The Future of Our Forest?

With each town we passed through, we met local groups working toward a better environment. Each community was plagued by an environmental fight, to avoid a superfund site, to better their rivers, or even to discuss controversial proposed sulfide-ore mining for copper in their region. Wisconsin and Michigan both have past, or in Michigan's case, recently permitted copper mines. These communities gave us a national perspective on our local issue.

While in the Michigan UP, I took a slight detour to scope out a new Sulfide-mining project in the Yellow Dog Plains. We had heard from our friends at Save the Wild UP that the most surprising and immediate affect from the new mine was the change to their forest. Here in Northern Minnesota, our Superior National Forest could face similar changes as the setting for the proposed Twin Metals mine. I wanted to see for myself what the development looks like.

Image #1 is of a small logging road through the forest of the Yellow Dog plains. Previously, the Yellow Dog Plains was a remote and virtually untouched wilderness, aside from large scale logging operations. Image #2 shows the expansion of the logging roads in the forest for the purpose of the Eagle Mine. Michigan's new Eagle Mine was permitted in 2007. The life of the mine production is estimated to last up to eight years. The necessity of a four-lane highway for the transportation of the ore and heavy machinery during the 8 years of production has lead to the vast expansion of dozens of miles of their roads and clearcutting of the trees. The affect on their forest is indisputable.

As we work toward protecting our clean water, let's not forget about the trees. Our Superior National Forest is a treasure in itself.