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A bill for an act
relating to natural resources; prohibiting nonferrous mining if sulfate levels increase
in waters within the Rainy River headwaters; establishing penalties; amending
Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 84.523; proposing coding for new law in
Minnesota Statutes, chapter 84.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:
Section 1.
Minnesota Statutes 2024, section 84.523, is amended to read:
84.523 BWCA; MANAGING MINERALS AND RELATED RESOURCES.
Subdivision 1.
Definition.
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(a)
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For the purposes of this section
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and section 84.5235
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, the
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term
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following terms have the meanings given.
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(b)
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"Boundary Waters Canoe Area
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Wilderness
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" means that area of lands and waters
included within the boundaries designated in
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federal regulation REG U-3, Code of Federal
Regulations, title 36, section 293.16, as that regulation provided on January 1, 1975.
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Public
Law 95-495.
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(c) "Rainy River headwaters" means that area of land and waters included within the
Rainy River headwaters of the Rainy River basin designated on the Department of Natural
Resources map entitled Minnesota's Watershed Basins as identified in Minnesota Rules,
part 7050.0470, subpart 2, item A, subitem (1), and designated on the map of Minnesota's
Major Watersheds under Minnesota Rules, part 7050.0469 (HUC 09030001).
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Subd. 2.
Intent.
The legislature finds that a combination of state legislative and
administrative actions and court decisions have established a public policy of primarily
wilderness management for state lands and waters within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area
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Wilderness
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. This state policy, together with a similar federal policy and international actions
consistent with these state and federal policies, has created an area of hundreds of thousands
of acres of land and water containing myriad lakes and streams, wooded shores, virgin
forests, and other natural attractions of surpassing scenic beauty and solitude, free from
substantially all commercial activities and artificial development such as hydroelectric dams
and power lines, resorts, roads, sawmills, and timber harvesting in no-cut zones.
Subd. 3.
Mining; prohibition.
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(a)
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Except with the prior approval of the legislature in
those cases of national emergency
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which
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that
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have been declared by the Congress and
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which
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that
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direct the need for exploration and mining of federal lands within the Boundary Waters
Canoe Area
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,
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Wilderness
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and after an investigation and determination by the commissioner
of natural resources pursuant to subdivision 5
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,
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no state-owned or administered land may be
leased for exploration or mining of minerals, and no state permits, licenses or leases shall
be issued to use any other state natural resources for any mineral exploration or mining
operations in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area
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Wilderness
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.
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(b) The commissioner of natural resources may not issue a permit to mine nonferrous
metallic minerals within the Rainy River headwaters unless:
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(1) the level of sulfate in potentially affected surface water or groundwater is not estimated
to increase as a result of the mine by more than zero parts per million;
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(2) the permit to mine prohibits mining operations if the level of sulfate in affected
surface water or groundwater increases as a result of the mine by more than zero parts per
million; and
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(3) the permit to mine requires the water quality of surface waters that may be affected
by the mining operations to be monitored and the monitoring results to be made available
through the Pollution Control Agency's surface water data access website.
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Subd. 4.
Peat harvesting; prohibition.
Except with prior approval of the legislature in
those cases of national emergency
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which
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that
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have been declared by the Congress and
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which
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that
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direct the need for exploitation of peat deposits on federal land within the Boundary
Waters Canoe Area
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,
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Wilderness
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and after an investigation and determination by the
commissioner of natural resources pursuant to subdivision 5
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,
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no state-owned or administered
land may be leased for the purpose of harvesting peat, and no state permits, licenses or
leases shall be issued to use any other state natural resources for the purpose of harvesting
peat in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area
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Wilderness
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.
Subd. 5.
Investigation and determination.
In the event of a national emergency declared
by Congress
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which
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that
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requires, for the protection of national interests, exploitation of
natural resources of the type found in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area
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Wilderness
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, the
commissioner of natural resources shall investigate and determine if there are reasonable
alternative methods for providing the needed resources. If the investigation shows there are
reasonable alternatives to exploitation of natural resources in the area, no permit for
development shall be issued. If the commissioner of natural resources determines there is
a need to provide resources from within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area
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,
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Wilderness
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and
that there is no reasonable alternative available to meet the need, a permit may be issued
upon approval by the state legislature.
Subd. 6.
State-owned lands.
Acquired lands owned by the state within the Boundary
Waters Canoe Area
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Wilderness
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defined in subdivision 1 are designated as state wilderness
areas under section
86A.05, subdivision 6
.
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EFFECTIVE DATE.
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This section is effective the day following final enactment.
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Sec. 2.
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[84.5235] RAINY RIVER HEADWATERS NONFERROUS MINING;
SULFATE.
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(a) Notwithstanding section 93.481, subdivision 4, if the commissioner of natural
resources determines that an increase in sulfate in surface water or groundwater in excess
of zero parts per million has occurred as a result of a nonferrous metallic mineral mine
within the Rainy River headwaters, the commissioner must order the permittee to suspend
operations under the permit to mine. The commissioner must assess a civil penalty in the
amount of $500,000,000 for violating the terms of the permit established under section
84.523, subdivision 3, paragraph (b), clause (2).
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(b) A permittee ordered to suspend operations under paragraph (a) must immediately
suspend operations. The permittee may resume operations only after the commissioner has
reinstated the permit under paragraph (c).
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(c) The commissioner of natural resources may reinstate the permit to mine after the
commissioner determines that the permittee has demonstrated that:
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(1) the increase in sulfate has been remedied by providing the results of three years of
continuous water-quality monitoring conducted by a third party approved by the
commissioner of the Pollution Control Agency; and
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(2) future mining operations will not increase the level of sulfate in surface water or
groundwater by more than zero parts per million.
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(d) The permittee must provide all access to the mine that is necessary to conduct
water-quality monitoring required under paragraph (c) and cover all costs of the third party
conducting the water-quality monitoring.
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EFFECTIVE DATE.
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This section is effective the day following final enactment.
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