Congress Moves to Lift Mining Ban Near Boundary Waters, Sparking Controversy

Fri Jan 23 2026 03:53:17 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

A recent resolution passed in Congress aims to end the 20-year mining ban around Minnesota's Boundary Waters, igniting fierce debates over environmental protection versus mineral security.

Congressional Republicans have advanced a resolution to lift a two-decade mining ban near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Minnesota, a move that faces opposition from environmentalists concerned about potential ecosystem damage. The resolution, now headed to the Senate, has sparked a divide, with Republicans emphasizing national security and the need for critical minerals, while Democrats warn of the threat to a cherished wilderness area. The Biden administration previously imposed the ban due to concerns over watershed contamination from proposed mining activities.

Congressional Republicans moved closer Wednesday to lifting a 20-year ban on mining near Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, pushing a resolution to end the moratorium through the House despite environmentalists’ warnings that it could devastate a premier destination for campers, kayakers, and canoeists.

The resolution now goes to the Senate, and approval there would send it to President Donald Trump for his signature.

The push to end the ban comes as a Chilean mining company considers opening a copper mine in the Superior National Forest on the edge of the wilderness area that conservationists say could contaminate the watershed. “Minnesota’s Boundary Waters is one of our nation’s most iconic wilderness areas,” Jackie Feinberg, the Sierra Club’s national lands conservation campaign manager, said in a statement. “This push by the Trump administration and their Congressional allies to allow toxic mining in the Boundary Waters watershed puts this fragile ecosystem at risk and is a clear giveaway to corporate polluters.”

A beloved destination for outdoor enthusiasts

Boundary Waters is a vast swath of remote woods, lakes, and swamps in the Superior National Forest in far northeastern Minnesota, stretching for about 150 miles along the border with Canada. It remains largely untouched by humans; logging is prohibited, planes must stay above 4,000 feet as they fly over it, except in emergencies, and motorized boats are limited to certain areas. The promise of serenity has drawn campers, hikers, kayakers, and canoeists for decades. The U.S. Forest Service issued about 776,000 visitor permits between 2020 and 2024, according to agency data.

The Biden administration banned mining

Part of the Superior National Forest is situated on the Duluth Complex, a rock formation that contains deposits of copper, nickel, lead, zinc, iron, silver, and gold, according to the Forest Service. Twin Metals Minnesota LLC, a subsidiary of Chile-based Antofagasta Minerals, submitted a plan with the U.S. Department of the Interior in 2019 proposing to mine copper, nickel, cobalt, and other precious metals in the forest. President Biden’s administration blocked the project in 2023, imposing a 20-year moratorium on mining on about 400 square miles in the forest, claiming it was necessary to protect the watershed and canoe wilderness.

Trump pushes to relaunch mining projects

The president has sought to bolster domestic energy and mineral production, declaring an energy emergency just days after retaking office. Last fall, his administration reinstated a 2017 legal opinion that allowed Twin Metals to renew its leases in the Superior National Forest, and Minnesota regulators approved its exploratory mining plans in December. U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber, a Duluth Republican, introduced the resolution to lift the Biden-era moratorium, saying it has cost jobs, put the nation’s mineral security at risk, and is “an attack on our way of life.”

National security or toxic threat?

Republicans argue that mining must be permitted to compete with China and Russia for key minerals. Stauber, almost shouting at times, called the moratorium “a dangerous, purely political decision.” On the other hand, Democrats counter that mining poses an existential threat to the wilderness, with any minerals extracted likely to be sold on the international market. The House ultimately approved the resolution on a narrow vote. It is uncertain when the Senate will take up the legislation. Meanwhile, advocacy groups remain vocal about protecting the Boundary Waters.