U.S. REP. BETTY McCOLLUM CONDEMNS SENATE VOTE TO ALLOW FOREIGN MINING COMPANY TO POLLUTE THE BWCA

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congresswoman Betty McCollum (D), Dean of the Minnesota Congressional Delegation, issued the following statement on Thursday upon Senate passage of H.J. Res. 140, which would allow foreign mining companies to begin toxic mineral extraction which would permanently pollute the headwaters of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCA):

"The Boundary Waters are a national treasure, and its pristine lakes and rivers must be protected for the benefit of future generations of Americans. The Republican Majority in the U.S. Senate voted today to strip away protections for the BWCA, allowing a foreign-owned mining company and serial polluter to begin a sulfide acid mine in the headwaters of the Boundary Waters. We don't allow mining in Yellowstone, Yosemite, Zion, Acadia, Glacier, or any of our nation's revered national parks - and we shouldn't allow it in the watershed of the Boundary Waters, either.

"One hundred percent of copper mines have failed, leading to polluted waters. This case will be no different. Because of this extremely short-sighted vote, our nation's most-visited wilderness area faces the threat of permanent toxic pollution. Why? So Antofagasta, a Chilean corporation that owns Twin Metals, can mine American copper and ship it to China to be smelted and sold on the global market. Twin Metals has been lobbying President Trump and Republicans in Congress for over ten years to remove the protections from this watershed and renew their mine plans to extract American minerals at the expense of freshwater for future generations.

"The science-based evidence is overwhelming: The mineral withdrawal is the only way to protect this wilderness, which is home to some of the cleanest water in the entire world."

Congresswoman McCollum has been a champion for protecting the Boundary Waters throughout her tenure in Congress. Since 2020, Congresswoman McCollum has carried the Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection and Pollution Prevention Act (H.R. 588), which would permanently protect the Boundary Waters from toxic sulfide ore mining.