FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 21, 2026
Saint Paul, MN – Today, Joel Smith, President and Business Manager of LIUNA Minnesota and North Dakota released the following statement after the United States House of Representatives passed H.J. Res. 140, a Congressional Review Act resolution that would reverse the federal mineral withdrawal and reopen 225,000 acres of land in Northern Minnesota to exploration and new mineral leasing and potential development of critical minerals.
“One of the most important contributions Minnesota can make to the fight against climate change is leading the world in setting the highest bar for labor and environmental protections in the responsible production of copper, nickel and other critical minerals.
“We have been mining in Minnesota for more than 130 years. Mining projects create family-supporting careers for Steelworkers, Laborers and other Building Trades, in addition to community-supporting jobs at schools, hospitals, public and private sector employers across Northern Minnesota.”
Northern Minnesota is home to one of the largest undeveloped mineral deposits in the world, containing more than four billion tons of copper, nickel and precious metals. The Duluth Complex holds the world's second largest copper deposit (34% of U.S. resource) and the world's third largest nickel deposit (95% of U.S. resource), in addition to cobalt, platinum, palladium, manganese, silver, titanium, gold and vanadium.