Wednesday, October 28,1998 — A coalition of citizens groups released a 12 page report today exposing a pattern of abuse of power by Governor Thompson’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) in their regulatory authority over metallic mining activities in Wisconsin.
Concentrating on events of recent years and the present pro-mining bias at the DNR, this report connects the compromises made by the politicized DNR to the money spent by the mine’s supporters. It documents over $600,000 in contributed to Tommy Thompson’s political campaign and over $7,000,000 in other influence-buying activities by the mining companies and those with a financial stake in seeing a successful permitting of the Crandon mine.
Tom Wilson of the Headwaters Group of Northern Thunder, one of the principal authors of the report, observed, "In recent years we’ve seen reduced effectiveness of the DNR in many regulatory areas, but never is this bias so pervasive and blatant as it is with regard to metallic mining. We are giving away our valuable natural resources to foreign corporations and sacrificing both our pristine environment and our political institutions to make this happen."
This is the third in a series of reports discussing Governor Thompson's political control over Wisconsin's DNR. Each report in the series explores a specific example of these negative changes. The first report documented the influence of large paper company political contributions to the state’s handling of the PCB issue in the lower Fox River Valley. The second report told of an intervention by top-level DNR officials in a local shoreland zoning violation, demonstrating how the rich and powerful get special consideration from Thompson’s DNR.
The report’s co-author, Jim Wise of the Environmentally Concerned Citizens of the Lakeland Area, noted that although mining has become an increasingly partisan issue in recent years, this is not a wholesale condemnation of all Republicans or an uncritical assessment of all Democratic legislators. "We would like to see representatives from both political parties look closely at where this sell-out to the mining industry is taking our state and redirect their attention to meaningful legislation that will reconfirm our state’s historic tradition of the defense of the environment."
The timing of this reports release is designed to emphasize the degree to which both the DNR and the mining company have delayed the disclosure of certain critical and controversial decisions until the politically-charged environment of the state election has passed. Wilson explained, "After the election, we expect to see a flurry of activity on the proposed changes in the Crandon mine plan, the Emergency Disaster Fund, and other potentially unpopular decisions. When that happens, we just want to be able to say, ‘We told you so!’"
Dave Blouin representing the Sierra Club summarized, "This report confirms and documents what most Wisconsin citizens already know; the DNR has lost its independent status as a regulatory authority and is now driven almost exclusively by political considerations based on campaign contributions to the Thompson Administration - especially on mining issues."
The group made four major recommendations for restoring good government and sound environmental regulation in this area:
Giving the Governor the power to appoint and fire the DNR’s Secretary position has added an unacceptable level of political influence in this agency’s regulatory authority. Elimination of the Public Intervernors Office has removed a critical safeguard against abuse of power in Wisconsin. One of Thompson’s first cabinet appointments was an Exxon mining lobbyist who, for the next decade, spearheaded the consolidation of power under the Governor and orchestrated the compromise of Wisconsin’s mining laws. The Thompson administration illegally used tribal gaming compact negotiations to seek concessions from the tribes relating to air and groundwater standards granted to reservation lands. It took the intervention of the governor of another state to force the DNR to reconsider the advisability of dumping mine wastewater into the Wisconsin River. Radical cuts in the DNR budget in the name of "administrative efficiency" have resulted in a cancellation of baseline water quality measurements ahead of proposed mining activities. In their haste to accommodate a mining proposal, the DNR spent over $300,000 in taxpayer money on project evaluation for a mine that never happened and for which they are unlikely to be reimbursed. The DNR consistently refuses to consider the negative economic impacts of mining activities on future development of communities and other businesses in the watershed. Nicolet Minerals has been allowed to operate in Wisconsin without ever having registered with the Department of Commerce as required by law. The DNR recently applied ‘window dressing’ modifications to the state’s groundwater rules but mining waste facilities still don’t have to meet the same standards required for solid waste facilities. The Governor and his DNR are now claiming credit for the Mining Moratorium Law, but they fought tooth and nail to prevent its passage. This is not a totally partisan issue. Noted Democrats have sold out to mining company contributions and contracts and a few brave Republicans have voted their consciences rather than their pocketbooks. Thompson’s DNR has failed to enforce the provisions of the Mining Moratorium Law in a timely fashion and Nicolet Minerals has indicated they will try to subvert its requirements. DNR and Nicolet have delayed releasing important environmental documents until after the election but continue to work closely on unpublished plans to allow fast-track approval once the political heat is off. Thompson’s Science Advisory Council is an extra-legal level of control by the Thompson administration that has indicated it will not consider important environmental evidence. The DNR and the Natural Resources Board have delayed for nine months in establishing minimal contributions to the State Emergency Disaster Fund for Mining, again waiting until after the elections. It took over 20 years for Flambeau Mining to get their permits for the Ladysmith mine, but the DNR tried to allow them to change their reclamation plan without any public review. Special tax status for mining companies in Wisconsin allow them to return less to the state than any other industry and place us below third-world status with regard to economic benefits from mining activities. DNR’s attempt to clear up "Misconceptions About Mining in Wisconsin" is a biased, one-sided attack on the environmental community and implies total DNR agreement with mining company propaganda. DNR officials operate with blinders against any knowledge of wrongdoing by the mining companies that want to operate in Wisconsin. The much repeated mantra "Wisconsin has the toughest mining laws in the country" is just plain wrong!
Restore the political independence of the DNR to make the DNR Secretary a position which answers to a Seven-member Natural Resources Board consisting of citizens appointed by the Governor and Legislature, serving staggered 6-year terms. Restore the Wisconsin Public Intervenor's Office to watchdog the actions of the DNR, and intervene, if necessary, to protect public rights in natural resources. Enact campaign Finance Reform that includes:
- limits on campaign spending together with sufficient public financing to make the spending limits work,
- limit out-of-district contributions to 10% of the total raised,
- limit special interest contributions and specifically prohibit corporate contributions, and
- Lower the costs of electioneering such as making free media available for candidates.
Reform and enforce existing mining regulatory statutes and rules including:
- Demand compliance with Mining Moratorium Law before processing lengthy permit applications.
- Require a binding public referendum before finalizing local agreements.
- Eliminate the right of elected officials to unilaterally sign away established zoning and land use rights established by the community.
- Apply RCRA Sub. C hazardous waste containment criteria to mine tailings facilities.
- Establish a perpetual Mine Disaster Emergency Fund at no less that the $5.00 per ton.
- Honor tribal right to establish ground and water quality standards.
- Provide sufficient resources to assure local communities the ability to set and enforce their own environmental standards and zoning regulations without the threat of economic blackmail from multinational corporations.
- Revise Mining Impact Fund allocation guidelines to support all communities impacted by mining activities.
- Establish a reasonable taxation system or profit sharing formula for resource extraction to give state and local governments a meaningful stake in the projects proposed.
- Revise mineral rights disclosure laws to assure all landowners know their rights to the resources beneath their land.