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To: U.S. House of Representatives

Boundary Waters Wilderness under attack in Congress

The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park in northeast Minnesota are irreplaceable natural treasures vitally important for people and the planet.

Thankfully, in January, U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland protected federal land around the Boundary Waters from destructive mining for 20 years.

But the Boundary Waters faces continued threats and attacks: we call on you to oppose and defeat Rep. Stauber’s anti-Boundary Waters bill H.R. 3195. This bill puts America’s most popular wilderness at risk by opening the headwaters to sulfide-ore copper mining—a destructive and poisonous type of mining that has never been done before in Minnesota.

Rep. Stauber’s efforts go directly against the robust science, overwhelming public support, and the sound legal basis of wilderness protection. This legislation also sets a dangerous precedent for all our nation’s cherished places.

Protecting the Boundary Waters and Voyageurs is the right thing to do. This irreplaceable and critical landscape and deserves the protections recently set out by the Biden administration. Rep. Stauber’s to roll back vital protections shows the necessity of permanently protecting the Boundary Waters watershed through an Act of Congress. We stand by to support you in opposing Rep. Stauber’s bill and ensuring the Boundary Waters and Voyageurs will be protected for all generations to come.

Why is this important?

The Boundary Waters region in northeast Minnesota is a vast wildland refuge critical to people and the planet. The Boundary Waters Wilderness is a rare treasure: a million acres of pristine lakes and forests, unmarred by roads, development, and most motorized use. Yet uniquely accessible to people of all backgrounds and abilities - making it the most visited Wilderness in the entire U.S. and the backbone of the sustainable regional economy.

Anishinaabe people (also known in this region as Chippewa or Ojibwe) have lived in the area for countless generations and have a deep relationship to these lands and waters. Indigenous people continue to harvest wild rice in the Boundary Waters region and maintain treaty rights to hunt, fish and gather. As sovereign nations, tribes play a central role in protecting the Boundary Waters.

This wild and beautiful place is threatened by copper mining, but we can protect it forever if people take action and “speak loudly for this quiet place.”

Visit www.SavetheBoundaryWaters.org to learn more.

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Partner

Updates

2024-06-12 17:36:02 -0400

Rep. Stauber's anti-Wilderness bill language has been attached to the National Defense Authorization Act as an amendment. Please use this form to send a message to your Senators right away urging them to oppose and work to defeat these dangerous policies that threaten the Boundary Waters: https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/1049

2024-05-13 11:27:38 -0400

As you likely saw, the bill passed the U.S. House on April 30. While this outcome was predictable, it still hurts. HOWEVER, please read this breakdown from our Campaign Manager Alex Falconer who led our work in DC against this bill - you will see many important wins for us among this "loss," and with your help, we'll make sure it has no forward momentum in the Senate. Please contact your Senators now: https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/SMoveOn

2024-05-01 14:54:46 -0400

Update from DC: we received word late last week that Rep. Stauber’s extreme anti-wilderness bill would be up for a vote this week. Despite our tireless effort to meet with Representatives and urge them to VOTE NO, Rep. Stauber’s terrible bill passed last night by a vote of 212-203.

You know by now that Rep. Stauber does the opposite of what his constituents want for MN’s clean water: the majority of people in his district want the Boundary Waters protected. Yet, he’s pushed through a bill that would open its headwaters to mining.

We'll fight every attempt to roll back Boundary Waters protections and continue our work to win permanent protection. We engage at every level of government, file lawsuits when necessary, and continue to build a powerful movement to protect the Boundary Waters for all, forever. www.SavetheBoundaryWaters.org

2023-12-08 21:10:27 -0500

20,000 signatures reached

2023-10-30 13:58:09 -0400

Recently Minnesota’s local CBS News station highlighted how Save the Boundary Waters built a movement over the past decade that brought Minnesota’s sulfide-ore copper mining threat to the national spotlight. You've played a vital role in this journey - thank you!

The two-part feature showcases the Campaign's progress over the past decade to safeguard the Boundary Waters from this kind of toxic mining, including our most significant achievement yet – the Public Land Order banning mining on federal lands and minerals in the Boundary Waters watershed for 20 years.

It features the voices of Ely-area advocates, business owners, and community members who have been with us since the beginning - tirelessly fighting to keep toxic mining away from the fragile ecosystem of the Wilderness.
Watch the segments: https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/wcco?emci=88f81ba7-8e72-ee11-b004-00224832eb73&emdi=b11fbd71-9d72-ee11-b004-00224832eb73&ceid=10217769

2023-10-09 14:07:49 -0400

Unfortunately the mining company recently proposed exploratory drilling on the edge of the Boundary Waters - this proposal is a precursor to perhaps Twin Metals’ most dangerous proposition – to mine underneath Birch Lake, which flows directly into the Wilderness. Please also sign this petition asking Minnesota Governor Walz' administration to reject this proposal and protect the Boundary Waters: https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/ACTION-1023N

2023-09-18 15:22:12 -0400

10,000 signatures reached

2023-09-11 16:45:32 -0400

Able to do more to help the Boundary Waters? Sign up for our action alerts and we’ll send you our new Save the Boundary Waters sticker! Just sign up at this link: https://www.savetheboundarywaters.org/moveon

2023-09-01 01:34:40 -0400

5,000 signatures reached

2023-08-17 18:14:55 -0400

Exciting to see this petition really taking off fast - please keep up the momentum by sharing it far and wide. Also check out this video clip montage of recent shenanigans (and our team fighting back!) in Washington D.C. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wd1LDqPem_k

2023-08-10 17:54:41 -0400

1,000 signatures reached

2023-08-10 16:47:01 -0400

500 signatures reached

2023-08-10 16:23:17 -0400

100 signatures reached

2023-08-10 16:21:57 -0400

50 signatures reached

2023-08-10 16:21:24 -0400

25 signatures reached