We're thrilled to announce that our Valentine's Day wish came true! On February 14, 2024 the Land Use Planning Commission formally voted to deny Wolfden Resources' application to re-zone land near Pickett Mountain Pond to allow for Polymetallic Sulfide Mining-- affirming the power of our love, respect and connection to the woods, waters, and traditional livelihoods of the region!! The ruling is a clear validation of our concerns, stating "[T]he Commission finds the proposed rezoning would have an undue adverse impact on water resources, fisheries, and aquatic life." (See The Maine Monitor's coverage here)
Until Wolfden brought the threat to our shores, we knew next to nothing about mining, but for better or for worse we have been forced to do a deep dive--learning more than we ever wanted to know. In our quest to understand the risks Wolfden posed, and ensure the protection of Pickett Mountain Pond and the headwaters of the Mattawamkeag River, we learned that polymetallic sulfide mining is an intrinsically toxic and water intensive process. Wolfden's plans called for using over 800,000 gallons of water and 2,000 pounds of cyanide everyday to concentrate the ore, not to mention the 295,000 gallons of water per day exposed to toxic contaminants in the unearthing process itself. This at a time when Poland Springs is permitted to export 1 billion gallons of groundwater from Maine every year, and National Geographic declares, "Underground water is being pumped so aggressively around the globe that land is sinking, civil wars are being waged, and agriculture is being transformed." The transition to a "Green Economy" cannot include or justify the industrial-scale desecration of fresh water and creation of widespread sacrifice zones that "modern mining" inherently entails.
We celebrate the commitment and perseverance of those who joined us to protect Pickett Mountain Pond, sometimes at great personal expense, the love and respect that animated our collective effort, and the wisdom and fortitude of the LUPC to follow through on their mandate “To preserve public health, safety and general welfare,” “to prevent residential, recreational, commercial and industrial uses detrimental to the long-term health, use and value of these areas,” “to prevent the despoliation, pollution and detrimental uses of the water in these areas; and to conserve ecological and natural values.” (Title 12, Chapter 206-A: Sec681) in the face of great pressure from corporate lobbyists, financial speculators, and monied-interests. While we wish the threat had never come to us, we are grateful for the relationships that have been forged in the process of defending these woods and waters, and for the knowledge we have gained about mining that we intend to share with other communities facing similar threats. This is not, and never was, a "Not In My Backyard" campaign, but rather a not in anyone's backyard campaign. We want our victory to weaken the ability of Wolfden and other mining corporations to expand their reach and profit-margins through the wholesale destruction of ecosystems and communities, and we want to discourage other gold diggers from seeing Maine as sacrifice zone that is "open for business". We will continue to push our elected officials to close the loopholes in Maine's Chapter 200 Mining Regulations that explicitly allow the contamination of groundwater.