In April (2009) Lutheran pastor Jon Magnuson, from Marquette, Michigan, and Gabriel Caplett, of Dukes Farm in Skandia, Michigan, attended the Rio Tinto Annual General Meeting to represent citizens from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula who are opposed to a metallic sulfide mine on the Yellow Dog Plains.  One document they delivered to the Rio Tinto Board, was a letter from the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community.  Recently, The Business and Human Rights Resource Center obtained a response to KBIC’s letter from Rio Tinto.  You can access it by clicking here

According to one paragraph of the letter, “Rio Tinto has earned significant community support for the Eagle mine project over the last five years. Notably, this support has been demonstrated by townships near the mine, as well as other organisations, passing resolutions welcoming Kennecott Eagle Minerals Company, their families and contractors to their communities to live and work. A coalition of six counties has enacted
support resolutions, written letters of support and has testified at public hearings in support of the project.”

Apparently Rio Tinto thinks the majority of people in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula support the Eagle Project. And, it seems our township and county officials are speaking for themselves and not for the citizens they represent.  We encourage you to continue to contact your representatives, attend township and county meetings, and let your representatives know that if they want your vote, they need to represent the citizens of the UP and not their own self interests.  We must speak up louder before it is too late.