Readers Write: Boundary Waters mining, affordable housing, Qatar’s gift of a plane

Opinion editor’s note: Strib Voices publishes letters from readers online and in print each day. To contribute, click here.

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U.S. Rep. Pete Stauber appears to be on a mission to reverse the moratorium President Joe Biden established that was put in place to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and clear the way for Chilean conglomerate Antofagasta to move forward (expeditiously) with its proposed Twin Metals underground mining of precious metals at the doorstep of the BWCAW (“Stauber sweetens sweetheart mining deal for Chilean firm,” Strib Voices, May 10).

The bill he’s pushing, Section 80131 of the House Natural Resources Committee’s budget reconciliation bill, targets existing BWCAW protections. Apparently, he’s choosing to ignore the track record of Antofagasta as it has left environmental disasters in its wake in past mining operations in South America.

As somebody who grew up taking annual canoe trips in the border lakes, as we called them prior to the establishment of the BWCAW, I am deeply frustrated every time I read about efforts to undermine the protections of such a unique wilderness. For anybody who hasn’t had the opportunity to experience this wilderness firsthand, it’s all about the water and waterways that let the visitor move from lake to lake in a canoe, with endless routes and abundant fishing in a scenic area that offers solitude for those willing to go the extra mile to get away from the crowds.

I have a suggestion for Stauber: Take an extended canoe trip into the BWCAW with family and/or friends, and while you’re there, ask yourself if you’re doing the right thing by risking the area’s future for us and generations to come.

Patrick Bloomfield, Chisholm, Minn.

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Aaron Brown’s column “Trump boosts NorthMet, but mines need strong economy, not just bluster” (May 7) alluded to the “dismal swamp,” a despicable way to describe our state’s unique, precious wetlands. A joke? Copper-nickel mines like NorthMet have failed over many, many years to show they will not harm our unique, irreplaceable environments long term.

The Strib has run articles about peatlands storing carbon as a major sink helping to reduce climate change. Yet NorthMet would destroy them. See Greg Stanley’s September 2024 article, “As Minnesota spends millions to restore peatlands, it sells mining rights for $12 an acre.”

In February 2022, the Strib ran my letter “No PolyMet, for peat’s sake.” PolyMet (now NorthMet) admitted it would destroy up to 940 acres of natural wetlands and indirectly harm many hundreds more. Downstream impacts will increase mercury in fish.

I agree with Brown that “we owe future generations accountability for our decisions.” There is no way that destruction of ancient, natural, biodiverse wetlands can be mitigated. I and others have devoted years showing how the unique biodiversity of wetlands is impaired by pollution, not just by copper-nickel mining. See the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s wetland monitoring site.

I urge readers to go out now and listen to frogs calling by wetlands and to link up with a local citizen wetland biomonitoring team. Care about our state’s diverse wetlands. Wade in and see the diversity of creatures: juvenile dragonflies, caddisflies, unique crustacean fairy shrimp, interesting snails and more. Tadpoles maturing.

From one “pesky environmentalist,”

Judy Helgen, Falcon Heights

The writer is a retired MPCA research scientist who worked on wetlands biomonitoring and helped initiate a citizens’ biomonitoring wetlands project.

In his Strib Voices commentary on May 9, Myron Orfield continues in his long-held contention that moving Black people to white neighborhoods is the best way to right all the past wrongs done to African American communities (“For $1 billion, the same problems in a Minneapolis neighborhood”). He also sees conspiracies in the work done by affordable housing developers because we don’t embrace his narrow definition of racial justice. He consistently ignores important realities about affordable housing development and the real barriers to developing housing for low-income households in most suburbs.

He implies suburbs would welcome affordable housing developments without mentioning real political resistance to it or the lack of public transportation and walkable shopping. He also ignores the positive qualities of a supportive community and bias-free environment that many inner-city neighborhoods enjoy.

His most disingenuous complaint is that affordable housing developers exploit taxpayer dollars because we can convert our projects to market-rate housing after the affordability compliance period expires. This feature is indeed a poor use of public dollars, but it is not the developers who are at fault. The Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program is the only federal assistance available to help build affordable housing. It is a poorly designed program and we should all be demanding something better. But affordable housing developers, many of whom are nonprofits who do not convert to market rate, can either use this program or do nothing.

I agree that the Phillips neighborhood is evidence that we have a failed public policy framework for housing; integration by itself will not fix that. We need a massive investment in social housing like what is done in Europe, where the government builds housing for all working and middle-class households and endeavors to create affordable and stable housing for all.

Tim Mungavan, Minneapolis

The writer is the retired executive director of the West Bank Community Development Corporation.

I just about spit out my coffee reading the Tuesday headline “Trump says only ‘stupid’ people would reject gifts” regarding the administration’s plans to accept a Boeing 747-8 plane from Qatar. As a public servant myself, the ethics code is clear in prohibiting gifts exceeding a nominal value — a cup of coffee is often the example given to define “nominal value.”

That’s a lot of cups of coffee for our felon-in-chief! And aren’t we lucky that he’s so dang smart?

Melinda Erickson, Roseville

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When President Donald Trump stated that only “a stupid person” would turn down such an offer, his avid interest in ancient history became clear. The president’s response mirrors that of the Trojan advisers: Who could turn down such a magnificent horse?

Michael Ormond, Minneapolis

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I read the Star Tribune every day, and almost every day, I wonder when the letters to the editor will ever move from the constant Trump-bashing to something different. No matter what the issue is, Trump has done something horrible — the language used to describe the president is beyond harsh. The latest thing he is being blasted for is a meme with Trump in papal attire. The criticism of him is beyond belief. I wonder if any of the people that have written in lambasting him have seen the hundreds of memes on social media? “Da Pope,” songs, his face everywhere.

I am from Chicago, a lifelong Catholic and I am not offended by any of it, including the president. Please, readers, lighten up — I fear everyone who cannot get past their anger over Trump being president is going to suffer from anxiety, high blood pressure, ulcers and other maladies for the next four years. This happens every four years — one candidate wins, one loses, half the people are happy and the other half not so much. Relax, let it play out. Take care of yourselves. Pray and ask God and our new pontiff to watch over us. We are in good hands.

Joan Barrett, St. Paul