St. Paul, MN - This week, President Trump signed an executive order to immediately increase mineral production in the United States. In it, and for the first time, copper is listed as a “critical mineral,” despite its relative abundance. The order sets the stage for the Trump administration to strip away the protections afforded to areas like Minnesota’s Boundary Waters, for the sake of mining minerals.
State Representative Alex Falconer (DFL - Eden Prairie), who is leading the charge on legislation to protect Minnesota’s Boundary Waters, released the following statement:
“There is no shortage of troubling and destructive decisions coming from the White House recently, but this effort to destroy one of our natural wonders cannot go unchallenged. President Trump’s executive order is the very entry point billion-dollar international mining companies have been waiting for. Every Minnesotan should be outraged at the blatant disregard for our environment.
“President Trump and his billionaire buddies have opened every piece of federal public lands to the mining industry. From the Grand Canyon to the Boundary Waters, every iconic and cherished landscape is now officially at risk. I am asking my colleagues in the Minnesota House, Senate, and for Governor Walz to stand with the 70% of Minnesotans who support my bill protecting the Boundary Waters from this reckless and dangerous attack on Minnesota’s crown jewel.”
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