Wisconsin Senate votes to ban cyanide in all mining

Wisconsin Senate votes to ban cyanide in all mining, and end special treatment for mine projects
reported by Zoltan Grossman for Bergama Günlüğü, November 26, 2001

Madison, Wisconsin, USA, November 6, 2001-- The Wisconsin State Senate today approved two mining-related environmental bills by votes of 19-14. They are Senate Bill 160 to ban cyanide use in all Wisconsin mines, and Senate Bill 271 to have "No Special Treatment" for the mining industry. The bills now go to the State Assembly for consideration.

The vote on SB-160, the bill to ban cyanide in all Wisconsin mines passed the State Senate by a 19-14 vote. The vote was essentially along party lines, with the Democratic majority voting for the bill and the Republican minority voting against. The exceptions were Sen. Roger Breske (D-Eland) voting against, and Senators Mike Ellis (R-Neenah) and Rob Cowles (R-Green Bay) voting for.

Sen. Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center) led the fight against the bill, calling its supporters "Luddites." He introduced an amendment that would have limited the ban to heap-leach mining operations, thereby exempting BHP Billiton's proposed Crandon zinc-copper mine (which would use up to 200 tons of cyanide a year in a froth flotation process).

The amendment failed on a 18-15 vote. Sen. Breske and Sen. Ellis voted for the amendment, and Sen. Cowles voted against it.

In votes very similar to those cast for SB 160 (Cyanide ban for mining), Senate Bill 271 ("No Special Treatment" for Mining) also passed the State Senate this afternoon. It would bring up state groundwater and hazardous waste standards to the level of other industries, and end environmental exemptions for metallic mines.

The vote on the bill was also 19-14, with Republican Senators Rob Cowles and Sheila Harsdorf (R-River Falls) joining the Democrats. Democratic Sen. Breske continued his efforts on behalf of BHP Billiton's Nicolet Minerals Co. and voted against SB 271. Go to http://folio.legis.state.wi.us/cgi-bin/om_isapi.dll?clientID=93775&infobase=bills01.nfo&softpage=Browse_Frame_Pg
and then type in the word mining to find the text of each bill passed and the amendment approved for SB 271.

"Huge mining industry loopholes were filled yesterday by the Senate," said Dave Blouin, Sierra Club spokesperson.

We are pleased with the votes on both bills and especially want to thank the Republican Senators who didn't buy the industry's misleading rhetoric and voted with their Democrat colleagues in favor of the bills."

In the last three weeks, there have been three major cyanide spills: two mine waste dumps full of toxic cyanide spilled in Ghana and a tanker truck in China spilled 11 tons of sodium cyanide into a river. "These recent major cyanide spills illustrate why the cyanide ban in mining is necessary," said Zoltan Grossman, Wolf Watershed Educational Project. "It is not worth the risk of a spill to transport sodium cyanide across northern Wisconsin or to dump this toxic chemical into mine wastes that are loosely regulated."

Blouin stated, "The Senate voted for this bill based on facts. The fact is that only a very small percentage of U.S. zinc or copper mines use cyanide, because they use alternatives to cyanide. The fact is that the Crandon mine would use up to 10 times as much cyanide than any other state industry has used in recent years. The fact is that no cyanide is currently being used in our Northwoods, where a spill could be catastrophic to fishing and tourism. The fact is that most cyanide disasters in mining have happened not during ore processing, but in the shipping of cyanide and poorly regulated dumping of cyanide into mine waste dumps."

"The state budget can't be balanced with environmentally destructive mining proposals that threaten our existing tourism industry. The reality is that mining developments are halted, not started during tough times. Exxon walked away from the Crandon proposal in 1986 for this very reason," Grossman stated. "You need only look at other boom and bust economies caused by mining, such as in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, Appalachia in the eastern US, and many communities out west." Along with the recession, the global metals glut and an industrial turn away from metals has caused steep drops in zinc and copper prices.

The Senate vote for the ban on cyanide in mining is a victory for the huge grassroots movement that is supporting the bill. Over 15,000 ctitzens have signed a petition supporting a ban on cyanide in all mines. The cyanide ban in mining has been supported by resolutions from 90 organizations including: nine county governments, two dozen local governments, and four tribal governments, as well over 50 sportfishing groups, union locals, labor councils, and environmental organizations. They include the Wisconsin Conservation Congress, League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, Walleyes for Tomorrow, Wisconsin Council of Senior Citizens, Trout Unlimited, and the Fox Valley Area Labor Council. A complete list is available at http://www.alphacdc.com/treaty/cyanide.html#wi-counties .

Thanks again to everyone who pitched in to pass SB 160 and SB 271. Both bills will now go to the State Assembly, which has a Republican majority; though some Republican representatives have supported them. Wisconsin citizens should contact Assembly Environment Committee Chair Neal Kedzie (R-Elkhorn),to allow the bill on cyanide in mining and the bill on "No Special Treatment" for mining companies to move forward to a vote. Call toll-free 888-534-0043 or e-mail [email protected], AND write him at the State Capitol, Madison, WI 53702.