Good afternoon, My name is Michael Maleska, and I’m a life-long resident of Hibbing, Minnesota, which is about 100 miles south of the MN/Ontario border. I'm an avid outdoorsman, former timber industry worker, and have been an hourly mining laborer and mine electrician for over 40 years.
I’m in Washington D.C. with the Campaign to Save the Boundary Waters today advocating for the environmental health of the Boundary Waters. My family and I have enjoyed year-round camping, hunting, and fishing in the Boundary Waters for decades - since before the can & bottle ban, even! There is much I could say to describe the solace and natural therapy experienced here & I'd love to regale you with stories of broken paddles, portaging a moose, shooting the rapids, big fish, and more, but there's something else we need to discuss: The Boundary Waters is threatened by a risky sulfide-ore copper mine.
During my 40 + years as a mine worker, I’ve seen how mining companies seek the least expensive means to convert public mineral resources into portable cash/profit.
Sulfide-ore copper mining is a type of mining that has never been attempted in a water-rich environment before. And is championed by companies known to be heavy polluters world-wide, with a history of evading financial and environmental liability.
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