Twin Metal Project on Political Hold February 2016 The Twin Metals Minnesota project has come to a stall while Minnesota Governor, Mark Dayton, weighs the controversy surrounding the proposed copper mine. The project, an underground copper mine roughly 10 miles southeast of Ely, lies adjacent to natural water resources that some claim would be damaged by nearby mining activities. Twin Metals, on the other hand, claims the mine would create much less environmental hazards due to its underground nature – less exposed acidic rock would reduce possible air and water pollution. The company has the backing of legislators who wish to see jobs return to the Iron Range, including Rob Ecklund, Dale Lueck, Jason Metsa, and Carly Melin of the Minnesota House of Representatives and Tom Saxhaug and Dave Tomassoni of the Minnesota Senate. These legislators sent a letter to Governor Dayton supporting Twin Metal’s land access, a necessary step to determining project feasibility and potential environmental impact. In reply, Dayton has said he refuses to give approval for any further mining projects until the PolyMet project has been granted all necessary permits and resolved any disputes. This action has caused the Twin Peaks land access approval to stall on the governor’s desk for the past several months.
Director of Mining Minnesota, Frank Ongaro, said, “We have a routine regulatory agreement that’s been approved by the regulatory agency but which apparently has become a political issue and can’t get past the governor.” Multiple sources, both for and against the Twin Metals mining project, continue to place pressure on Dayton regarding the future of the Iron Range.