Duluth News Tribune
Brad Shamla
Enbridge is willing and able to make a huge private investment in the protection of Minnesota’s environment and has the proven financial strength to do so. We also have the financial strength to operate and maintain our systems for decades to come, including any operational issues that may arise — just as we have done for the past 70 years.
The replacement of Line 3 is projected to cost $2.6 billion and will create 8,600 jobs in Minnesota during construction. In terms of economic impact, that is about $334 million in payroll to workers, plus a $162 million construction-related gain for local economies through the purchase of local products and materials and the use of local hotels, restaurants, and services.
Twin Metals, Labor Share Strong Partnership
BusinessNorth
Bill Hanna
Twin Metals Minnesota and the building trades sealed a strong partnership Wednesday in advance of the company’s construction phase for the company’s proposed copper/nickel/precious metals underground mine.
Bathed in sunshine under a canopy of partly cloudy skies, company and labor officials were joined by supportive elected officials for a signing ceremony of a project labor agreement between Twin Metals and and Iron Range Building and Construction Trades Council.
It commits Twin Metals to hire union workers for the construction phase of the underground mine once permits are granted.
St. Paul, Minn. (August 6, 2019) – Jobs for Minnesotans released the following response to the Minnesota Court of Appeals decision to stay a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System/State Disposal System(NPDES/SDS) permit to PolyMet Mining Inc. for its NorthMet copper-nickel mine project:
“We hope the court’s review is both swift and thorough, in order to lift any cloud from the permit and expedite the start of construction of PolyMet’s copper nickel mine, a $1 billion project which will result in the creation of 360 mining jobs. The stay was granted pending review of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) procedures in granting the permit last year.
“While Jobs for Minnesotans has confidence in the underlying technical soundness and public benefit of the PolyMet proposal, we also support the constitutional right of all citizens to seek recourse through the courts to object to agency decisions such as granting water permits. “In this case the MPCA responded promptly to concerns of Environmental Protection Agency staff members by making numerous changes – where necessary – clarifying terms of PolyMet’s final water permit.”
About Jobs for Minnesotans
Jobs for Minnesotans, a coalition representing business, labor and communities, supports statewide opportunities for prosperity and middle-class jobs from sustainable natural resource development in Minnesota. The organization is committed to the principle that our state can preserve both job opportunities and the environment for future generations. Jobs for Minnesotans was co-founded in 2012 by the Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council representing 55,000 workers and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce representing 2,300 companies and 500,000 employees. For more information, visit jobsforminnesotans.org, follow @JobsforMN on Twitter and find the coalition on Facebook.com/Jobs4MN.
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Media Contact: Nancy Norr, Chair
nnorr@mnpower.com
Cell: 218.590.6978
St. Paul, Minn. (August 5, 2019) – Jobs for Minnesotans released the following response to the Minnesota Court of Appeals decision rejecting a challenge to Minnesota Department of Natural Resources rules on non-ferrous mining by groups opposed to permits granted to PolyMet Mining Inc. for a copper-nickel mine near Hoyt Lakes on the Iron Range:
“Once again the Court of Appeals has upheld the strength and validity of the State of Minnesota’s regulatory and environmental review processes. Opponents of the PolyMet NorthMet project also recently tried, unsuccessfully, to persuade the Legislature to approve new legislation that would have had the same effect.
“It’s unfortunate but true that investment in job-creating development projects in Minnesota today must involve calculating the costs and delays of inevitable legal challenges to regulatory decisions by well-financed opposition. Lawsuits, no matter how spurious, are now an intrinsic phase of the process, stretching out the time before people in the state can begin to experience the benefits from the project.
“But reasoned judgments ultimately prevail, as a group of Jobs for Minnesotans board members were reminded on a visit four years ago to the Eagle Mine, a modern, sustainably operated underground copper-nickel mine near Marquette, Mich., on the Upper Peninsula. On the very day of our visit the court ruled in favor of the mine owners in the last of the lawsuits filed against the project, which had been fully permitted seven years before operations began in 2014.
“Today the Eagle mine and its associated mill employ 400 full-time workers and is expected to have a $4.3 billion impact on the Michigan economy before its scheduled closure in the mid-2020s. We look forward to the day Minnesotans start to benefit from the 360 well-paying PolyMet jobs, plus those from the $1 billion construction project to get it started.”
About Jobs for Minnesotans
Jobs for Minnesotans, a coalition representing business, labor and communities, supports statewide opportunities for prosperity and middle-class jobs from sustainable natural resource development in Minnesota. The organization is committed to the principle that our state can preserve both job opportunities and the environment for future generations. Jobs for Minnesotans was co-founded in 2012 by the Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council representing 55,000 workers and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce representing 2,300 companies and 500,000 employees. For more information, visit jobsforminnesotans.org, follow @JobsforMN on Twitter and find the coalition on Facebook.com/Jobs4MN.
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Media Contact: Nancy Norr, Chair
nnorr@mnpower.com
Cell: 218.590.6978
St. Paul, Minn. (July 23, 2019) – Jobs for Minnesotans released the following response to Presidential Candidate Jay Inslee’s attack on the Line 3 Replacement Project:
“Jobs for Minnesotans firmly believes replacing Line 3 is in Minnesota’s best interest because it will protect communities and the environment. There is no alternative to replacing the aging Line 3 pipeline on which the state relies for energy security and economic competitiveness.
“The Line 3 Replacement Project has already been the most thoroughly reviewed project in the State of Minnesota’s history. Minnesotans do not need a politician from the west coast trying to weigh in on Minnesota process and law for his political gain. The Line 3 Replacement Project will impact real people and real communities through bringing a $2.6 billion investment to the state and more than 6,500 quality jobs to Minnesota workers including 2,100 family-sustaining construction jobs.”
About Jobs for Minnesotans
Jobs for Minnesotans, a coalition representing business, labor and communities, supports statewide opportunities for prosperity and middle-class jobs from sustainable natural resource development in Minnesota. The organization is committed to the principle that our state can preserve both job opportunities and the environment for future generations. Jobs for Minnesotans was co-founded in 2012 by the Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council representing 55,000 workers and the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce representing 2,300 companies and 500,000 employees. For more information, visit jobsforminnesotans.org, follow @JobsforMN on Twitter and find the coalition on Facebook.com/Jobs4MN.
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Media Contact: Nancy Norr, Chair
nnorr@mnpower.com
Cell: 218.590.6978