Virginia Cramer, virginia.cramer@sierraclub.org, 804-519-8449
WASHINGTON, DC -- The U.S. House of Representatives today passed a bill undermining bedrock environmental safeguards protecting the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, as well as the Superior and Chippewa National Forests. The bill, HR 3905, would automatically grant mineral leases near the Wilderness boundary in perpetuity, while undermining guarantees for public process and water quality among others.
In response Lena Moffitt, senior director of Sierra Club’s Our Wild America campaign issued the following statement.
“The Boundary Waters is one of our country’s most beloved, and visited, wildernesses. This unprecedented legislation would overturn sound science, and remove citizen input on the future of public lands, clean water and the communities that depend on them. To risk the future of the Boundary Waters by allowing sulfide mining to move forward in its watershed is foolhardy, shortsighted, and an affront to Minnesota values.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.