Hello team,
Congratulations on reaching this incredible milestone! We're making fast progress — but so too is Highland Copper.
In their November 8th project update they show off some of their finest fall color photography. The first image shows us the streams they rerouted around the site of their future toxic waste containment facility. Another photo proudly shows us a thriving wetland they converted into what appears to be a suburban lawn; a third displays a clearcut desert, which they assure us will become a wetland sometime next year.
It's absolutely atrocious that this foreign company — which already has a record of violating permits and degrading wetlands — is being entrusted not just with the health of our streams and wetlands, but with Lake Superior, the largest freshwater lake on the planet. As multiple public comments reveal (see #8, 19, 52, and others) the Environmental Assessment for the project is using data which was collected over a decade ago in a period of low precipitation and drought. Because the mine will only run for 10-14 years, Highland's models anticipate only 50- and 100-year precipitation events. But since then, there have been two 500-year storm and one 1000-year storm in the Lake Superior region, and yet Highland hasn't adjusted their proposal in the slightest! In their summer stream reroutings they've combined the flows of multiple waterways together — just imagine the increased water flow during snowmelt season and the resulting erosion, and imagine too if another massive storm hits, directly next to their waste rock facility holding 50+ million tons of heavy metal-laden sludge just a stone's throw from Lake Superior...
There are now over 8000 of us who have signed this petition, and yet apart from one brave radio show and a couple more appearances soon to air, the media has failed to cover our resistance. The ProtectThePorkies web team has reached out to many news outlets, but the push will be much more powerful if we have your help!
That brings us to our next collective action:
COLLECTIVE ACTION #3: MEDIA OUTREACH
You know the drill— below is a list of e-mail addresses of local and regional newspapers to get you started. Copy and paste the full list into the CC: or BCC: field of a new e-mail, and then tell them in your own words why it is URGENT that they cover this story.
What's on the line? The largest freshwater lake in the world, the largest mixed old-growth forest in the Midwest, and a thriving outdoor recreation industry. Remind them that, in failing to cover our resistance, they are ignoring the cries of 8000+ petition signers.
Be sure to link them to the website, the petition, and tell them to get in touch: ProtectThePorkies@gmail.com — now, here's that list:
kreport@up.net
munisingbeacon@gmail.com
herald@ontonagonherald.com
news@yourdailyglobe.com
News@wnbpa.net
news@radioresultsnetwork.com
nbynews@mynewberrynews.com
pwasson@ashlanddailypress.net
rolivo@ashlanddailypress.net
cwolf@mininggazette.com
areilly@mininggazette.com
gneese@mininggazette.com
gjaehnig@mininggazette.com
clerk@mininggazette.com
news@dailypress.net
atroutman@miningjournal.net
bsargent@miningjournal.net
jmarietti@miningjournal.net
lbowers@miningjournal.net
rprusi@miningjournal.net
metro@greenbaypressgazette.com
advancenewssubmissions@mlive.com
lansing@mlive.com
detnews@mlive.com
starjournal@mmclocal.com
news@rivernewsonline.com
sangel@lsj.com
alwilson@lsj.com
mellis@gannett.com
rgreco@lsj.com
rpierce@record-eagle.com
abatdorff@record-eagle.com
info@unicornriot.ninja
news@duluthnews.com
outreach@democracynow.org
This list is just a start. Please add any other newspaper, TV station, blog, podcast, radio show.
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EXAMPLE MESSAGE:
"Hello,
Are you aware of a foreign company's plan to build the closest sulfide mine to Lake Superior in history? There has never been a sulfide mine which did not contaminate water— just think of the implications. The proposed Copperwood Mine would also be at the juncture of the North Country Trail — the longest of all national hiking trails — and Porcupine Mountains State Park, which contains the largest mixed old-growth forest in the Midwest and was ranked last year as "the most beautiful State Park in the country." The onslaught of air pollution, noise pollution, light pollution, water pollution, subterranean blasts and nonstop industrial traffic will profoundly effect the experience of tourists visiting this beautiful area.
Regardless of how one feels about mining, most sane folk will agree that this is a horrible place for one. There is now a petition with over 8000 signatures calling for a halt to the project. Please cover this story as soon as possible — if you don't, people will begin to wonder why. The health of Lake Superior — 10% of the world's surface freshwater — is on the line.
You can find more info at www.ProtectThePorkies and can reach the team at ProtectThePorkies@gmail.com
Thank you kindly,
Chris Vaughn"
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Thank you everyone for your support! It is also always worthwhile revisiting our first Collective Action.
We're going up against a multi-million dollar company and a push from state and federal government to increase domestic mining. Our path to victory lies in tens of thousands of us combining our voices together until we're so loud they have no choice but to listen. Remember, we are not an organization: we are a MOVEMENT. Now let's get moving!