Mining limits proposed, opposed in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula – Great Lakes Echo
LANSING, Mich. –Environmental groups in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula have proposed a mining initiative to protect the state’s water supply.
But lawmakers representing the U.P. are opposing a ballot measure by environmental groups like the Save Our Water Committee and Save the Wild UP, arguing that sulfide mining would generate jobs.
The initiative claims sulfide and uranium mining threatens water in the Great Lakes basin. Supporters say they do not want to ban mining they just want stricter regulations.
The Great Lakes supply 80 percent of North America’s drinking water, and sulfide mining could harm such sources by draining acid and contaminating the supply for decades, industry critics argue. If passed by voters in November 2010, it would also apply to future mining in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula.
