Regional environmental groups are celebrating the news that a disputed Wetlands Permit for a planned mine close to the Menominee River has been denied by a Michigan Administrative Law Judge, concluding a two-year contested case. On Thursday, January 14 at 7:00 pm EST, the Upper Peninsula Environmental Coalition’s “This Is It!” livestream series will explore the background and future implications of this important ruling in “A Win for Wetlands!”
In 2018, the state of Michigan sparked controversy when it approved the mining company’s Wetlands Permit over the objections of professional regulatory staff who were prepared to deny the permit. Environmental groups appealed, and in a January 4 ruling the Administrative Law Judge canceled the permit, essentially blocking, and perhaps killing, a project that would have posed grave pollution threats to wetlands and the waters of the Menominee River.
“This decision is a thoughtful, clear-eyed rebuke of this project,” said UPEC President Horst Schmidt. “The company’s approach to permitting the proposed mine has been hasty and incompetent, and reveals a disregard for Michigan’s natural resources. The decision demonstrates that the Wetland Permit was subject to denial for dozens of reasons.”
“A Win for Wetlands!” is an interactive panel discussion featuring four people who have been fighting the project for years: Al Gedicks of the Wisconsin Resources Protection Council, Dale Burie of the Coalition to Save the Menominee, Guy Reiter of Menikanaehkem, and Kathleen Heideman of the Mining Action Group.