DNR Stalls UP Sulfide Mine
By Paul Gingras

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has stalled development of a controversial sulfide mine in the western Upper Peninsula. Prior to issuing a lease, the department is requiring technical information from Kennecott Minerals Company, the project's proponent, including how the company would prevent a potential mine collapse and how it would respond if a collapse were to occur.

Kennecott, a branch of international mining giant Rio Tinto, did not receive an expected surface-use permit from the DNR at a Natural Resources Commission meeting Thursday, January 10. The permit would have allowed the company to lease 120 acres of public land, which would then be closed to the public, said Mary Dettloff, DNR press secretary.

DNR Director Rebecca Humphries, who postponed the permit, will make her decision when the DNR receives the information requested and has had adequate time to review it, Ms. Dettloff said, adding that it is unclear if Ms. Humphries will be ready to make a decision by the Natural Resources Commission's next meeting Thursday, February 7.

"The decision will not be made in private," Ms. Dettloff told The St. Ignace News.

The DNR, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), and Kennecott are meeting weekly.

Unlike raw ore gathered from traditional mines, sulfuric rock such as the kind Kennecott seeks releases sulfuric acid when exposed to oxygen. A mine collapse could release sulfuric acid into streams that lead to Lake Superior, according to the National Wildlife Federation and other mine opponents. A mine collapse would pose a serious threat to natural resources as well as the safety of mine workers, Ms. Dettloff said.

These are only two subjects among many technical issues for which the DNR is requesting information, Ms. Dettloff said. The department is also seeking information on how the company will restore the land after the mine's closure, she said. The DNR's actions are more of a "speed bump" than a "roadblock" for Kennecott, she said.

Although the DEQ has approved the mine, Kennecott requires permits from the DNR, which controls the surface of the land.

Part of the public land Kennecott wants includes a rock outcropping known as Eagle Rock. Kennecott plans to use it as the doorway for its mine shaft. The shaft would lead from public land, through underground rock, to the ore body, which is on nearby private land, Ms. Dettloff explained. The company feels the rocky outcropping on state land would be a better place for its mine shaft. Nearby areas are sandy.

If the 120 acres of public land is leased, it will be stripped of trees and closed to the public for eight to 10 years, she said.

Some members of the DNR would prefer to have the mine on state land because it gives the state complete access to the site, Ms. Dettloff said, helping the DEQ and DNR prevent Kennecott from violating its agreements with the state.

In addition to DNR approval, the company also requires a water permit from the Environmental Protection Agency, and it faces opposition from the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, which considers Eagle Rock an important spiritual site, Ms. Dettloff said.

Further complicating the issue, the DEQ faces a lawsuit challenging the mine's DEQ permits by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF), Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, Huron Mountain Club, and Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve.