Former state Sen. Bob Jauch says the bruising political battle over the mining bill “tore the community apart. It pitted neighbor versus neighbor. It destroyed relationships. And for what? All to come to the conclusion that this thing was never feasible in the first place.”
Tag: gogebic taconite
Posted inEconomy, Environment
In Penokees camp, tribes flex treaty muscles to block mine
Tribal officials and a treaty law expert say the Iron County camp, dubbed a harvest camp by Ojibwe, or Chippewa, lays the foundation for a possible legal case invoking their federal treaty rights.
Posted inWisWatch Blog
Miner Gogebic yanks security firm at drill site, pending Wisconsin license
Bill Williams, GTAC president, said the company is licensed in Arizona but not in Wisconsin. “We understand they have applied for the appropriate Wisconsin license but not yet had their application approved.”
Posted inEconomy, Environment
Paramilitary-style guards ‘are going to stay,’ mining company vows
Despite harsh criticism from two northern legislators and an outcry from anti-mining activists, a spokesman for Gogebic Taconite said Tuesday that armed, paramilitary-style guards will continue to patrol the site deep in the Penokee Range where the company wants to build a large open pit iron mine.
Posted inMoney & Politics Column
Mining expert lobbies, but is no lobbyist
The mining bill in the past legislative session drew more than 8,500 hours of lobbying activity by more than 50 groups. Sullivan’s role this time around seems as key as any of those efforts. But Sullivan is not a lobbyist.
Posted inMoney & Politics Column
Mining bill not a lobbying success story
Over the past six months, Gogebic Taconite LLC spent $114,883 lobbying state officials in support of its proposal to open an iron ore mine in northern Wisconsin. State Sen. Bob Jauch, D-Poplar, who represents the district where the mine would be located, says this was “a complete waste of money.”