Tell the National Park Service to Protect the St. Croix River from Sulfide Mine Pollution!
The National Park Service seeks public input on the St. Croix Comprehensive Riverway Management Plan. This is your chance to tell the Park Service that the Talon Metals/Rio Tinto proposed nickel sulfide ore mine threatens to pollute this Wild and Scenic River and increase toxic mercury contamination of fish.
PLEASE COMMENT ON THE NATIONAL PARK SERVICE WEBSITE ON OR BEFORE AUGUST 8, 2023.
Talking Points
- The full scope of the Talon Metals Tamarack nickel mine is likely to extend to the West Branch Kettle River which flows to the Kettle River and the St. Croix River. The map below, prepared by St. Croix 360 in June 2o23, shows the extent of Talon mineral lease control and drilling locations along the West Branch Kettle River.
- The initial mine proposal submitted by Talon Metals to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to start environmental review and permitting is a small fraction of what Talon insists is a “district scale” mineral resource. Environmental review must study all of the significant potential impacts of mining, including pollution of the St. Croix River, before a mine is permitted and it is too late.
- The St. Croix River is already impaired due to mercury in fish. The Talon Metals nickel deposit is a “massive sulphide mineralization,” with high levels of sulfide and metals. Nickel, cobalt, and copper in the deposit are toxic to aquatic life. Sulfate released to wetlands and sediments will increase toxic contamination of fish.
- The National Park Service can only protect the St. Croix River from Talon Metals pollution if the scope of DNR’s environmental impact statement (EIS) for the mine considers the potential impacts of mining the entire deposit, including downstream pollution and increased mercury contamination of fish in the St. Croix River.
Sample Responses to National Park Service Questions
What experiences on the St. Croix and Namekagon Rivers are most important to you?
My family loves canoeing on the St. Croix River and catching and eating fish, especially walleye and bass.
What experiences do you want future river users to have when visiting the St. Croix or Namekagon Rivers?
I hope that future St. Croix River users will be able to canoe and kayak, hop in the river to swim, and find plentiful fish that are safe to eat for everyone, including women and girls who want some day to become pregnant and bear children.
What barriers interfere with your desired experience at the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway?
Fish abundance is not as good as it could be and it is very discouraging that it is not safe to eat much fish due to mercury levels. I worry about people who rely on fish for protein harming their own health or that of their babies and children.
Looking at the future for our children and grandchildren, I see upstream nickel mining by Talon Metals as a major barrier to future good use of the Riverway. I do not want the Kettle River and the St. Croix River to be polluted and have fewer fish or more mercury contamination of fish.
What could the National Park Service do to address these barriers?
The National Park Service could participate as a federal governmental agency to influence the environmental review of the Talon Metals mine, which was proposed to the state of Minnesota this summer (June 2023). The National Park Service could make sure that the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) studies in depth the future impacts on the St. Croix River of the entire potential Talon Metals nickel mine so that we won’t find out after-the-fact that this wonderful river has been polluted with sulfate and toxic metals.
The National Park Service could also learn more and then help educate river users about the barrier that sulfide ore mining would create to our use of the St. Croix River as a treasured river to canoe, kayak, fish, and swim.
What river-related issues/topics are most important to you and why?
Clean water, a peaceful and beautiful area, and fish that are safe to eat. My family strongly opposes nickel mining upstream of the St. Croix River. We would also support even further restrictions on use of motors and stronger shoreline protections.
What is the National Park Service doing well in managing the Riverway?
We love the St. Croix River, and believe the Park Service has done a good job in preserving its unique value. The National Park Service must now play a key role in preventing the degradation that would result from upstream nickel mining.
Comments:
The St. Croix River is an irreplaceable treasure. It would be contaminated by the upstream proposed Talon Metals nickel mine. Talon Metals has control of 30,000 acres of minerals and has drilled as far southeast as the West Branch Kettle River. It is easy for a mine to get permits and then expand mining wherever leases and profits allow more mining.
The Talon Metals nickel sulfide ore mine would cause significant harm to the St. Croix River Scenic Riverway. This must not happen.
The National Park Service must ensure that the Minnesota DNR environmental impact statement for the Talon Metals mine studies the impact of the entire “district scale” mineral development that Talon has described in the newspapers. Then, when all the facts are laid out, the National Park Service must protect the Riverway from sulfide mining harm.