It's time for opponents of mining to take responsibility for their high-tech lifestyles - Mesabi Daily News

As we work to expand good paying mining jobs and protect our precious environment, it’s time for all Americans to recognize the need to take responsibility for the high-tech lifestyle that mining supports.

The cold hard fact is that the cell phone in your pocket, the car you drive, the computer you use — all those things require the mining of strategic minerals. To support this high-tech way of life, we currently import up to 50% of our domestic mineral needs and nearly 100% of our scarce strategic minerals needs. That makes no sense. The Duluth Complex — right here on the Iron Range — contains the largest untapped deposits of copper, nickel, and other rare strategic minerals on Earth.

Moreover, it is simply unethical to approach mining with the “not in my backyard” attitude when Minnesota’s Iron Range possesses both the raw materials and rigorous federal and state regulations to do it right. We must remember that more often than not, someone else’s “back yard” is a poor, developing country — where workers labor for slave wages, with no health and safety protections, and where the environment is widely and freely degraded.

Recycling, of course, is an important part of meeting our strategic mineral needs. However, recycling cannot effectively replace mining. Today’s recycled steel, for example, supplies at best only 40% of our domestic steel needs.

In truth, the only way to acquire the minerals we need — while protecting workers, the environment, and the planet — is to mine responsibly right here on the Iron Range.

SIMPLE FACT No. 1: Mining here on the Range creates good paying jobs and supports fair labor practices around the world.

When we import metals from countries like China, we tacitly support abusive labor practices, such as forcing workers to toil through 12- or even 18-hour-long shifts. In Chinese-owned mines, workers are often subjected to extreme heat, as well as contact with acids and toxic chemicals. If they can’t cope with the physical demands of this job, they’re replaced. If they complain, they’re fired.

Why would we support these types of practices, when we can acquire the same strategic minerals right here in America? Here on the Iron Range, we have robust worker protections and strong unions that make sure miners stay safe. In addition, these American mining operations create thousands of good paying jobs for our citizens. To me, the choice is clear — we must support mining practices that enhance and protect human lives.

SIMPLE FACT No. 2: Mining on the Iron Range is good for the environment.

In many foreign countries, mine owners exploit the environment the same way that they exploit their workers. It doesn’t matter to these owners if toxic waste seeps into a river, or if thick clouds of mineral dust billow into the atmosphere. As long as they’re making a profit, they’re happy.

But in America, things couldn’t be more different. Whenever a company wants to start a mining operation, they have to comply with the strictest environmental rules and regulations in the world. They have to get approval from state government, federal government, the EPA, the Forest Service, the Army Corps of Engineers — the list goes on and on.

We care about keeping our air, water and land clean and pure. That’s especially true in our beautiful state of Minnesota, and that’s why I’ve always supported strong standards based on science and facts. We should pursue mining here on the Iron Range, where we can do it safely and responsibly.

SIMPLE FACT No. 3: Mining on the Iron Range helps us fight climate change.

The truth is, we need strategic minerals in order to address climate change — one of the greatest and most profound challenges of our generation. Many of the tools in the battle against climate change — windmills, hybrid cars, energy-efficient buildings — are created from minerals like copper, nickel, and steel. Every new electric car contains, on average, 165 pounds of copper, 9 pounds of nickel and 240 pounds of nickel-based aluminum. Every new wind turbine generating electricity to recharge these vehicles contains, on average, nearly 200 tons of steel per megawatt and approximately 4 tons of copper.

By manufacturing these products with American-mined strategic minerals, we can reduce our carbon footprint, keep our air and water clean, and fight back against the effects of climate change that threaten our entire world. In this sense, mining and environmental interests aren’t at odds with one another — in fact, they’re two passionate causes with one mutually-beneficial goal: a green economy with good paying jobs. Out here in Minnesota, we call that a win-win.

The fact of the matter is, the life of every worker matters, their good paying jobs matter, and our entire environment and our planet is at stake. That’s why we need to keep growing our Iron Range mining industry — and doing it the right way. Future generations are counting on us.