GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – The Menominee Indian Tribe is appealing the dismissal of their lawsuit against the federal government for the handling of permits for a proposed mine.
The lawsuit against the U.S Environmental Protection Agency, U.S Army Corps of Engineers and Aquila Resources was dismissed in December.
Menominee Tribal Chairman Douglas Cox says they are working to ensure that the federal and state governments do not continue to ignore the Menominee Tribe’s concerns.
“The Menominee Tribe is prepared to see this through to ensure the full federal protections of the Clean Water Act and the National Historic Preservation Act and to ensure that the federal and state governments do not continue to ignore the Menominee Tribe’s concerns. This large mine-development will affect other tribes, multiple states, fishing and recreation industries in two states, downstream communities and wildlife, and ultimately the health of our Great Lakes, the most precious bodies of freshwater in the world. The risks to our cultural heritage and to the environment from this large source of pollutants, which includes risks to regulated wetlands, is simply too great for the Menominee Tribe to turn away from,” Menominee tribal chairman Douglas Cox said in a news release.
Aquila Resources wants to operate a gold, zinc, and copper mine in Menominee County.
The federal government has not yet responded to the filing with the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago.
