St. Paul, Minn. (Jan. 14, 2019) – Jobs for Minnesotans today released the following statement in response to Rep. Pete Stauber’s introduction of H.R. 527, the Superior National Forest Land Exchange Act of 2019, to Congress today:
“We welcome today’s news that Rep. Pete Stauber has introduced legislation to ratify the already approved PolyMet land exchange. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a similar bill in the last session of Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support. We commend Rep. Stauber for following through on his campaign promise and thank him and other members of the Minnesota delegation for their continued support of the copper-nickel mining industry that will bring family-sustaining jobs and an economic boost to the communities of northeast Minnesota.”
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
Stauber Introduces PolyMet Land Exchange Bill
Duluth News Tribune
Staff
[Rep. Pete] Stauber, R-Hermantown, introduced H.R. 527, the Superior National Forest Land Exchange Act of 2019, to reaffirm a land swap between PolyMet Mining Co. and the U.S. Forest Service, according to a news release sent by Stauber’s office.
St. Paul, Minn. (Dec. 21, 2018) – Jobs for Minnesotans today released the following statement in response to an appeal filed today by the Minnesota Department of Commerce challenging the approval of the Certificate of Need for Enbridge’s Line 3 Replacement Project:
“Jobs for Minnesotans stands behind the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission’s (MPUC) approval of the Line 3 Replacement Project Certificate of Need and is not surprised by the Minnesota Department of Commerce’s (MDOC) appeal. The MPUC, appointed by Governor Dayton, has been the lead agency diligently evaluating the project details throughout the rigorous four-year public input and environmental review process. The MPUC has consistently ruled against the MDOC in several critical matters associated with this project. The MPUC just reaffirmed its unanimous decision on the project’s Certificate of Need as recently as November. Ultimately, time after time, the Line 3 Replacement Project has been deemed necessary by the MPUC in the best interest of the public and the state of Minnesota.
“The project is a critical $2.6 billion dollar investment in Minnesota’s energy infrastructure, replacing an aging pipeline on which the state relies. The project will provide quality jobs to more than 6,500 Minnesota workers during the course of the project, including 2,100 family-sustaining construction jobs. The communities along the route stand to benefit immensely from the approval of this project and it is imperative to the economic welfare of the state that it be allowed to move forward.”s
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. (Dec. 20, 2018) – Jobs for Minnesotans today released the following statement following the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) announcement of a public comment period regarding the Environmental Assessment on the renewal of Twin Metals mineral leases:
“Jobs for Minnesotans welcomes today’s BLM news announcing a comment period seeking public input on the environmental assessment of the renewal of Twin Metals mineral leases. This is a positive next step for Twin Metals after a rigorous and extensive review and public input process over the last two years on its mineral lease renewals. The renewal of the leases is just one of many important milestones that Twin Metals will work to achieve before entering the robust environmental review process required prior to any mining activity.
“We strongly support each step of the highly regulated process for mining projects to come to fruition including the timely renewal of Twin Metals leases following this process. This proceeding sets a strong precedent for future non-ferrous mining projects on how the federal government works with mining companies not just in Minnesota, but across the country. We are eager to see this process move forward for Twin Metals, as the leases are located within the world-class Duluth Complex mineral deposit in Northeastern Minnesota. The Duluth Complex is estimated to contain 4.4 billion tons of copper, nickel and other essential metals needed to support our country’s current and future infrastructure as well our nation’s efforts to move toward a cleaner energy economy. ”
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
Feds Propose Renewing Twin Metals Lease
Duluth News Tribune
Jimmy Lovrien
The Bureau of Land Management proposed renewing hardrock mineral leases in the Rainy River Watershed near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness on Thursday, initiating a 30-day comment period.
The BLM’s proposal includes new stipulations on the leases in its “proposed action” while the “no-action alternative” would renew the leases under the same conditions as the leases’ last renewal in 2004.
Proposed changes were outlined in an updated environmental assessment released Thursday. Comments on the assessment will be accepted through Jan. 22.
Jobs for Minnesotans Statement on Release of Final State PolyMet Permits
St. Paul, Minn. (Dec. 20, 2018) – Jobs for Minnesotans released the below statement today following the announcement that final major permits for PolyMet Mining were issued by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), bringing the NorthMet Project a big step closer to reality:
“Today, Jobs for Minnesotans celebrates the opportunities this final approval from the MPCA brings to Northeast Minnesota: hundreds of well-paying jobs and critical investment to sustain local communities. The issuance of these air and water permits is validation that the state’s very public, thorough and scientific process of evaluation, analysis and decision-making works.
“These permits will re-energize the region’s supplier and professional service network, assure long-term employment for skilled tradespeople, generate a more diverse and thriving regional and statewide economy, as well as create access to essential metals to power the green economy and our modern world.
“We applaud the hard work of the regulatory agencies involved in this process and express our deep gratitude to the citizens, businesses, labor organizations, elected officials and communities who have been resilient in their efforts to propel the project forward.”
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
Minnesota Oks Final Major State Permits for PolyMet Mine
Associated Press
Steve Karnowski
State pollution regulators on Thursday issued the last major state permits sought by the developers of the planned PolyMet copper-nickel mine in northeastern Minnesota, leaving only one major federal permit still pending.
PolyMet would be the state’s first copper-nickel mine. Thursday’s announcement follows a decision by the Department of Natural Resources last month to grant PolyMet several major permits, including the key one — a permit to mine.
Read More: https://www.apnews.com/094c28c9e8ad4a9aad6127ba2d886856
Our View: Still A Lot to Like in Land Swap
Duluth News Tribune
Editorial Board
Joining the cry now are 145 national and Minnesota-based organizations, businesses, unions, elected officials and others. They all signed a letter dated Nov. 28 urging congressional approval of the land swap before the end of the year and the end of the 115th Congress. A copy of the letter was provided to the News Tribune Opinion page.
“Both the House of Representatives and the Senate have advanced this with bipartisan support,” the letter points out. “Mining is a pillar of the economy in Minnesota, particularly the northern part of the state. Mining contributes $1.8 billion to Minnesota’s economy every year. Long-term investment, like that proposed by PolyMet, would provide robust economic value to local communities. The project will generate hundreds of jobs, including 2 million construction hours over 18-24 months, and an annual $515 million boost to the St. Louis County economy.”
Read More: https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/opinion/editorials/4545318-our-view-still-lot-land-swap
St. Paul, Minn. (Dec. 13, 2018) – Jobs for Minnesotans today released the following statement in response to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (MPUC) decision not to reconsider the issuance of the Line 3 Replacement Project’s Route Permit:
“Jobs for Minnesotans commends the unanimous MPUC decision to uphold the Line 3 Replacement Project Route Permit. This decision helps to propel the project forward and bring well-paying jobs to Minnesotans without further delay. Many of those jobs will be filled by skilled Minnesota-based tradespeople who are well equipped to build and maintain our energy infrastructure. Along with quality jobs, this project brings extensive benefits to communities all along the project’s route in the form of spin-off investment from the workers and project expenditures throughout construction and beyond.
“We thank the MPUC for the thorough and timely regulatory review process and look forward to seeing this project move to the construction phase. J4MN strongly encourages civility and respect for the communities along the route and the dedicated professional workers that will be constructing this project.”
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. (Dec. 3, 2018) – Jobs for Minnesotans today released the following statement in response to today’s appeal of permits issued last month for the PolyMet NorthMet Project:
“After a thorough, rigorous and lengthy environmental review process with ample public input, this appeal is one more attempt to delay an important project for the state of Minnesota that has demonstrated it can meet or exceed regulatory standards. The PolyMet NorthMet project is a major economic investment for our state and deserves to move ahead without further delay.
This project is Minnesota’s first opportunity to supply essential metals, such as copper and nickel, to the green economy and other critical components of our modern world. Through the issuance of permits last month by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, PolyMet demonstrated they have the right technology and the right environmental and financial protections to chart a responsible path forward for copper-nickel mining in Minnesota.”
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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