Wilderness News Online

The Minnesota House of Representatives is considering a bill to tighten the financial assurances required by mining companies operating in the state, even though a companion bill in the state senate has been withdrawn.

The Duluth News Tribune reports, HERE, on last night’s House Environment Committee hearing.

During the two-hour hearing, the committee considered testimony from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, mining industry representatives, and environmental advocates.

The panel is weighing a bill by Representative Alice Hausman, a DFL-er from St. Paul, which would apply existing state and federal financial assurance rules to non-ferrous mines like those proposed for northeastern Minnesota by PolyMet Mining Corporation and other firms.

Last week, the Minnesota Senate’s Environment and Natural Resources Committee held a similar set of hearings, prior to Senator Jim Carlson, a DFL-er from Eagan, withdrawing his financial assurance bill in that chamber.