Warning about environmental and public health repercussions, close to 100 people rallied Monday in Bangor against a proposed metallic mineral mine near Mount Katahdin.
Environmental organizations, grassroots groups and Wabanaki citizens came together to protest the project before a public comment session on the plan. More than 50 people spoke before the Maine’s Land Use Planning Commission (LUPC), some of them in favor of the proposal but most opposed to the mine. There was also public comment last week in Millinocket on the proposal. Overall, more than 1,000 people have submitted comments in opposition to the project — proposed by the Canadian company Wolfden Resources — according to a news release from the Natural Resources Council of Maine.
“We are sending a strong message to the LUPC that we do not want Wolfden mining our precious homeland,” said Maulian Bryant, tribal ambassador for Penobscot Nation, at Monday’s rally.
In January, the LUPC received an application from Wolfden to rezone 374 acres near Pickett Mountain, not far from Baxter State Park in northern Maine, to develop and operate a metallic mineral mine. The effort comes after Wolfden decided to withdraw a previous rezoning application in 2021 that the LUPC said contained many errors.
Wolfden — which did not immediately respond to a request for comment — has argued that the site below Pickett Mountain has more than $1 billion worth of zinc, lead, copper, silver and gold reserves and that the project would create around 270 jobs that would provide training programs and high wages. The also company claimed at Monday’s hearing that over the 10 to 15 year life span of the mine, the project would generate $700 million in economic output, adding that the metals being mined are used by people every day.
However, opponents say the estimated benefits of the project are extremely uncertain and would come with significant drawbacks. They also argued that Wolfden is an “underfunded and untested” company and noted that the organization has never operated a mine before.
Furthermore, the project would have harmful environmental impacts, opponents say. In a document outlining why it believes the project is a bad idea, the Natural Resources Council of Maine pointed out that the proposed location is near some of the most important habitats of brook trout and Atlantic salmon in the state and that the project would also put other Maine species such as Canada lynx, moose and pine marten at risk.
Opponents say another possible environmental danger is a likelihood for the generation of acid mine drainage that is harmful to water quality and the surrounding environment.
In addition, during testimony last week at the hearing in Millinocket, experts said Wolfden’s promises that the project wouldn’t have severe negative environmental impacts are not backed by concrete evidence and noted that metallic mineral mines have significant potential to lead to groundwater pollution.
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