Protesters rally against proposed PolyMet mine

October 14, 2015 at 2:23AM
About 150 opponents of PolyMet copper mining gathered in front of the DNR to protest the DNR considering granting a license for the project. Aaron Klemz of Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness led the march.
About 150 opponents of PolyMet copper mining gathered in front of the DNR to protest the DNR considering granting a license for the project. Aaron Klemz of Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness led the march. (Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Protesters rallied in St. Paul Tuesday to oppose PolyMet Mining's proposed copper-nickel mine in northeastern Minnesota, calling it "permanent pollution for temporary jobs."

About 150 people attended the rally, sponsored by the Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness, urging the Dayton administration to block the mine.

An official from the state Department of Natural Resources greeted the group at the agency's headquarters and accepted its petition.

Separately, a group of PolyMet supporters held a rally of its own on the Iron Range Tuesday to show support for mining and the jobs it creates.

State regulators are due next month to release the final phase of their environmental review of the controversial project.

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