Kennecott drills for nickel, copper in Carlton County
By Janna Goerdt, Duluth News Tribune
January/17/ 2008
For the past week, a lone drill has been rumbling away in a rural field in western Carlton County, drawing bedrock from deep within the earth in the search for deposits of copper and nickel.
Utah-based Kennecott Exploration Co. is planning to drill 10 to 15 of these exploratory holes in Carlton and Aitkin counties this winter, said David Simpson, exploration manager in charge of nickel exploration in North America. Simpson is based in Vancouver, Canada.
Len Anderson of Cloquet spoke against the current exploration, citing worries about increased levels of toxic heavy metals that could leak into groundwater, and mercury that would seep into the St. Louis River watershed.
Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Chairwoman Karen Diver said she was surprised to learn about the exploration.
“The Fond du Lac Environmental program will be keeping a close eye on this process to make sure that best practices in environmental standards are followed, and that there will be no long term impact to area,” Diver wrote in an e-mail.
The prospect of exploring for copper and nickel drew concern from people in Aitkin County in 2006 after Kennecott sought a permit to drill on private land. The Aitkin County Planning Commission denied Kennecott the necessary permit. The Minnesota Court of Appeals later overturned that decision, and Kennecott was granted the permits.
“Typically, wherever we operate, we have questions from the community about mining and exploration,” Simpson said.
Kennecott operates the world’s largest open-pit copper mine in Utah. Along with its parent company, Rio Tinto, Kennecott undertakes mining exploration in countries around the world, including the United States, Canada and Mexico.