Weekly vigil targets politician who sold out BWCA to mining

A weekly vigil in Forest Lake, Minnesota targeted U.S. Representative Pete Stauber over legislation aimed at reopening the Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA) to copper sulfide mining. Nearly 50 community members from the Climate Justice Committee (CJC) and Indivisible gathered at the rally to oppose the effort. The BWCA is protected, with bans on motorized vehicles and expectations that campers remove everything they bring in. The article says that during the Biden administration a mining ban was enacted, but Stauber helped overturn it after just three years, allowing Twin Metals to resume operations. CJC member Michael Wood argued the proposal would “sell every lake” to the highest bidder, contrasting it with protecting water. Indivisible members have been rallying every Sunday since January.