Star Tribune
PolyMet mine faces new obstacle after judge recommends rejecting its permit
An administrative court has recommended denying a key permit for PolyMet Mining’s open-pit copper-nickel project, asserting that its design would risk contaminating too much water.
Administrative Law Judge James E. LaFave wrote in a ruling released on Tuesday that the company’s plan to apply bentonite clay to an old taconite tailings basin, and then put waste rock from its hardrock mine on top, would not satisfy the state’s rules because it was not a “practical and workable” solution.
As a result, PolyMet’s permit to mine should be denied by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, LaFave wrote.
“That’s an amazing result, and a huge victory,” said Paula Maccabee, an attorney with the nonprofit group WaterLegacy, one of several organizations that challenged the tailings basin design.
The ruling is not a final decision — it will be sent to back to DNR, which can accept or reject it. LaFave also wrote that if DNR decides differently and proceeds with the permit, the agency should attach special conditions to manage water seeping through mine tailings.
“We’re reviewing the [administrative law judge’s] recommendation and evaluating our options at this time,” Bruce Richardson, a spokesman for PolyMet and NewRange Copper Nickel, wrote in an email.
PolyMet wants to build a massive, open-pit hardrock mine near Babbitt, Minn., and use the former LTV Steel site in Hoyt Lakes to process the material. Hardrock mining has been controversial in Minnesota because of an increased risk of acid mine drainage, compared to the iron mining that’s traditionally dominated the state.
Since originally proposing its mine, PolyMet, which is owned by the international conglomerate Glencore, formed the NewRange partnership with a subsidiary of the Canadian firm Teck Resources. Teck was developing its own mining project next door.
PolyMet’s proposal has been stalled by other permitting issues — most recently, the Minnesota Supreme Court revoked a key water pollution permit in August.
In a statement, DNR Deputy Commissioner Barb Naramore wrote that an unnamed senior leader at the agency will review the recommendations and solicit comments from the parties in the case before making the final decision on the permit.
“They and their legal counsel also have not had, and will not have, any contact with the DNR permitting team regarding the specifics of the case,” Naramore wrote.
The ruling comes after a five-day hearing this spring, in which a coalition of environmental groups, the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, the DNR and representatives for PolyMet all presented their sides in the case.
The issues covered were narrow: could the use of bentonite clay on the former LTV Steel tailings basin stop water from filtering through waste rock? If not, acid mine drainage could escape into the Lake Superior watershed.
Bentonite clay is used in many applications, including at other mine sites in Minnesota. It’s also an ingredient in some cosmetics. In this case, the clay was supposed to reduce water and oxygen infiltration on the sides and bottom of an already water-filled tailings pond.
Despite recommending denial, LaFave’s ruling asserted that bentonite could be used effectively to coat the sides and bottom of the pond, and that it would reduce water and oxygen infiltration.
“I don’t quite know what to make of that [part of the ruling]” said Chris Knopf, executive director of the group Friends of the Boundary Waters.
But Knopf pointed to another section which detailed an undisputed fact: that 298 million gallons of water would still seep from the tailings each year.
DNR and PolyMet argued this was just a tiny proportion of all the water in the watershed, and a fraction of a percent of the water contained by the tailings pond. LaFave decided, however, that the design did not stop “substantially all water” from contacting the tailings and flowing away, as required by state rules.
“If a hauler wanted to transport 298 million gallons of water by truck…it would take 27,091 trucks to carry the water. If those trucks were lined up bumper-to-bumper, the convoy would stretch 271 miles – approximately the distance between St. Paul and Grand Marais,” he wrote.
In a statement, Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Chairman Kevin R. Dupuis Sr. wrote that the decision served to safeguard the natural resources that Native people rely on, and that treaty rights protect. Fond du Lac’s reservation is downstream of PolyMet’s planned mine.
“Today’s decision by the ALJ would protect these resources for the Band and all Minnesotans,” Dupuis wrote. “DNR must accept the ALJ’s decision.”
According to Gomez, workers have had wages withheld under threats of possible deportations. Unauthorized workers are less likely to seek legal aid due to their legal status.
“What I want from this program is for other people not to suffer the same abuses that we’ve suffered in the past,” Gomez said. “This program is designed to prevent these abuses.”
CTUL said workers’ rights under the program will be shared in multiple languages.
Gomez specifically named Yellow Tree, United Properties, and Solhem Cos. as developers he’d like to see join the program. CTUL called for these companies, as well as Roers, Doran Properties Group, and MWF Properties, to adopt the standards.
Those working under developers in the program can report abuse to the standards council. After a complaint is made, the council will monitor contractors’ worksites to make sure they are complying with the standards.
If the council finds that a contractor is abusing workers, developers in CTUL’s program would be legally required to stop working with the contractor.
One man is dead and two others were fighting for their lives Saturday, as Minneapolis police searched for suspects following a triple shooting in the early morning hours.
According to police, officers responded to reports of automatic gunfire at a homeless encampment near E. 21st Street and 15th Avenue S. shortly before 5 a.m. They arrived in the Ventura Village neighborhood south of downtown to find three victims with gunshot wounds.
The men were given aid and transported to HCMC, where one of them died. Police Chief Brian O’Hara said the other two remained in critical condition. The identities of the men, who were homeless, were not immediately released.
Investigators believe that an altercation occurred after three people approached the camp. One of the victims had a BB gun that resembled a real pistol, but it was unclear if that was a factor in the shooting.
“Once again, tragedy has occurred at a homeless encampment and all three of the injured are known to police,” O’Hara said at a news conference Saturday. “Residents in the area have been very frustrated. This is an ongoing issue with encampments and all of the activity that’s associated with it. As soon as one encampment is cleared, another one pops up somewhere else and crime in the area immediately rises.”
Citing department data, O’Hara said that around 13% of all Third Precinct crime, and 19% of the precinct’s gun violence, happens within 500 feet of encampments. He said he believed that the camp where the shooting occurred appeared after officials had closed a larger encampment by a Franklin Avenue overpass.
Paula Williams, who has lived in the area since the late 1970s, said she often greets youth from the encampment and that none have made her feel threatened. But Williams said drug use and sex trafficking have become an issue.
“It’s just been whack-a-mole,” she said. “The police come daily or every other day. Somebody calls and they get chased away and by the evening, they’re back.”
“… This summer an alcohol fueled argument escalated into something that I deeply regret. I said and did things that are unacceptable and I take full responsibility for my actions. Although there was never any physical violence I am deeply remorseful for the fear and trauma caused by my anger. I’ve since been given an opportunity to step back, reflect, assess, heal and grow. Although the path was unfortunate, the destination was necessary. I’ve been able to embrace sobriety, spirituality, and integrity. I’ve been able to find myself again and love myself again. The clarity and perspective I now possess is priceless and has fueled my determination and dedication. It’s no coincidence that this next chapter of my life begins as I turn 40 and I can’t wait to live the rest of my life as the best version of myself I’ve ever been and continue to give back to my community.”
Bullshit. Then, and especially now.
It’s clear Sutherland’s primary concern has been the impact of his legal case on his career. Plus, he knows he has the power to shape the narrative about the next chapter of his life.
Influential men always do. Sutherland’s success and charm could still provide the platform for him to earn an abundance of grace, and an apparently consensual meeting with the alleged victim will only enhance those ambitions. But those accused of domestic violence should not have the ability to proclaim their redemption. They’re not reliable sources.
The criminal complaint from the summer incident states that the alleged victim told police Sutherland had been physically and verbally abusive in the past. It’s a familiar story. Too familiar. According to the National Domestic Hotline, 4 out of 5 victims of intimate partner violence from 1994 to 2010 were women. And more than three-quarters of the female victims ages 18 to 49 were “previously victimized by the same offender.”
Thursday’s arrest complicates Sutherland’s legal case and perceptions about his summer encounter with his girlfriend. But it doesn’t change the facts.
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