this permit were held in Ramsey County District Court in February. Also, the Section 404 wetlands destruction permit issued by the Army Corps of Engineers has been appealed and is in federal district court.
The decision today addressed appeals filed by MCEA on behalf of itself, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness, the Center for Biological Diversity, and the Sierra Club as well as a consolidated appeal by the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa.
Here's the decision:
Minnesota Court of Appeals remands PolyMet air pollution permit back to MPCA uploaded by Sally Jo Sorensen on Scribd
Related posts:
- POSTPONED! Pat Garofalo's mining listening session Tuesday, March 31
- PolyMet permit puzzle pieces prompt probes while Glencore establishes dominance
- Video: Rep. Andrew Falk grills PolyMet's Brad Moore on early-stage company's financials
- Mike McFadden claims PolyMet mine could yield thousands of jobs; Polymet Mining disagrees
Photo: PolyMet plans to reuse the former LTV Steel Mining site near Hoyt Lakes. Photo courtesy of PolyMet Mining via the Duluth News Tribune article, Glencore now a majority shareholder of PolyMet. According to the article, "The Swiss company, known for its shoddy environmental and labor practices, has a controlling interest in the company trying to open Minnesota's first copper-nickel mine."
If you appreciate our posts and original analysis, you can mail contributions (payable to Sally Jo Sorensen, 600 Maple Street, Summit SD 57266) or use the paypal button in the upper right hand corner of this post. Those wishing to make a small ongoing monthly contribution should click on the paypal subscription button.
Or you can contribute via this link to paypal; use email [email protected] as recipient.
Comments