St. Louis County

A round-up of the last week’s economic news stories in Minnesota.

Environmentalists’ call to shutter the Boswell Energy Center would devastate the Iron Range economy, with no measurable impact on future global temperatures.

We’re delighted to report that Senator Jason Rarick (R) cited American Experiment’s research on copper nickel mining in Minnesota in his piece to the Mitchell Hamline School of Law Journal…

Many people in the Twin Cities are vaguely aware of the fact that Minnesota mines iron ore, but few understand the scale or importance of mining to the communities who…

A bill before the legislature sends a clear message to would-be eco-terrorists who may be targeting Minnesota. Anyone enlisting and educating individuals with the goal of damaging energy infrastructure in…

Yesterday the Minnesota Court of Appeals dealt a setback to the proposed PolyMet copper-nickel mine in northern Minnesota. In the ruling, the Court sent two crucial permits, the permit to…

This op ed appeared in the Duluth News Tribune on November 1st, 2019 In a column on Twin Metals’ planned sulfide ore copper mine (Local View: “Arrowhead better served without…

The future of mining in Minnesota looks even brighter today as Twin Metals Minnesota announced they will protect Minnesota’s water resources at their planned copper-nickel mine in northern Minnesota by…

Mining workers earn more because their jobs are much more capital intensive than jobs in the leisure industry. 

You’d think that spending taxpayer funds on supplies from local businesses over Amazon would be a no-brainer, particularly in St. Louis County. But County Commissioner Keith Nelson recently made sure…

Northern Minnesotans are told to get tourism jobs. That might be an option in July, but what do they do in January?

The average annual salary for Leisure and hospitality jobs in St. Louis County was just $16,904 in 2018. For Metal ore mining jobs, it was $98,954.

Minnesota is one step closer to opening its first copper-nickel mine, as the State Court of Appeals has rejected a lawsuit from anti-mining groups who had hoped to force PolyMet…

The Clean Energy Economy Minnesota jobs report will likely draw favorable media coverage, but a deeper look at the numbers exposes the fact that these numbers are artificially inflated by…

By now you’d think that nepotism policies guarding against favoritism in hiring of family members would be standard procedure in government. But St. Louis County belatedly adopted a nepotism provision…

Renewable-energy advocates often cite increasing demand for steel, copper, nickel, and cobalt as a reason why Minnesotans on the Iron Range should support more renewable-energy mandates. There is no doubt…

The Minnesota state demographer expects the population in five northern counties to shrink, on net, by 9,710 people by 2050. That is, unless 8,500 people are employed as a result…

When you make the argument for mining in Minnesota, a common response is that it would threaten the region's booming tourism industry. Mining jobs aren't needed, so the argument goes,…

A recent paper by two Harvard economists argued that the economic benefits of mining would be outweighed by its negative impact on the recreational industry and on in-migration. But yet another of…

Environmentally responsible mining will provide a $3.7 billion annual boost to Minnesota’s economy, create 8,500 jobs and generate nearly $200 million a year in tax revenue for state and local…

Environmentally responsible mining will provide a $3.7 billion annual boost to Minnesota’s economy, create 8,500 jobs and generate nearly $200 million a year in tax revenue for state and local…

This op-ed appeared July 29, 2018 in the Duluth News Tribune.  This month, the News Tribune published a commentary by Sandra B. Zellmer and Alexandra B. Klass of the Center for Progressive…

How mining will bring 8,500 jobs and $3.7 billion to Minnesota's economy

When some say government should be run more like a business, it’s safe to assume they don’t mean Enron. But that sort of excess comes to mind when hearing about…