United States 117th Congress Status: In Committee 1 D cosponsors

HR 2794 — Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection and Pollution Prevention Act

Last action — Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 457.

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill died with 117th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.

This bill is no longer active — its legislative session has ended, so there are no live odds of enactment. It would have to be reintroduced in the current session to move again.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

25 added · 99 removed

Plain-language change summary

The amendment to H.R. 2794 removes a section that included findings about the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, such as its size, management, and cultural resources. It also eliminated references to the history and purpose of previous legislation related to this area, including protections against incompatible uses and mining. This change shifts the focus of the bill away from specific local ecological and cultural information towards a broader intent related to the withdrawal of federal lands and waters in the state.

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2794 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 117th CONGRESS 1st Session H.
2794 Reported in House (RH)] <DOC> Union Calendar No.
457 117th CONGRESS 2d Session H.
2794 To provide for the protection of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and interconnected Federal lands and waters, including Voyageurs National Park, within the Rainy River Watershed in the State of Minnesota, and for other purposes.
2794 [Report No.
117-634] To provide for the protection of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and interconnected Federal lands and waters, including Voyageurs National Park, within the Rainy River Watershed in the State of Minnesota, and for other purposes.
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To provide for the protection of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and interconnected Federal lands and waters, including Voyageurs National Park, within the Rainy River Watershed in the State of Minnesota, and for other purposes.
which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources December 14, 2022 Additional sponsors:
Mr.
Welch, Ms.
Newman, Mrs.
Napolitano, Ms.
Jackson Lee, Mr.
Rush, Mr.
Carson, Ms.
Brownley, Mr.
Pocan, Mr.
Thompson of California, Mr.
Levin of California, Ms.
Stansbury, Mr.
Cartwright, Mr.
McGovern, Mr.
Aguilar, Mrs.
Bustos, Mr.
Tonko, Mr.
Sherman, Ms.
Dean, Mr.
Lieu, Mr.
Larson of Connecticut, Mr.
Suozzi, Mr.
Courtney, and Ms.
Ross December 14, 2022 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] [For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on April 22, 2021] _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To provide for the protection of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and interconnected Federal lands and waters, including Voyageurs National Park, within the Rainy River Watershed in the State of Minnesota, and for other purposes.
FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is a 1,090,000-acre Federal wilderness area, located within the Superior National Forest, that was originally designated in the Wilderness Act of 1964 (Public Law 88-577).
(2) The Forest Service manages the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which includes-- (A) nearly 2,000 pristine lakes ranging in size from 10 acres to 10,000 acres, and more than 1,200 miles of canoe routes;
(B) 1,500 cultural resource sites including historic Ojibwe village sites and Native American pictograph panel sites;
and (C) 150 miles of land and water on the international border with the Government of Canada.
(3) In 1978, Congress passed the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness Act (Public Law 95-495) to remove incompatible uses, prohibit mining within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and on 220,000 acres of the Superior National Forest, and to provide management guidance to protect, preserve, and enhance the lakes, waterways, and forested areas of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness to enhance public enjoyment of the unique landscape and wildlife.
(4) The federally recognized Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, and the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa retain hunting, fishing, and other usufructuary rights throughout the entire northeast portion of Minnesota, including the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, under the 1854 Treaty of LaPointe.
All Bands have a legal interest in protecting natural resources and the Forest Service shares in the Federal trust responsibility to maintain treaty resources.
(5) The Rainy River Watershed lies within the Superior National Forest, which contains 20 percent of the fresh water supply in the entire National Forest System.
(6) The Rainy River Watershed headwaters begin in northeastern Minnesota and flow north through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park and into Canada along the shared international border.
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These international waters are governed by the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty, which states that ``boundary waters and the waters flowing across the boundary shall not be polluted on either side to the injury of health or property on the other''.
(7) The waters of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park are classified as Outstanding Resource Value Waters under Federal and State law, and degradation of water quality is prohibited.
A risk of mining development is acid mine drainage which generally occurs when sulfide minerals are exposed to air and water creating sulfuric acid, which decreases water pH and leaches harmful metals such as copper, zinc, lead, cadmium, iron, and nickel.
(8) Acid mine runoff from sulfide-ore copper mining entering groundwater, rivers, streams, and lakes harms aquatic life, degrades water quality, and results in potential severe environmental impacts.
(9) A peer-reviewed study of water quality impacts from 14 operating United States copper sulfide mines found 100 percent of the mines experienced pipeline spills or accidental releases:
13 mines experienced failures of water collection and treatment systems to control contaminated mine seepage resulting in significant negative water quality impacts.
(10) The mining of copper and other metals in sulfide bearing ore on Federal lands in the Superior National Forest, within the Rainy River Watershed, poses a direct and long-term threat from sulfide-ore mining contamination to the pristine water and air quality and healthy forested habitat of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park.
(11) The likely contamination of the air, water, and forested habitat of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and Voyageurs National Park from the mining of copper, nickel, platinum, palladium, gold, and silver on Federal lands within the Rainy River Watershed puts at risk-- (A) the nationally recognized natural resources of the area;
and (B) the region's amenity-based and tourism industry, which if protected by a mineral withdrawal, would grow by 1,500 to 4,600 more jobs and $100,000,000 to $900,000,000 more income over the next 20 years than if such mining were not banned.
(12) In 2016, the Forest Service issued a Record of Decision which found ``unacceptable the inherent potential risk that development of a regionally untested copper-nickel sulfide ore mine within the same watershed as the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness might cause serious and irreplaceable harm to this unique, iconic, and irreplaceable wilderness area''.
The Forest Service subsequently proposed a 20-year mineral withdrawal of 234,328 acres of Federal lands and waters in the Rainy River Watershed.
(13) In 2018, approximately 20 months into a 24-month review period of the Rainy River Watershed mineral withdrawal proposal, the Department of Agriculture abruptly canceled the withdrawal application and abandoned the Environmental Assessment.
SEC.
3.
<all>
Union Calendar No.
457 117th CONGRESS 2d Session H.
R.
2794 [Report No.
117-634] _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To provide for the protection of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and interconnected Federal lands and waters, including Voyageurs National Park, within the Rainy River Watershed in the State of Minnesota, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________ December 14, 2022 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
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Action History

  1. Introduced in House

  2. Introduced in House

  3. Referred to the House Committee on Natural Resources.

  4. Referred to the Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands.

  5. Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.

  6. Subcommittee Hearings Held.

  7. Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources Discharged.

  8. Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests, and Public Lands Discharged.

  9. Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.

  10. Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 24 - 16.

  11. Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 117-634.

  12. Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Natural Resources. H. Rept. 117-634.

  13. Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 457.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 546 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (546)

546 members have not signed on to this bill.

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Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors HR 2794?
HR 2794 is sponsored by McCollum, Betty (Democratic).
What is the current status of HR 2794?
This bill died with 117th Congress. It reached “In Committee” and never advanced before the session ended, so it can no longer move — a new version would have to be reintroduced in the current session.
Where can I track HR 2794?
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