(Adds details on appeal process)
Oct 27 (Reuters) - Antofagasta Plc said on
Wednesday it would ask U.S. officials to reconsider a proposed
20-year ban on mining in Minnesota's Boundary Waters region, a
plan announced last week https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/blow-twin-metals-us-proposes-mining-ban-boundary-waters-2021-10-20
that would block its Twin Metals copper and nickel project.
It called the moves by U.S. President Joe Biden's
administration, which also rejected the Chile-based company's
lease applications, politically motivated.
"If we can prove that we can meet or exceed all
(environmental) standards in place, we have a right to move this
project forward," said Twin Metals chief regulatory officer
Julie Padilla,.
Antofagasta will comment on the proposed 20-year ban during
a public review period. It is also asking federal regulators to
reconsider their rejection of the lease applications, which
would give the company exclusive mining rights in the area.
The rejection means it would lose access to an area it has
already paid to explore. The government could let another
company mine the area in the future, though such a step is
improbable. "We've done the work and now they're taking it
away," Padilla said.
The Forest Service - the federal agency leading the process
- was not immediately available to comment.
The Campaign To Save The Boundary Waters, an environmental
group opposed to the Antofagasta project, said the appeal was
"unfortunate for Minnesota" and the country.
"It's very clear that the most toxic industry in America has
no place next to the Boundary Waters," said Becky Rom, the
campaign's national chair.
(Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; editing by Jonathan Oatis and
John Stonestreet)
Antofagasta (ANTO)
