According to the Army Corps,  “the primary beneficiary of the route as proposed would be Kennecott.”  The Corps noted that 595 “is the most direct route from the Eagle Mine to Kennecott’s ore processing facility,” in Humboldt Township, so the road plan should be clear it would be built largely to service Kennecott’s mining operations.  The Corps outlined a number of hauling options that could work to service Kennecott’s Eagle Mine operation, including an already planned bypass of Marquette Township, as well as road-to-rail options, something Kennecott seriously considered in its original Eagle mining application. 

Unlike the Army Corps, the EPA did not note the road project is clearly for Kennecott’s mining operations and failed to mention bypass or rail options, focusing instead on two possible alternate routes east of proposed 595 that the county road commission is already supplying additional comments to the DEQ on:  one through the Mulligan Plains, and another using a portion of County Road 510. 

The county, reyling on information from Kennecott and the company’s road consultant, plans to prove these two options are not viable, arguing that only a direct route from the Eagle Mine to the company’s processing facility will work.  In an interview with the Marquette Mining Journal, county road commission engineer Jim Iwanicki said, “We’ve got some time to change [the EPA's] minds and that’s what we’re going to do.”

According to the EPA, the road commission “has not demonstrated” that the chosen 595 route is the least environmentally damaging route. 

“It is not possible at this time to provide the conditions necessary for issuance of this permit in accordance with [Clean Water Act] Guidelines,” the EPA letter said.  “As presently proposed, the project would lead to the significant degradation of aquatic resources, and the proposed wetland and stream mitigation would not fully compensate for the loss of aquatic function and value.”

The EPA’s concerns closely follow those of the DEQ.  According to the DEQ’s district supervisor for water resources, Steve Casey, after the road commission provides information showing that the best route is 595, the state will have to determine if the project is “in the public interest.”

The Army Corps’ March letter was clear that the claimed public benefit of the new Kennecott road is dubious, at best.  This from a previous Headwaters’ article on the Corps’ comments:

According to the Corps a number of arguments in support of 595, including job creation, public safety, and recreational can’t be supported.  The letter states, “Construction jobs would be created by any of the alternative routes, either through upgrades or new construction.”  Additionally, while 595 would change the type of recreation in the area to one more focused on urban motor vehicle access, claims 595 would improve the recreational experience are “based on personal taste.”

A key argument used by county officials in support of the 595 plan – public safety – was refuted in the Corps’ letter.  According to the letter, Kennecott is listed in the application as the primary user of emergency services in the area.  By upgrading the Triple A road, the company’s own emergency personnel, as well as emergency services in nearby Big Bay, would have more efficient access to the region.

Despite statements that 595 has been needed by the county for years, the Corps found no evidence that the county has shown a need for a new road west of the Dead River Dam system prior to working with Kennecott on the project.  The claimed need for a road west of the dams is heavily emphasized throughout the application, with an entire appendix of news articles focused on the 2003 flood of the Dead River.  Yet, even during that catastrophic flood emergency personnel were able to reach the northwestern part of the county using an old bridge.  Since 2010 that bridge has been replaced with one tall enough to withstand a complete failure of the dam system.  This new bridge was not mentioned in the 595 application.

Research provided by Catherine Parker used for this article.

The letter makes clear that the “the primary beneficiary of the route as proposed would be Kennecott.”  According to the Corps, 595 “is the most direct route from the Eagle Mine to Kennecott’s ore processing facility,” in Humboldt Township, so the road plan should be clear it would be built largely to service Kennecott’s mining operations.

In the letter, the Corps lists a number of other potential hauling routes that would be preferable to constructing 595, including rail options, something not considered in the application.  Rehabilitating abandoned railways, the Corps writes, “in combination with selected road improvements and active railroad lines, may provide a potentially viable alternative for transportation of ore and timber, as well as improve road access from US-41 to the northern portion of Marquette County.”

At a meeting Tuesday, county commissioner Mike Quayle supported having Kennecott haul ore using a rail system, instead of constructing 595.

“The rail option is what Kennecott first applied for and, after the purchase of the Humboldt mill, changed their plan and wanted first to build the Woodland Road, abandoned that plan. . . as it appeared they would run into too much resistance from regulatory agencies,” said Quayle.  ”Kennecott and local politicians came up with a proposal for the road commission to apply for virtually the same road, only changing the name to County Road 595.”

“Sixty percent of Marquette County roads and bridges are in need of repair and we have little or no money to do so.  The road commission should worry about the. . . roads and bridges needed to be repaired rather than applying for a new 22 mile road that is virtually a mine hauling road and will add more costs to the. . . operating budget.”

Quayle supported the idea of using rail networks at a road commission meeting last January.

“Rail transportation, in my opinion, should be the first consideration to avoid safety issues now coming to the foreground and will help save the current road systems which we all know this type of hauling is very hard on,” Quayle said at the January 2011 meeting.

Kennecott’s originally submitted hauling plan involved trucking ore from the Eagle Mine to a railhead north of Marquette, then using rail to transport ore for processing.

In addition to rail possibilities, the Army Corps’ letter noted Kennecott’s currently approved hauling route (Big Bay to Marquette, using County Road 550) would look more feasible if the applicant considered constructing a bypass of the city of Marquette, through Marquette Township, another possible route not considered in the 595 plan.  The township’s master plan already demonstrates a need for this specific road, which would divert heavy truck traffic from more populated urban areas.

According to the Corps a number of arguments in support of 595, including job creation, public safety, and recreational can’t be supported.  The letter states, “Construction jobs would be created by any of the alternative routes, either through upgrades or new construction.”  Additionally, while 595 would change the type of recreation in the area to one more focused on urban motor vehicle access, claims 595 would improve the recreational experience are “based on personal taste.”

A key argument used by county officials in support of the 595 plan – public safety – was refuted in the Corps’ letter.  According to the letter, Kennecott is listed in the application as the primary user of emergency services in the area.  By upgrading the Triple A road, the company’s own emergency personnel, as well as emergency services in nearby Big Bay, would have more efficient access to the region.

Despite statements that 595 has been needed by the county for years, the Corps found no evidence that the county has shown a need for a new road west of the Dead River Dam system prior to working with Kennecott on the project.  The claimed need for a road west of the dams is heavily emphasized throughout the application, with an entire appendix of news articles focused on the 2003 flood of the Dead River.  Yet, even during that catastrophic flood emergency personnel were able to reach the northwestern part of the county using an old bridge.  Since 2010 that bridge has been replaced with one tall enough to withstand a complete failure of the dam system.  This new bridge was not mentioned in the 595 application.

The Corps reiterated a concern the agency expressed about Kennecott’s original Woodland Road plan, in 2010, that construction of 595 could lead to additional mining and logging in the area.  The 595 application states that without the new road the “full economic benefits” to the logging and mining industries “cannot be realized.”  The Corps writes that the haul road plan must consider these foreseeable industrial activities as potential impacts if 595 were built.

The letter also stated that 595 would cause too great of harm to wetlands, wildlife, and rare and sensitive plants.

Following the Corps’ letter, the county road commission can now change its application to conform with federal legal requirements.  That, combined with existing political pressure to build the haul road, may be the county’s only option now if it wants to get 595 approved and built for Kennecott.

To date the county has spent over $50,000 attempting to obtain permits for Kennecott’s road, in addition to securing state funding to use public revenue to fund portions of the hauling route not covered in the application, including a multi-million dollar road leading into the company’s processing facility.  According to the road commission, if 595 is ultimately approved, public funding would also likely be used to upgrade a portion of the Triple A road connecting the Eagle Mine with 595.

Schultz criticizes the bill for eliminating public challenges to permit decisions among other concerns.  He also has stated that legislators need to consult with the scientific community on the matter.

At a news conference Schultz said , “I am far from the perfect legislator, but when all is said and done, I’m the one who has to look myself in that mirror, and today I do so with a clear conscience.”

The bill, if passed, would help streamline the process for Gogebic Taconite to build a twenty-one mile long open pit iron mine in the Penokee Hills of Wisconsin just south of Lake Superior.  The company has proposed piping in water for the project from Ironwood, Michigan.

Schultz says he is not opposed to mining and is still willing to discuss changes.

Click here to read more

Location of the Proposed Mine, courtesy Savethewatersedge.com

This short video shows a subtle but colorful auroral display as it glows on the Lake Superior horizon. Unexpectedly captured is northern lights illuminated ice cover flowing in the Lake Superior current. Rotating constellations, meteors, satellites, and I think an iridium flare are seen as the aurora ebbs and flows. Helps one appreciate and contemplate the wonders of our world and our space in time and beyond. This is one of my first attempts at a longer TL. Hope to have the opportunity to catch more northern lights and do more of this, it’s addictive!

Mr. Santorum does not usually tailor his introductory remarks to his audiences, but because the U.P. is so neglected, he did so on Sunday. He talked about going to a local eatery, Lawry’s Pasty Shop, for a “filling” breakfast. A pasty (pronounced PASS-tee) is like a chicken pot pie and is a U.P. specialty.

Mr. Santorum said he put Heinz ketchup on his pasty in an effort to blend his home culture of Pittsburgh with the local culture here.

He was chattier and seemed more relaxed than he has at recent events. He told the audience that he had arranged for his logo to appear on top of a car at the Daytona 500 and, with a comic’s timing, he drew out his description of advice he said he gave the driver.

“When you’re starting way in the back of the pack, just hang back there for a while, let all the other cars in front of you” — here he paused — “wreck,” he said to laughter, “and then run hard in the last few laps and win the race.” It was lost on no one that this reflected the course of Mr. Santorum’s campaign.

. . .

He then delved into his main message, about what he calls economic freedom. He said that President Obama had denied Americans their freedom with laws like his health care plan, saying repeatedly and derisively that the president believes “he knows better than you.”

His fury at the Obama health care plan, he said, is the reason he got into the presidential race. He vowed to repeal the health care law, saying it represented the government’s failure to trust its own citizens.

One man complained about Mr. Santorum’s opposition to Mr. Obama’s health care plan, which requires everyone to have health insurance. The man said his mother had not been able to get prenatal care until she was seven months into one of her pregnancies. “Is this the kind of freedom you want to give us?” the man asked. “This is what happens when poor people don’t have health care.”

For the first time since this debate began a year ago, the people of Mellen had the chance to express their views on the proposed Gogebic Taconite mine and Assembly Bill 426. Approximately 150 people attended a hearing on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012, called by Senator Bob Jauch (Poplar) and Senator Dayle Schulz (R-Richland Center) at the Mellen School.

Also on the panel of legislators were Senator Tim Cullen (D-Janesville), Senator Jim Holperin (D-Conover), and Representative Janet Bewley (D-Ashland). Senator Jauch spoke for the group when he said it was about time we came to Mellen, the heart of the proposed mine area.

After a welcome by City Council President Pete Russo, the listening session was kicked off by Joe Barabe, Mayor of Mellen for 24 years. Although he is in favor of a mine coming to the area, he emphatically stated that if AB426 passed, he would essentially be handing over the keys of Mellen to Gogebic Taconite.

“Make no mistake, I am pro-mine, pro-people, but not this mine under these conditions.”

Because of the Assembly Bill 426, a feeling of distrust has surfaced even among mine supporters. People are looking for facts which they are not getting from the mining company or their government. If they knew the plan, they could address the issues, ask the right questions, and make intelligent decisions. Citizens commented that AB426 protects the mining company from environmental regulations and that if the mine could be operated safely, they wouldn’t be asking for these changes. Senator Jauch addressed the issue of trust, saying that there is frustration with the way the bill was rushed and the public manipulated to look only at the economic impact. He referenced a speaker from the Platteville hearing who said legislators should write a law as if they lived 1500 feet from the mine.

Although a handful of citizens spoke out against the mine and a few spoke for it, the majority expressed the same view as that of Mayor Barabe. They are in favor of mining returning to the area but not in favor of this bill which jeopardizes the quality of the environment. Several people advised the senators to slow down. Don’t rush into these changes; go to Hibbing to see what it’s like; encourage all legislators to visit the area up here before voting; consult scientists.

Senator Schulz said he learned that this community prizes its environment over jobs. He will take the spirit of citizenship shown here back to Madison to find common ground in the Senate. He does not support AB426 as it does not treat the people up here fairly. Although he feels we must have a growing economy, if we do not have a safe environment, there will be no reason for more jobs. This week he will be looking for answers about why the specific changes in the law were requested by the mining company. And finally, he believes we can achieve both an economy that allows people to earn a living and one that appreciates the environment.

The Assembly Bill 426 will be discussed in the Joint Finance Committee next week while the Wisconsin Way compromise bill will be introduced in the Senate.

Dear Editors:

Not a bad summary, but the most important questions were neither answered nor asked.

1.  Justification for a road.  Apparently it is to haul from mine(s) to mill.  But why not ship direct from mine to smelter, as originally planned?  The plan is still to mine only high-grade Massive and Semi-Massive ores, isn’t it?

Was it an error to purchase the mill, now necessitating a cover-up?

Why is the mill equipped to handle 10,000 tpd [tons per day] while the Eagle produces only 2,000 tpd?

At 10,000 tpd where would the extra tailings go?

Given the original plan, to ship direct to Ontario, no special haul road would be needed.

Without the mine there would be no new road, right?  The other “justifications” are political padding. The loggers can manage without it, so too the tourists and the playboys.  Rescue missions could take a bit longer but could be paid for by those willing to venture into a wilderness – as the Coast Guard may bring the chopper to rescue fishermen off errant K Bay ice – but they bill for those services.

2.  Specifications for a new road.  Basically we need to know about the traffic and the duration of the need.

How many trucks per day?  KEMC does not publicize the number.

For how many years?  KEMC again will not specify the number.

Then we cannot design a road logically.  It would seem that KEMC must have reason not to say, for example: average 40 50-ton trucks per day, for ten years, as they did originally.

One might even speculate that they have revoked their glorious corporate pledge – to be open and transparent in their dealings with the public.  Is that the case?

3.  Alternates.  These were called for.

I have already submitted thoughts for a more palatable alternative, which is to build a less intrusive road, not a 50 mph freeway but a 25 mph haul road, two lanes plus passing lanes, more curves and shorter straights (necessary to stay within existing right-of-ways) and steeper grades for the same reason,.  The lower speed limit would still give reasonable trip times, but also less noise, dust, pollution, risk of serious accidents and road kills and significantly lower costs of construction and maintenance.  The speed limits must be enforced.

I would suggest that after mines no longer need to haul to Humboldt  (where would tailings go?), the road be left to antiquate, like the Peshekee grade.  To those who say they want continuing access to the wilderness creeks and lakes and hunting opportunities I respond:  “Not a good idea.  I would not want those places to be fished out on opening weekend.  Go back to the Carp.”

That should be enough for a start.  Get those basics from Rio Tinto before we waste more time and money on half-baked planning.  Is anybody going to bet that we will get those facts, instantly?

Don’t ever forget the value of the Eagle Mine, now around $5,000,000,000.00 – 473,485 miles of dollar bills, 18 wraps around the equator, with more to come.  Rio Tinto can afford to build a road for themselves.  They cannot afford not to.

Military veteran James Haun, from Skanee, speaks out against the "County Road 595" mine hauling road; Photo: Chauncey Moran

Bill Malmsten, an Ishpeming resident and president of the Upper Peninsula Environmental Coalition, summed up a sentiment commonly heard throughout the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality hearing.

“I’m pretty sure that there isn’t a person in this room who doesn’t understand that the real purpose of the County Road 595 proposal is not what’s stated in the wetland application, that it’s no coincidence that 595 would start at Kennecott’s mill and end at Kennecott’s mine, that’s it’s no coincidence that the 595 route follows almost the exact same route as the previously proposed mine haul road,” said Malmsten.

“The 595 proposal is an attempt by Marquette County officials to assist Kennecott in circumventing wetland regulations to construct the shortest possible haul road between the mine and the mill.”

The 595 proposal is similar to a previous “Woodland Road” proposal submitted by Kennecott, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Rio Tinto, two years ago.  That original proposal was withdrawn after criticism from the federal government and revived later in 2010 by Marquette County officials as “County Road 595.”  595, like the Woodland Road, has been designed by the company, although the Marquette County Road Commission (MCRC) is now applying for the permit.  Rio Tinto is currently approved to haul ore from Big Bay to Marquette on County Road 550, through Marquette, and west on US-41 to the company’s Humboldt processing mill.

James Haun, a military veteran living in Skanee, regaled the audience with a short story of a life-changing event that happened to him in the jungles of Vietnam.

“Thirty-four and a half years ago I was sitting in a bunker in Vietnam with another man that came from this area,” said Haun.  “He told me about this area, an area where you could drink out of the streams, which I have many times, where you could catch a brook trout . . . how beautiful and remote it was.  My pursuit led me here.  I told him if I survived – I do not know if he did – that I would be here the next year.  And I was, and I’ve only missed one year in my life being up here, I loved it so.  Eleven years ago I retired up here.  I hope that he’s been able to come here too.”

Doug Sweeney, an energetic self-described “capitalist,” Republican, and military veteran, said he is “in favor of economic development for Marquette County,” but is “absolutely opposed” to 595.

“The simple fact remains that the vast majority of people that spoke in favor of this are going to benefit economically,” said Sweeney.  “To put it right through that pristine wilderness is an absolute travesty and I’m adamantly opposed to it.

Jim Sodergren, a retired Marquette County planning commissioner and county treasurer, supported 595, dismissed concerns like Sweeney’s that the area would be harmed by the road project.

“In Marquette County 28% of the land is classified as wetlands,” said Sodergren.  “We don’t need any more swamps.”

Gene Champagne, from Big Bay, said the county never expressed a need for a road like 595 until Rio Tinto’s submitted its Woodland Road plan in 2010.

“The only difference between this road and the Woodland Road is a couple of vowels and a couple of feet or miles,” said Champagne.  “I realize there’s probably a lot of people in this room who favor this road but I betcha every single one of those people knows this is a haul road for Kennecott at the same time, even if they don’t say so publicly.”

Champagne’s claim is supported by recent correspondence between the MCRC and the DEQ.

On December 2, 2011, the DEQ’s transportation specialist, Jerry Fulcher, asked the MCRC’s Jim Iwanicki, “I thought I heard you mention that the county has long planned on building a road west of the Silver Lake basin.  Do you have any county master plan or road commission minutes that would show this?”

In a response Iwanicki said, “I said I do not have a long range plan from the county planning commission on a road west of Dead River Dam system.” [Emphasis in the original]

Reggie Durant, a resident of Marquette Township who lives on Rio Tinto’s approved hauling route, said he is opposed to the 595 project and isn’t concerned if the company hauls ore on its approved route through Marquette.  Durant said he “frequently” sees heavy truck traffic related to the Cliffs’ iron ore mine, We Energies’ power plant, and heavy logging trucks.

“Not once have I encountered these trucks driving in an unsafe manner,” said Durant.  “Consideration by the State of Michigan should be given to holding Kennecott/Rio Tinto to the original plan of using [550] as a haul road to a rail head.”

Rio Tinto’s originally hauling plan was to use County Road 550 to haul ore to a railhead north of Marquette, avoiding hauling through major population centers.  This was changed to trucking the ore through Marquette, a plan approved by the DEQ in 2007.  All of the speakers at the hearing who stated they live along the current hauling route expressed opposition to the 595 project.

Rochelle Dale said she understands “things are complicated” and there are safety issues with any ore hauling route.  Although Dale lives off of County Road 510 – one of Rio Tinto’s ore hauling options – she is opposed to the 595 road proposal.

“By not wanting the road to be 550 and into Marquette, it’s like those people in Marquette who are for the mine, but they don’t want to see those trucks, they don’t want that truck traffic, so let’s put it over here, we don’t see it, we can forget about it,” said Dale.  “I think that we need to consider that there are things more important than the dollar.”

Many of the comments in support of the 595 hauling road came from politicians, most of them speaking, in succession, at the opening of the hearing.  Of 27 comments in support of the project, 8 came from politicians or their representatives, and 5 from representatives of logging and mining companies, like Plum Creek and Rio Tinto.  These, as well as comments by several individuals representing economic booster groups or committees, largely paraphrased the 595 application’s project purpose, a key component of what the DEQ must consider when reviewing the project.

The 595 project statement, paraphrased in nearly two-dozen comments supporting the haul road:

“ . . .  to construct a primary county north-south road that 1.) connects and improves emergency, commercial, industrial and recreational access to a somewhat isolated but key industrial, commercial and recreational area in northwest Marquette County to US-41; and 2.) reduces truck travel from this area through Marquette County population centers.”

One of the more interesting of these stock comments came from county sheriff Michael Lovelace.  “It’s going to open up the area to recreation, there’s going to be hunting, fishing, mountain biking, skiing, camping and, maybe meth labs,” said Lovelace.

George Lindquist, a hunter and resident along County Road 510, disagreed with some of the claims that the 595 hauling proposal would benefit recreational users and enhance public safety.

“Safety has been one of the things brought up here many times over,” said Lindquist.  “When you get a fifty-five mile-an-hour road this narrow, you’re going to have problems.  There isn’t room on the road to pull off to park on the side of this road.  So, how is that benefiting outdoors people, how is that benefiting recreation, how is that benefiting anybody getting anywhere when you can’t stop on the side of this road?”

Dr. Alan Olson, from Marquette seemed to agree with Lindquist that the safety argument in support of the hauling road is not fully justified.

“Maybe we should suggest paving the Triple A and the Peshekee so that everybody that goes into what would cease to be a wilderness area could have the convenience of being hauled out of there when they got lost or hurt or whatever,” said Olson.

“That isn’t the purpose of a wilderness area.  A wilderness serves a purpose, in my mind, of healing human beings.  It heals the mind.”

Only one politician at the hearing did not support the 595 hauling road.  While Powell Township supervisor Daryl Wilcox said he is “not against the road,” his comments were critical of the plan.  Wilcox said the township passed a unanimous resolution expressing concern that County Road 550, the main road connecting Big Bay with the city of Marquette, could suffer if 595 is built, causing commercial traffic to completely bypass Big Bay.

“If this mine is so good for everybody, and 595 is so good for everybody, make 595 go somewhere, don’t just make it go to the Kennecott Mine,” Wilcox said.  ”I’m not against the road . . . but as it stands it’s a haul road.”

Kirk Larsen, one of few speakers neutral on the project said he has concerns that a huge gravel pit will be built along the 595 route, changing the wilderness character of the area.

“Getting away from the rest of the world, that’s going to be harder and harder to do now,” Larsen said.

Lindquist, the hunter, expressed concern that public funds would be used to help plan, build, and maintain the road, if built.

“If this road is so important for access, for recreation, for timber, for all these other reasons besides mining, why has so little money gone into the Peshekee Grade all these years,” said Lindquist.  “The county, the road commission is putting a lot of money, a lot of time, a lot of effort into this with no guarantee of any outcome.  This is taxpayer’s money.”

According to the MCRC, $83 million is needed in order to repair existing county roads and bridges, while 60% of county road infrastructure is in need of repair.  Road commission board member David Hall, speaking at a Monday meeting, said Upper Peninsula road funding is set to take a “shellacking,” with further cuts expected soon.

As of February 6, the county has spent at least $51,288.31 working to get the haul road project permitted.  According to the 595 application, the county would also be responsible for maintenance of the road.

Other costs to the public include potential Michigan Category A funding for upgrades of the final north and south legs of the proposed haul road not covered in the 595 application.  County Road 601, which connects Rio Tinto’s Humboldt Mill with M-95 is expected to receive $1.9 million in funding, while upgrading the “Triple A” road from the Eagle Mine site to where 595 would start, would likely be eligible for this funding if the 595 plan is approved.

Harry Smith, a retired miner, echoed Lindquist’s funding concerns.

“I have a problem with the Woodland Road – 595 – the reason being I think Kennecott should pay for their hauling and not the taxpayers of Marquette County,” said Smith.

The public can comment on the County Road 595 hauling plan by writing the DEQ at: MDEQ 420 5th St. Gwinn, MI 49841; e-mailing Virginia Pennala, at PENNALAV@michigan.gov; or submitting comments online at the DEQ’s comment page (once at the page, type in the file number 11-52-0075 on the left panel and select “Search”).

Readers can view application information at the DEQ’s website.

Other commenting options are detailed at the bottom of the Lake Superior Mining News’ posting on the project.

We Energies' Presque Isle Power Plant, in Marquette

Speaking at Operation Action U.P.’s annual meeting, Hedman said, “I would suggest that [power plants] consider the cost that they have been imposing…on you, by failing to do their part.  People who live and vacation in the Upper Peninsula can’t eat their fish because [upwind] states haven’t been doing their part to solve the problem.”

Hedman discussed the new Cross State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR), which will likely be implemented under the Clean Air Act.  The rule – finalized in December, but now stalled in court – would reduce power plant emissions crossing state lines that contribute to ozone and fine particle pollution in other states.  The rule would replace the EPA’s Clean Air Interstate Rule, adopted in 2005.

Recently adopted Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) would further regulate mercury and other toxic emissions from power plants.  In December a coalition representing 125,000 businesses in the United States wrote a letter urging President Obama to implement MATS.

“We believe that failure to implement MATS would create significant uncertainty for the business community and delay investment,” the letter said.  ”Our experience has shown that the Clean Air Act yields substantial benefits to the economy and to businesses, and that these benefits consistently outweigh the costs of pollution reductions.”

“The goal of this very flexible rule is to allow electric generators to find the least burdensome and the least cost compliance option,” said Hedman.  ”The laws allow power producers three years to upgrade coal plants, a step many have already taken.  If three years isn’t enough, operators can request an additional one-year extension.

According to Hedman, the CSAPR would prevent 90% of the mercury in coal burning power plants from being released into the air.  This rule would also reduce other metals linked to neurological damage and sometimes cancer, reduce acidic gases by over 80%, as well as thousands of cases of lung cancer, asthma, and chronic respiratory diseases in primarily children and the elderly.

According to an EPA fact sheet, the CSAPR, combined with MATS, will provide annual benefits of $150 to $380 billion, and prevent up to 46,000 premature deaths, 540,000 asthma attacks, 13,000 emergency room visits, and 2 million missed work or school days every year.

The CSAPR would prevent as many as 34,000 premature deaths, 15,000 nonfatal heart attacks, 400,000 cases of aggravated asthma, 19,000 fewer cases of acute bronchitis, and 1.8 million sick days a year beginning in 2014, while saving Americans up to $280 billion, annually, on unnecessary healthcare costs.

The EPA estimates implementing MATS, alone, will create tens of thousands of jobs, with 46,000 short-term construction jobs and 8,000 long-term utility jobs.

“ I think it should be clear that I completely reject the premise that environmental standards are a regulatory burden that interferes with job creation,” said Hedman.  “And the evidence that I have just presented demonstrates that environmental standards actually can help to drive job creation.”

According to Hedman, the CSAPR received unprecedented public support, with roughly 900,000 citizens commenting, the vast majority in support of regulating mercury emissions.  The law would have taken effect by the beginning of 2012, but electric generating companies in some states challenged it in court, successfully blocking implementation while the court system reviews the law.

Hedman discussed We Energies’ proposal to close the the Presque Isle Power Plant, in Marquette, apparently due to the newly proposed regulations.  According to Hedman, We Energies has excess allowances from its Wisconsin power plants that they could use in Michigan or sell to defer the cost of work on the Marquette plant. Ironically, some of the same companies challenging the regulations in court admit they are not too burdensome.

“So are these rules too much of a regulatory burden?” questioned Hedman.  “We’ve seen some court challenges but even the companies that are taking us to court to try to block the regulations admit that they’re really not too burdensome.”

Additional reporting by Gabriel Caplett

From jobs to natural resources and elections, the regulatory system is increasingly being criticized for serving the interests of corporations, a concept supported at private sector economic development group, Operation Action U.P.’s annual meeting.  Themed “Jobs vs. Regulatory Burden,” the meeting featured a panel representing the mining industry, as well as a keynote presentation by Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Great Lakes Region 5 Administrator, Susan Hedman (Click here to watch a video of the meeting).

Jobs vs. Regulatory Burden

Promotional materials set the stage for the meeting, featuring an image of two boxing gloves, one representing the regulator, and the other the regulated corporation.  However, had it been a real boxing match, it would have ended with a technical knockout shortly after Hedman’s presentation, as it became quite obvious that a majority of regulations today are not so much a burden to industry, as a service providing business security.

Hedman Addresses Legacy Contamination, Deregulation, Job Creation

Hedman’s presentation addressed two situations: the first included cases where contamination occurred because there were no regulations in place (frequently the case with the legacy of contamination in Great Lakes Areas of Concern (AOCs); the second included locations where regulations were not adequately protective from the beginning.  Hedman also demonstrated that environmental standards have helped to drive job creation in the U.S.

Hedman provided the audience with a tour of five AOCs that are found in the U.P., an AOC is a designated geographic area that shows severe environmental degradation.  The five U.P. areas include the Menominee River, Torch Lake, Manistique River, the St, Mary’s River, and Deer Lake.     Money for cleaning up these toxic legacies and controlling invasive species will come from Great Lakes Restoration Initiative funds—the largest investment in the Great Lakes in two decades.

In addition to legacy contamination clean-up Hedman also addressed deregulation issues.  She cited the July 2010 Enbridge oil spill in the Kalamazoo River, near Marshall, Michigan—the largest inland oil spill in Midwest history.  Hedman added that there is a need in the region for company incentives and regulations to upgrade aging pipelines, including lines running near Lake Michigan in the UP.

“EPA doesn’t regulate pipelines,” said Hedman…“We just clean up the spills when they happen…If pipeline maintenance was funded to that similar in Canada,  pipeline companies would  have real incentives to maintain pipelines…I don’t want to clean up any more of these spills.”

Keynote Speaker Susan Hedman

Hedman also spoke to the recent implementation of the Cross State Air Pollution Rule, under the Clean Air Act to control mercury emissions, a public health concern.

Hedman explained that money spent on emissions reductions for power plants has served to provide high quality American jobs associated with the creation, assembly, installation, operation and maintenance of pollution control equipment.

“I’ve been talking about the enormous costs that we’ve incurred to restore the environment so that we can drink the water, eat the fish, go swimming and breathe the air  without getting sick,” concluded the Administrator. “At this point I think it should be clear that I completely reject the premise that environmental standards are a regulatory burden that interferes with job creation.  And the evidence that I have just presented demonstrates that environmental standards actually can help to drive job creation.”

Considering promotion of the event as combative, Hedman surprisingly faced little criticism and few questions from the crowd.   Although Greg Andrews, U.P. representative to Governor Snyder, did comment on his concerns for cormorants in the region, a question Hedman deferred to a different agency.  Most criticism of Hedman came the night before, at a meeting of citizens, environmental groups and tribal representatives.

Tribes and Environmental Groups Accuse EPA of Failure to Act on Citizens’ Behalf

Administrator Hedman Meets with Tribes and Environmental Organizations

Perhaps Hedman’s knockout presentation was fueled by the heavy criticism she received the night before.  While in town, EPA also attended two meetings.  Headwaters was not allowed to attend the meeting with road commissioners about a proposed mine road but was invited to a roundtable discussion with tribes and environmental groups.

The overall atmosphere of the roundtable discussion was one of citizen frustration with federal and state regulatory agencies. Participants commented that despite numerous efforts, including various communication efforts with the EPA, their concerns remain unaddressed on new mining in the region.

Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) President Chris Swartz explained that, “The lack of federal programs for mining in Michigan leaves tribes vulnerable to the interpretation of Michigan laws by Michigan agencies alone…”  Michigan is only one of two states with delegated authority to oversee most of the EPA programs, eliminating some tribal consultation requirements.

KBIC and Lac Vieux Desert informed the EPA that there was a heightened expectation by the tribes that EPA and other federal agencies exercise federal responsibilities and trust obligations directly by reviewing and critically commenting on mine-related permit applications in Michigan.

Michelle Halley, an attorney for the National Wildlife Federation, explained that she was involved in battling the proposed Eagle Mine in Marquette County for nearly a decade and expressed her frustration with the EPA and the legal system.

“The legal challenge route is not a good solution.  For one thing, most organizations and    people don’t have the resources to do it, and even in this case when we have had ample resources the results have been abysmal quite honestly…,”said Halley.

Mining Company Panelists Satisfied with State Mining Laws

Panelists Representing Rio Tinto, Orvana, and HudBay

A panel of mining representatives ended the Operation Action U.P. meeting.  Speakers included Adam Burley, President of Rio Tinto Kennecott Eagle Minerals; Dave Anderson, Director of Health, Safety, Environment and Government Relations for the Orvana Resources’ proposed Copperwood Project; and Mick Lawler, Senior Mine Manager for HudBay Minerals Inc.’s proposed Back 40 project.

Although speakers expressed some regulatory concerns including business uncertainty, “hysteria” over mercury contamination, and the cost of water treatment systems, they were mostly pleased with the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) and the State’s new nonferrous metallic sulfide mining regulation, colloquially known as “Part 632.”

“I certainly don’t see regulation itself as a burden…I’ve worked in many parts of the world…where lack of regulation…can lead to dire consequences…I think the engagement we had with respect to Part 632…was…a very broad engagement process…and out of that was born a very stringent piece of legislation…,” said Rio Tinto’s Adam Burley.

Anderson also expressed his approval of the Part 632 process and the Michigan DEQ.

“The DEQ is a fantastic organization and I have nothing to say about them ever,” said Anderson. “I think MI is moving to get its reputation back on track…I think 632 moving forward was a good thing.”

Headwaters asked Anderson if he had changed his mind or if the venue had only changed; at a meeting with citizens and environmentalists in Alberta, in December 2010, Anderson lamented the weaknesses in federal and state regulations, including Michigan’s mining law.

According to Anderson’s past interpretation, “The U.S. is a long ways behind in environmental protection…The fact that the Clean Water Act was originally intended to end discharges to surface water obviously has not reached its goal and we basically, like 632 did, we created a process to allow these things to occur.”

Anderson responded expressing his new-found confidence that, “…aside from the EU [European Union], the standards in the United States and the water quality standards of Michigan are much more stringent than other third world countries,” said Anderson. “And, I think our country has the ability and the intelligence and the regulations that make it done safely.”

Mick Lawler, of HudBay, also supported Burley and Anderson’s optimism in Michigan’s new mining law,

“You know, investors demand the very best so there’s no way you’re gonna mine irresponsibly in an unsustainable fashion, because investors just demand that you do, and that’s why management systems are set up and followed and Part 632, although strict, we have no issue with it what-so-ever.”

Mining Companies Influence Regulations Throughout the Great Lakes

There are a number of regulatory changes taking place in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan to stream-line application processes and improve tax incentives for mining and timber interests, so it should come as little surprise that the mining panelists had few complaints about the regulatory system, state mining laws or the EPA.

In Wisconsin a contentious mining bill, recently passed by the State Assembly, would move 40% of tax revenue from impacted communities and add it to state coffers, likely to help alleviate a projected $143 million in budget shortfalls.  The bill would also include a law to cap the total amount of fees paid to the state at $2 million.

In Minnesota, there are plans to introduce legislation for a federal to state land exchange that would result in the loss of many tens of thousands of acres of national forest land and would help companies circumvent federal environmental laws in the Superior National Forest.

In Michigan, Representative Matt Huuki and Senator Tom Casperson, both Republicans, worked to implement Public Act 113, preventing local governments from zoning against mining projects.  Plans are in the works to revamp the structure of taxes for mining companies that local governments and citizens worry will take much needed money from schools and communities closest to the mine.

But some communities and governments, such as the City Council in Duluth Minnesota, are finding ways to fight back, transitioning from regulating corporate harms to stopping them by asserting local governance.  Duluth recently passed a resolution supporting a constitutional amendment taking a stand against corporate personhood.