REGIONAL ALLIANCE COMES TOGETHER AGAINST SULPHIDE MINING Tomahawk, Wi --
"Wisconsin's clean water is being held hostage by mining interests and
the Wisconsin Natural Resource Board" said Bob Schmitz, president of the
Wolf River Watershed Alliance. Schmitz spoke to more than 100 people
attending a conference October 30 - November 1 at the University of
Wisconsin-Stevens Point Treehaven Center, organized by the Midwest
Treaty Network.
The regional conference, 'Stop the Plunder of Native Lands; Coming
Together to Protect the Flambeau, the Willow, and the Wolf', brought
together environmental groups and Native American tribes to protect
waterways from sulphide mining. The conference focused attention on the
mines proposed by Kennecott/Rio Tinto Zinc on the Flambeau River near
Ladysmith, by Noranda, Inc. on the Willow River near Lynne,
Exxon/Phelps-Dodge near the Wolf River near Mole Lake, and Great Lakes
Minerals on Michigan's Keweenaw Penninsula.
"We would like to see clean drinking water for our future generations",
said Mole Lake Sokaogon Chippewa Tribal Judge Fred Ackley, chairman of
the Tribal Mining Impact Committee. "Exxon's plans would forever
destroy the fish, wild rice and natural habitats guaranteed by our
treaties," said Ackley.
A key topic of discussion was the proposed Outstanding Resource Water
(ORW) designation for over 200 lakes and streams throughout Wisconsin.
Eight-term Rusk County Supervisor, Roscoe Churchill said, "County Boards
are being deceived by the mining companies and the Wisconsin Association
of Manufacturers and Commerce into believing that ORW would threaten
agriculture, logging, and recreational activities. In fact, ORW status
would only apply to direct waste water discharge; they know they can't
mine and keep our waters clean." said Churchill.
Other speakers were Chairman Tom Maulson of the Lac du Flambeau
Reservation, Red Cliff Chippewa Walt Bresette of the Lake Superior
Greens, Evelyn Churchill of the Rusk County Citizens Action Group, Al
Gedicks of the Wisconsin Resource Protection Council, Robin Goree of the
Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission, Jim Wise of ECCOLA and
Menominee tribal member Michael Sturdevant.
Other groups attending were the Midwest Treaty Network, Lac Courte
Oreilles Chippewa Reservation, Northwoods Alliance, Wa-Swa-Gon Treaty
Association, the Upper Great Lakes Green Network, Wisconsin Wildlife
Federation, the Wisconsin Greens, Anishinabe Niijii (Hayward area),
Madison Treaty Rights Support Group, Association Working Against
Keweenaw Exploitation (Mich.) .
PRO-MINING SPY ATTENDS MEETING
It was discovered after the Treehaven meeting that it had been
infiltrated by a political spy. Newspapers around the state received an
anonymous eight-page 'report' that summarized talks at the meeting, but
peppered the text with outright lies (Wisconsin State Journal, January
31,1993). This misinformation campaign brought anger from some meeting
participants, and pride from others who saw it as a sign of worry on the
part of the mining companies.
Among other things, the report focused on what it called "radical"
environmentalists and Indians, including Earth First, Walt Bresette, and
Roscoe Churchill. Even though the entire conference was videotaped, the
report's author(s) assumed that some media would swallow false claims,
and some (including the Associated Press) certainly did.
FEBRUARY MINING MEETING
On February 20, Maulson hosted a follow-up meeting at Lac du Flambeau,
which was attended by over 50 people, including members of the Ojibwe
and Menominee nations. Much discussion centered on the pending April
blasting by Kennecott, as well as the treaty fishing controversy around
Minnesota's Mille Lacs Reservation. A resolution backed the new 37-55
Treaty Alliance at Mille Lacs. Another resolution left coordination of
the still-loose anti-mining campaign to the Midwest Treaty Network and
Wisconsin Resources Protection Council (608- 784-4399).