Person with camera on misty lake

the Media Room

April 22, 2021

Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN) re-introduced legislation to protect Minnesota’s Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness from the threat of sulfide-ore copper mining. The Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection and Pollution Prevention Act permanently protects 234,328 acres of federal land and waters within the Superior National Forest from risky sulfide-ore copper mining. 

April 13, 2021

American Rivers today named the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness among America’s Most Endangered Rivers® of 2021, citing the grave threat proposed copper mining poses to clean water and America’s most popular wilderness.

March 26, 2021

Letter from Sen. Smith to federal agencies asks for completion of canceled mineral withdrawal study which could lead to 20 years of protection for America's most visited Wilderness

March 22, 2021

Biden administration is looking at the unlawful reinstatement of the Twin Metals mineral leases.

March 8, 2021

Youth and adult camps surround the Boundary Waters and are directly in the Twin Metals path of pollution; proposed sulfide-ore copper mining will ruin these longstanding educational centers.

March 3, 2021

The Boundary Waters sustains the livelihoods of thousands of Minnesotans and studies show that protecting the Wilderness from copper mining is the better economic choice for the sustainability of the region

May 4, 2024
Star Tribune

The reckless bill to rescind copper mining protections in the watershed that passed the U.S. House panders to foreign mine owners. Its fate now rests with voters.

May 1, 2024
The Timberjay

The U.S. House, this week, gave a narrow vote of approval for legislation that would rescind the mineral withdrawal affecting a portion of the Superior National Forest and require the reissuance of mineral leases for a proposed copper-nickel mine near Ely.

Apr 4, 2024
Quetico Superior Wilderness News

The Biden administration recently announced a goal to protect 30 percent of lands and waters throughout the United States by 2030. This includes continued protection from mining impacts near wilderness areas such as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA).

Dec 5, 2023
Duluth News Tribune:

From the column: "Foreign-owned mining company executives and misguided politicians will stop at nothing, it seems."

Nov 29, 2023
Quetico Superior Wilderness News

MPCA: High levels of problematic pollutant found in Birch Lake upstream from BWCAW.

Several lakes and rivers upstream of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness are contaminated with sulfate, which causes more mercury in fish and kills manoomin (wild rice), according to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and several citizen-led sampling efforts. In the past two years, the agency has considered new data that shows how waters downstream of past and present iron mines exceed standards for sulfate levels designed to protect the environment.

Nov 16, 2023
The Timberjay

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency has added Birch Lake to its draft list of the state’s impaired wild rice waters due to sulfate contamination from nearby mining operations. That list, which is updated every two years, was released in draft form on Tuesday. Pending public comments and approval from the federal Environmental Protection Agency, the final list is expected to be approved next April.

Nov 16, 2023
MPR News

State officials are proposing to add 54 lakes, rivers and streams to the list of Minnesota waters considered impaired because of pollution, including a large lake on the border of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

Nov 16, 2023
Fox 9

Birch Lake near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness has been added to the impaired waters list after a study found elevated levels of sulfate in the water. 

Nov 16, 2023
Duluth News Tribune

A group opposed to mining near the Boundary Waters hopes that adding Birch Lake will make permitting a copper-nickel mine more difficult.

VIDEOS & WEBINARS

(Scroll down for webinars)

Short video celebrating the life of Former Vice President Walter Mondale, who fought fervently to protect Minnesota’s Boundary Waters from toxic mining. 

Watch the entire "Boundary Waters Traverse" film! On May 22, 2021 Alex Falconer ran over 110 miles in 38 hrs 15 mins and 3 seconds, through the heart of the Boundary Waters completing the first known attempt to trail run the "Boundary Waters Traverse”.

Patagonia's feature-length film - Public Trust. The film focuses on the Boundary Waters and other high-profile, threatened public lands across the United States.

In Deep Water: A Fight to Save the Boundary Waters, we produced a mini-documentary to educate new audiences on the threat of sulfide-ore copper mining on the edge of the Boundary Waters.

Kids for the Boundary Waters is an organization run by youth with the goal of building a community of young wilderness advocates.

KEEN Story Camp was an event that included a public open-mic session on the edge of the Wilderness, where attendees canoed the lakes during the day and told stories around the fire at night.

A stunning short film that follows Dave and Amy Freeman's year spent in the Boundary Waters Wilderness. Bear Witness shares Dave and Amy's experiences in all seasons and how the Freemans dedicated themselves to this expedition in an effort to raise awareness about the threats to the Boundary Waters from proposed sulfide-ore copper mining. 

A stunning short film that follows Dave and Amy Freeman's year spent in the Boundary Waters Wilderness. Bear Witness shares Dave and Amy's experiences in all seasons and how the Freemans dedicated themselves to this expedition in an effort to raise awareness about the threats to the Boundary Waters from proposed sulfide-ore copper mining. 

Covering 2,000 miles and crossing nine states, authors and National Geographic Adventurers of the Year Amy and Dave Freeman are biking from Ely, Minnesota, to Washington D.C. this spring to promote their new book, A Year in the Wilderness, and continue their efforts to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, one of our country’s most precious and expansive Wilderness areas.

A short documentary film centered around protecting the Boundary Waters. The film's focus is on the people who help spread appreciation for the land and carry on, in their own individual ways, the legacy of Sigurd Olson, a writer and conservationist who was responsible for the area's National Forest designation in 1978.

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WEBINARS

Lease Cancelation Webinar - 1/27/22

Save the Boundary Waters Press Conference: Lease Cancelation - 1/26/2022

Issue 101 and the Path to Permanent Protection for the Boundary Waters - 9/3/2021

Fishing Webinar 5/5/2021

Saving the Boundary Waters: Stories About Runners and Kids Working to Protect America’s Most Visited Wilderness - June 2021

Bios for Press Use

Save the Boundary Waters welcomes media inquiries; email Libby@savetheboundarywaters.org