State of the Range 2025

It was a packed house when the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency hosted an informational meeting on sulfate standards regarding U.S. Steel Keetac wastewater on September 3^rd and there were a lot of familiar faces at the State of the Range on September 17^th, as Iron Rangers once again showed out for their communities.  The sulfate standards meeting was held in the very same room and overshadowed much of the conversations throughout the night.  Senator Rob Farnsworth was the first to address the elephant in the room, “the current mine should not be forced to comply with some unscientific sulfate standard that would have devastating effects across our entire region if it was actually instituted.”

Kristen Vake, representing Iron Mining Association was quick to point out the correlation between the turnout at both the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s meeting on Keetac and the State of the Range, stating, “the recent support around Keetac is a perfect example.  Companies, Unions, suppliers, and community leaders came together and packed that room, this room, to protect jobs, families, and the future of our region.”

Representative for United Steelworkers District 11, John Arbogast pointed out how the sulfate standard is affecting Keetac right now, but it could move to other industries or other mines, “this isn’t a mining issue when it comes to the sulfate, it’s a Minnesota issue.  If you look at the map, just about the entire state of Minnesota is a wild rice discharger.”  He acknowledged the need to respect indigenous people and their traditions and culture.  He calls for creating a wild rice task force to look for a solution, suggesting the issue wasn’t truly about wild rice.   

Representatives from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency were in the audience at the state of the range, many of the speakers acknowledging their presence.  The draft wastewater permits and the preliminary decision to deny the sulfate variance request for the U.S. Steel Keetac facility's mine and tailings basin are now available for public comment online through September 22^nd on the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s website.