Treaty Awareness walkers continue through Michigan to Ohio and on to D.C.

Participants in the Treaty Awareness Walk arrive at the Capitol in Lansing on Oct. 6, 2015, on their way to Washington, D.C. (Photo © and courtesy Angeline OzhaashkweBiik Antoine)

LANSING -- The Treaty Awareness Walk from Rexton, Mich., to Lansing was a success. Walkers arrived in Lansing as scheduled on Tuesday, Oct. 6, and held a march near the Capitol building. Now they are continuing through Michigan to Ohio and on to Washington, D.C., where they hope to arrive on Nov. 6, 2015.

Participants in the Treaty Awareness Walk march near the Capitol Building in Lansing on Oct. 6, 2015. (Photo © and courtesy Angeline OzhaashkweBiik Antoine)

"Today (Saturday, Oct. 10) is the last leg of the Michigan route. Walkers will be heading south on M52 from Chelsea, Mich., to the Ohio border. They will be greeted by David Gaskin who, along with Joe Hock, will be walking the eagle staff to Washington DC. If you live near where they are walking PLEASE JOIN THEM! ‪#‎nomines‬ ‪#‎nograymont‬ ‪#‎shutdownline5‬ ‪#‎honorthetreaties," writes Angeline OzhaashkweBiik Antoine, who has shared her photos of the walk with Keweenaw Now.

Antoine noted the walk to Lansing was a success and attracted the attention of bystanders who were not previously aware of government land deals, such as the sale/exchange of 10,000 acres of Michigan public land to Graymont Mining Co., which Native Americans believe violates their treaty rights on ceded territory.

Amanda Nimke Ballard of Chelsea, Mich., carries the staff during the Oct. 6 Treaty Awareness Walk in Lansing. She has also provided lodging and transportation for the walkers in Chelsea, where they stopped before heading for Ohio today. (Photo © and courtesy Angeline OzhaashkweBiik Antoine)

"It was great to see so many different tribes represented at the march on Tuesday," Antoine said. "In all I have met people from eight different tribes on this walk. In doing this walk we not only wanted to bring awareness to Graymont and Line 5, but we also wanted to bring about unity between the tribes. We are all one people and the walk, the march, and the show of support has proven that."

Another participant in the walk, Darryl Brown of St. Ignace, Mich., writes, "Defending the treaties is an important way to protect the Water and Earth. The Treaty Awareness Walk created enthusiasm and inspiration to native people to be Idle No More and provided many ways for people to be involved. I pray it provides more action by bringing people together to stop the senseless destruction of the land and risk taking regarding the fresh water lakes in Michigan."

Click here to follow the Treaty Awareness Walk and see more photos on Facebook.

Visit treatyawareness.com to obtain more information or make a donation.

Treaty Awareness Walk to D.C. to reach Lansing Oct. 6 for march near Michigan Capitol

Poster for Treaty Awareness Walk courtesy Joseph Hock.

LANSING -- Michigan Idle No More members and friends have been walking from Rexton, Mich., to Lansing since Sept. 19 and expect to arrive in Lansing tomorrow, Tuesday, Oct. 6, for a march near the Capitol to mark the first leg of their Treaty Awareness Walk to Washington, D.C.

Walkers from Idle No More Michigan are on their way from Rexton to Lansing and Washington, D.C. to call attention to Treaty Rights issues. Pictured here during their walk in late September are, from left, Steven Perry, LTBB (Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians); Evelyn Rose, GTB (Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians); Angeline OzhaashkweBiik Antoine, GTB; Terry Antoine, GTB. (Photo © and courtesy Angeline OzhaashkweBiik Antoine)

The walkers hope to raise awareness of the 1836 Treaty of Washington between the United States and representatives of the Ottawa and Chippewa nations of Michigan -- which was done to avoid forced removal of the indigenous people living in Michigan and which guaranteed rights of hunting, fishing and gathering in the ceded territories. These rights are threatened by the State of Michigan's projected land sale/exchange of about 10,000 acres to Graymont, a Canadian mining company, for limestone mining in the eastern Upper Peninsula.*

They are also marching to show their concerns about Enbridge's Line 5, a 62-year-old oil pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac which many have asked to be shut down because of the threat of a potential oil spill.**

Supporters of the walk are invited to join it for varied periods of time. Pictured here in northern Michigan are Angeline OzhaashkweBiik Antoine, GTB; Evelyn Rose, GTB; Lucius Antoine, GTB; and Elijah Boomer. (Photo © and courtesy Angeline OzhaashkweBiik Antoine)

Anyone who wishes to join the walkers in Lansing should meet them in front of the Lansing Center, 333 E Michigan Ave., at 3 p.m. tomorrow, Tuesday, Oct. 6 (see star on map below).

This map shows the route for the Treaty Awareness Walk near the Michigan Capitol Building in Lansing Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2015. Click on map for larger version. (Map courtesy Angeline OzhaashkweBiik Antoine of Idle No More Michigan).

Supporters of the Walk can make donations on line to help the walkers with their 900-mile journey. Visit treatyawareness.com to learn more. Follow the Walk on Facebook here.

Editor's Notes:

* To learn more about the Graymont issue, see our Feb. 22, 2015, article, "DNR Chief approves mineral rights exchange with Graymont but delays decision on 10,000-acre land transaction; residents, groups express opposition to Graymont project."

** See also our most recent article on the Graymont and Line 5 protests: "Two protests near Mackinac Bridge defend Native treaty rights, oppose UP mining projects and Enbridge Line 5: Videos, photos."

Two protests near Mackinac Bridge defend Native treaty rights, oppose UP mining projects and Enbridge Line 5: Videos, photos

By Michele Bourdieu
 

During the Sept. 6, 2015, Pipe Out! Paddle flotilla protest, canoers and kayakers near the south end of the Mackinac Bridge call for shutting down Enbridge's Line 5 under the Straits of Mackinac. (Photos by Keweenaw Now)

ST. IGNACE, MACKINAW CITY -- Native and non-Native protesters spent the day before Labor Day on both sides of the Mackinac Bridge to call for shutting down Enbridge's Line 5, the 62-year-old oil pipeline under the Straits of Mackinac, and to call attention to treaty rights violations by state and local land deals that permit mining in the Upper Peninsula.

At the north end of the bridge, protesters gathered at the I-75 rest stop near the bridge and timed their walk to the bridge for 9:06 a.m. on 9/06/2015 in order to counter State Sen. Tom Casperson's naming the day "Michigan Mining Day" (906 is also the area code for the Upper Peninsula).

Native and non-Native participants march toward the north end of the Mackinac Bridge on Sept. 6, 2015, carrying signs calling for protection of the land and water threatened by mining projects in the Upper Peninsula, including the proposed state land deal for Graymont limestone mining. Leading the march and carrying the Tribal Education Staff is organizer Martin Reinhardt. The group chose this day to counter State Sen. Casperson's declaring the day (9/06) "Michigan Mining Day." Many in the group later joined protesters at the south end of the bridge for the Pipe Out! Paddle protest against Enbridge's Line 5.

Martin Reinhardt, Anishinaabe Ojibway citizen of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and assistant professor of Native American Studies at Northern Michigan University, who organized the gathering at the north end of the Mackinac Bridge, said he considered the event a "protect" rather than a "protest" -- to protect the Great Lakes and treaty-ceded territory:

Martin Reinhardt, Anishinaabe Ojibway citizen of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and assistant professor of Native American Studies at Northern Michigan University, addresses participants in a protest/protect event on Sept. 6, 2015, at the north end of the Mackinac Bridge. He enumerates several land and water issues of concern. (Videos by Keweenaw Now)

Antoinette (Toni) Biron of Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., who happens to be Reinhardt's mother, attended the event and participated in the walk to the bridge.

"I'm glad this is happening," Biron said. "I lack understanding (about the issues) and I'm sure other people do too. I don't see it as a fight. I see it as a re-education."

Reinhardt's brother Scott was also on hand to lead the singing and drumming that preceded the walk:

Following the Native drum and song, the walk to the north end of the Mackinac Bridge begins.

Hundreds of cyclists happened to be crossing the Mackinac Bridge at the same time as the "9/06" event. Some joined the march when they learned the reason for it.

Joining the walk to the north end of the bridge was Zoe Jackson of Lansing, a member of MICATS (Michigan Coalition Against Tar Sands), who said she originally came up to support the flotilla protest at the south end of the bridge.

"I heard about the flotilla and I also heard about this event (on the north side) in conjunction with that," Jackson said.

Zoe Jackson of Lansing, a recent Michigan State University graduate, holds a sign showing her solidarity with Upper Peninsula residents opposed to the Graymont and other U.P. mining issues. Jackson, a member of MICATS, originally traveled to the bridge to protest the Enbridge Line 5 and ended up participating in both events.

Sault Ste. Marie (Mich.) residents Nancy and Ryan Nichols and Jennifer Payment also attended both events.

"I'm speaking for the environment that doesn't have a voice," said Payment. "These waters don't have a voice without us."

Payment also commented on Graymont's proposed limestone mine in the U.P.

"The chemicals that they use get into our surface water, our ground water," she said. "They also leave limestone deposits in the ground water. Leave that where it belongs. Leave Nature as Nature."

Displaying signs at the north end of the Mackinac Bridge are, from left, Nancy Nichols, Jennifer Payment and Ryan Nichols -- all of Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. Later they joined the Pipe Out! Paddle event at the south end (Mackinaw City).

Displaying a "Shut Down Line 5 Pipeline" sign, Nancy Nichols said, "They definitely should fix the aging pipeline before an extreme disaster happens."

Ryan Nichols held a sign saying "Stop Ecocide!"

"That's pretty much what we're doing to planet Earth," Ryan said. "We could reach a tipping point with climate change. We've overshot the earth's carrying capacity."

Nancy and Jim Haun of Skanee said, "We came from Skanee because we feel it's important to show our support for Mother Earth and the other people who are here."

Nancy and Jim Haun, center, of Skanee are pictured here with Phil Bellfy of Idle No More, left, and Horst Schmidt of Friends of the Land of Keweenaw (FOLK) during the event at the north end of the bridge. They also attended the flotilla protest at the south end.

Phil Bellfy of Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., a citizen of the White Earth Nation (of Minnesota), who is the lead plaintiff in a lawsuit against DNR Director Keith Creagh over the Graymont issue, also participated in the walk to the north end of the bridge. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit are asking for an injunction against Graymont, based on treaty rights guaranteed by the 1836 Treaty of Washington.

"Keith Creagh has no right to negotiate with Graymont over the exercise of our treaty rights," Bellfy said.

In the most recent ruling, the judge dismissed the case for lack of standing. Bellfy said one problem is they are trying to do the lawsuit without the aid of attorneys because of prohibitive costs, but they would welcome help from an attorney willing to work pro bono.

"We haven't given up," he added.*

Kathy English and her husband, Al English, of Trout Lake, Mich., have been fighting the Graymont limestone mining proposal and state land deal (sale and land exchange of more than 10,000 acres) also participated in the two protests.

"The protests seemed to be well attended, however, we encountered much complacency when trying to talk to people about what the legislators and politicians are trying to take from the people!" Kathy commented in an email to Keweenaw Now. "It is very disconcerting to see how they are trampling on Treaty Rights and Consent Decrees agreed to in good faith hundreds of years ago! Does anybody's word and signature mean nothing anymore?"

Kathy and Al English of Trout Lake walk toward the north end of the Mackinac Bridge with an inspiring message from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

"It is time for the People to look around and see actually see what is happening!" Kathy added. "They need to become involved in any way they can! They need to look at their 'representatives' who really are not 'representing' the People, and work for wide sweeping change!"

Margaret Comfort of Michigamme made this sign expressing her own love of the U.P.

Miguel and Anita Levy of Chassell show support for both land and water issues with signs they carried in the walk to the bridge. They also participated in the Pipe Out! Paddle event in Mackinaw City.

More drumming and song follow the walk to the north end of the bridge.

Pipe Out! Paddle Protest's message: "Shut Down Line 5!"

Shortly after 10 a.m. many of the participants drove across the Mackinac Bridge to join the Pipe Out! Paddle protest against Enbridge's Line 5, which took place in Colonial Michilimackinac Park, Mackinaw City. The paddlers were calling on Gov. Snyder and Attorney General Schuette to shut down Line 5 in order to prevent a catastrophic Great Lakes oil spill.

Protesters against Enbridge's Line 5 under the Mackinac Bridge, canoe and kayak in a flotilla near the bridge during the Sept. 6, 2015, Pipe Out! Paddle event as supporters on the beach shout cheers of protest against Enbridge. (Videos and photos by Keweenaw Now)

Participants in the Sunday morning flotilla return to shore. Another group went out in the afternoon.

Danny Fox and Scott Kelley of the Little Traverse Bay tribal group helped bring to shore the large Jiiman (tribal canoe, pictured above right and below), which holds about a dozen people. The Jiiman is used on inland lakes in the summer to give tribal youth experience with water activities, they said.

Helping to bring in one of the largest tribal canoes, called a Jiiman, are Little Traverse Bay members Danny Fox, left, of Alanson, Mich., and Scott Kelley, right, of Petoskey. Joining them (in hat) is Ellis Boal, active Green Party member, of Charlevoix County, who holds an anti-fracking sign.

Ellis Boal, Green Party activist, displayed his anti-fracking sign on the beach and collected petition signatures against fracking in the Lower Peninsula.

"I'm here for the fracking, which is a separate issue, but a related issue," Boal said.

He added he is also concerned about the pipelines under the Straits.

Matt Kern, left, and Sairy Franks of Traverse City display signs expressing their concern for the Great Lakes, treaty rights and land issues such as Graymont.

Matt Kern and Sairy Franks of Traverse City expressed their support for Native groups defending treaty rights.

"I think it's important that the U.S. stick to its agreements that it made with Native nations," Kern said. "I think that if we're going to seriously work toward healing the Great Lakes we need to follow the leadership of Native people."

Sairy noted she sees obvious concern that an oil spill from the pipeline is going to affect everyone, but first and foremost these are Native waters.

"We want it gone," she said of Enbridge's Line 5.

Native people are guaranteed fishing rights in the Great Lakes through treaties, Kern added.

"There should be no threat to Native fishing," Kern said, "and the pipeline could wipe out those fisheries."

Daabii Reinhardt, Martin Reinhardt's daughter, right, of Marquette, joined kayaker friend Wayland Willis-Carroll of Elk Rapids after the morning flotilla.

Kayaker Wayland Willis-Carroll of Elk Rapids, representing the Little Traverse Bay Band and the Grand Traverse Bay Band, said he participated in the flotilla especially because of the pipeline.

"It could burst and our whole ecosystem would be destroyed," he said.

Joining him on the beach was his friend Daabii Reinhardt, Martin Reinhardt's daughter and a student in physics at Northern Michigan University. Daabii said she believes all the issues of concern at the protest are equally important.

"I think it's important to shut the pipeline down and end the Graymont sale," Daabii said. "There are other ways we can get energy without destroying our environment."

Martin Reinhardt (standing) joins protesters on the beach during the Pipe Out! Paddle flotilla at the south end of the Mackinac Bridge (which can be seen at left).

Following the first flotilla, several tribal and environmental leaders spoke at a press conference in Colonial Michilimackinac Park.

Here are some video clips of their presentations:

At the press conference during the Sept. 6, 2015, Pipe Out! Paddle Protest against Enbridge's Line 5 under the Straits of Mackinac, Jim Lively of the Oil and Water Don't Mix campaign and Jannan Cornstalk, Kayak Flotilla organizer and citizen of the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, speak about reasons for the protest.

Aaron Payment, Tribal chairperson for the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians (representing himself as an Anishinaabe individual) comments on the need for tribal representation on Michigan Governor Snyder's Task Force and Committee dealing with pipeline issues in the Great Lakes.**

Marci Reyes, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, reads a tribal resolution (excerpted here) calling for decommissioning Enbridge's Line 5 under the Straits of Mackinac. She is followed by Mariah Urueta of Food and Water Watch, who helped organize this event along with tribal groups and Oil and Water Don't Mix.**

Since the protest, some progress has been made on the pipeline issue, though not to the point of shutting down Line 5. On Sept. 23, 2015, US Senators Gary Peters and Debbie Stabenow (MI) introduced the Pipeline Improvement and Preventing Spills Act to ban shipping of crude oil by vessel on the Great Lakes and require a comprehensive, top-to-bottom review of hazardous pipelines in the region. This legislation would also assess the current status of oil spill response and cleanup plans, require ice cover be part of worst-case scenarios in response plans, increase public information about pipelines for local communities, and require the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) to consider new criteria for identifying areas at high risk for a pipeline spill.***

Notes: 

* See Phil Bellfy's Idle No More Web site for details and updates on this lawsuit. See also our March 18, 2015, article, "Native American groups seek injunction against MDNR on Graymont land transfer proposal."

** While Enbridge conducted an emergency response drill in the Straits of Mackinac on Sept. 24, 2015, Aaron Payment and other tribal and environmental representatives spoke at a protest in Bridge View Park (on the north side of the Mackinac Bridge) again calling for Line 5 to be shut down. The protest was organized by Food and Water Watch. See the  Sault Ste Marie Evening News Sept. 25, 2015 article, "What if there was an oil spill?"
See also the Oil and Water Don't Mix Facebook page. 

*** Click here to read more about this proposed legislation on Sen. Gary Peters' Web site. 

Citizen protests to address land, water issues at north, south ends of Mackinac Bridge Sept. 6

Crossing the Mackinac Bridge in March 2015. While the Bridge will be the scene of large crowds of walkers on Sept. 7 for the Labor Day Bridge Walk, two protests will take place -- one at the north and one at the south end of the Bridge -- on Sept. 6. Concerned citizens will address several issues calling for land and water protection. (Photo by Keweenaw Now)

MARQUETTE -- In response to the recent proposal for "Michigan Mining Day" on Sept. 6 (906, corresponding to the Upper Peninsula area code), proposed by State Sen. Tom Casperson (R-Escanaba), and many issues surrounding the State of Michigan’s proposed sale / exchange of over 10,000 acres of ceded treaty territory (aka "public lands") to Graymont, a Canadian mining corporation, Dr. Martin Reinhardt, an Anishinaabe Ojibway citizen of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and associate professor of Native American Studies at Northern Michigan University, has called for a "906" protest, "We Protect Mother Earth" (WPME), on Sept. 6, 2015, at the Mackinac Bridge.

The protesters will meet at the Mackinac Bridge Welcome Center (UP side of the Bridge on the right side heading north) at about 8 a.m. and march to the Bridge before 9:06 a.m.

Reinhardt is also one of six plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the State of Michigan regarding the proposed sale of land to Graymont. Reinhardt led a similar protest at the Bridge in March 2015.*

Carrying the Eagle Staff, at left, Martin Reinhardt leads a protest just north of the Mackinac Bridge on March 28, 2015. Native and non-Native protesters carry signs expressing concerns about Michigan environmental issues -- including the state's approval of a land and mineral rights exchange and sale involving more than 10,000 acres of public land for the Graymont limestone mining project, the proposed CR 595 wilderness road near Marquette, the aging Enbridge pipeline threatening the Straits of Mackinac, and fracking. The three-day protest attracted a total of about 100 participants from both sides of the bridge. (Keweenaw Now file photo)

Reinhardt asserts that "if people are concerned about treaty rights violations, selling off public lands, dangerous pipelines, deforestation, fracking, intensive mining, destroying wetlands, and nuclear waste dumps, it is time to take a stand and tell the State of Michigan that we will be IDLE NO MORE!"

He encourages protesters to bring staffs, flags, banners, signs, hand drums, and shakers to the event.

This protest coincides with another protest, which will  take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sept. 6 on the south side of the Bridge -- the "Pipe Out Paddle Protest" (POPP). Jannan Cornstalk is the event organizer for that event. It will include guest speakers representing various organizations and a flotilla of canoes and kayaks. The POPP is focused on the removal of the Enbridge oil pipelines running under the Mackinac Bridge.**

On May 26, 2015, members of the Northern Michigan Environmental Action Council (NMEAC) of Traverse City and other groups from "Oil and Water Don’t Mix" -- a coalition of businesses, municipalities, Native American tribes and environmental and conservation groups -- gathered at Conkling Park, Mackinaw City, for a Great Lakes Call to Action -- to shut down Enbridge's Line 5 aging pipelines under the Mackinac Straits. Their protest coincided with the Mackinac Policy Conference held on Mackinac Island May 27-29. (File photo by Allan Baker for Keweenaw Now)**

"These are two great opportunities to show your displeasure with the way the State of Michigan is treating Mother Earth," Reinhardt said. "Let’s join in protest against the State’s mismanagement on both land and water and on both peninsulas of Michigan."

For more information on the "We Protect Mother Earth" event, contact Dr. Martin Reinhardt at martin@reinhardtassociates.net or click here to visit the Facebook site.

For more information about the Pipe Out Paddle Protest, contact Jannan Cornstalk at pipeout2015@gmail.com or click here to visit their Facebook site.

* Click here for our April 2015 article on the March protest.

** Click here for our article on the May 2015 protest and press conference on the Enbridge Line 5 issue.

Native American groups seek injunction against MDNR on Graymont land transfer proposal

By Michele Bourdieu

This wetland near Rexton, Mich. is within the area of the proposed Graymont limestone mining project -- an area that includes fragile wetlands and critical ecosystems. The proposed project is also within Native American ceded territory, which is under an 1836 Treaty that guarantees Native hunting, fishing and gathering rights. (Photo © and courtesy Steve Garske)

MARQUETTE, GRAND RAPIDS -- A group of American Indians from northern Michigan filed for an injunction today in federal court in Grand Rapids seeking to bar the Director of Michigan's Department of Natural Resources (MDNR), Keith Craegh, from approving a land transfer to Graymont Mining Company. If approved, the land transfer would be the largest transfer of land out of the public domain in Michigan's history -- over 11,000 acres would be affected.

According to the lead Plaintiff, Dr. Phil Bellfy, "The land subject to transfer is wholly within the 1836 Treaty of Washington Ceded Territory and subject to the conditions laid out in the 2007 Inland Consent Decree. It would be unconstitutional for the MDNR Director to transfer those lands as we -- American Indians -- have Treaty rights to "the usual privileges of occupancy" on those 11,000 acres. We are asking the Court to step in and preserve our Treaty rights and enjoin Mr. Craegh from transferring that land."

The phrase "the usual privileges of occupancy" is taken from Article XIII of the 1836 Treaty of Washington, and the extent of those "Article XIII Rights" was "conclusively resolved" by the 2007 Inland Consent Decree.

According to Idle No More, "Virtually all 'Land Cession' Treaties throughout the Upper Great Lakes region retain the right to hunt, fish, and gather on 'public lands.' The Courts have upheld these rights. Based on the language of the 1836 Treaty, for example, the 2007 Inland Consent Decree "is intended to resolve conclusively [Treaty Right] claims, and to provide for the protection of the resources in the 1836 Ceded Territory."*

Click here for the EX-PARTE MOTION FOR PRELIMINARY INJUNCTION WITH SUPPORTING BRIEF.

Concerned groups, citizens write to MDNR Chief

"A foreign mining company wants to buy 10,000 acres of our public land?" said Kathleen Heideman, SWUP president. "By my calculation, that’s ten thousand great reasons to reject the deal." (Image courtesy Save the Wild U.P.)

A February 27, 2015, a collective letter of opposition from concerned groups and citizens in the Upper Peninsula to MDNR Chief Craegh urges him to reject the Graymont proposal.

"The Michigan Department of Natural Resources must manage and conserve public lands for public benefit," the letter states. "The Graymont proposal includes lands currently open to the public for hunting and recreational trails, lands supporting wildlife, and land managed for timber -- contiguous forest lands considered some of the most productive forest land in the Eastern Upper Peninsula."

This sale of public land to benefit a foreign mining company would be a great loss for Michigan's forest and tourism economies, the letter adds. It would displace existing limestone quarrying jobs as well as long-term forestry and tourism jobs and would be "devastating" for the environment.

"The sale of these lands interferes with Indian tribes' rights by having an adverse impact on fishing, hunting and gathering activities of tribal members under the 1836 treaty, as well as a lack of cultural inventory, and no plan for inadvertent discovery," the collective letter of opposition continues.

Graymont, a Canadian mining company, first submitted an application to purchase over 10,000 acres of public land from the MDNR in November of 2013. Graymont intends to construct surface limestone quarries and, eventually, an extensive underground mine.

The area under consideration includes fragile wetlands and critical ecosystems. These public lands support unique hydrology and biodiversity, including "karst" habitat identified in Michigan’s Natural Features Inventory, limestone features (cliffs, pavement, sinkholes, caves) and special ecologies uniquely adapted to limestone: bats reliant on limestone caves, globally-rare "alvar" plant communities, and limestone wetlands critical to the endangered Hine's Emerald Dragonfly, termed "one of North America's rarest dragonflies" by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The collective letter of opposition is signed by individual citizens as well as major groups, including the Michigan League of Conservation Voters, Upper Peninsula Environmental Coalition, Friends of the Land of Keweenaw’s Board of Directors, the Chippewa Ottawa Resource Authority, the Central U.P. Group of the Michigan Chapter of the Sierra Club, Yellow Dog Watershed Preserve, Concerned Citizens of Big Bay, Save the Wild U.P., the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, Students for Sustainability of Northern Michigan University, Northwoods Native Plant Society, Citizens for Alternatives to Chemical Contamination, Citizens Against the Rexton Project, Concerned Clergy of Marquette, the Marquette Unitarian Universalists Social Action Committee and multiple individual property owners in Trout Lake, Mich.**

"These are serious and unresolvable objections," said Alexandra Maxwell of Save the Wild U.P. (SWUP), who helped organize the collective letter of opposition. "Our message to Director Creagh is simple: don’t make this deal." According to Maxwell, Save the Wild U.P. has been following the developments of this project since Graymont submitted its application; SWUP and other groups have consistently attended public meetings and submitted commentary critical of this potential land sale. "Now a majority of environmental organizations and concerned citizens throughout the U.P. have reached a clear consensus -- the Graymont project must be stopped."

Aaron Payment, tribal chairperson of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, said he was glad to sign the letter.

"I know that the DNR has received hundreds and hundreds of letters, emails and calls from my Tribal Citizens in opposition to this mine as it would devastate our treaty right to the land," Payment writes. "The proposed action is a harbinger of what's to come. The DNR has admitted in smaller group meetings they oppose the deal so you have to wonder why they are prostituting our land by continuing to consider this deal. Ask yourself, if the DNR has made clear they are in opposition, who is directing them to proceed despite DNR professional staff objections? What or who is driving this proposal? During the Chippewa County group of the League of Women Voters' public session at the Bayliss Library in the Sault, the DNR admitted the input they received was well over 90 percent in opposition. If the vast majority oppose, who is selling you out and for how much?"

Sierra Club, Michigan Chapter: Public needs more time to comment

A March 15 update from the Michigan Chapter of the Sierra Club states, "Sierra Club opposes the large-scale sale of public lands for private development. The decision on this application may come as soon as March 19. However, the application has gone through so many revisions, so quickly, that the public has not had an adequate opportunity to comment on the proposed action. Graymont has submitted nine versions of the application, with five coming since January 5, 2015. This means that by the time the public has seen and read an application, there has often already been a new one submitted.

"The most recent application was released to the public on March 10, less than 10 days before a proposed decision. Sierra Club believes that regardless of the merits of the proposal, the public deserves to have a reasonable period of time to review and comment on the final version of the application. We are asking DNR Director Keith Creagh to allow the public at least 30 days to review a final application before he makes a decision."

Graymont Proposal not on agenda for Citizens Advisory Councils

Horst Schmidt of FOLK (Friends of the Land of Keweenaw) said he attended a joint meeting of the MDNR's U.P. Citizens Advisory Council (Eastern and Western U.P. councils) in Marquette on March 16, but the Graymont proposal was not on the agenda.

"Considering the importance of the Graymont deal, it is significant that it was not on the agenda, even though I had asked our chair to place it on the agenda," Schmidt told Keweenaw Now. "One member from the eastern council said the access provisions after the deal would be implemented, as explained to him by the DNR, were enough to satisfy him that it was acceptable. The DNR did not communicate anything to the eastern and western councils in toto about the nature of the provisions or anything at all about the Graymont transaction."

Schmidt also questioned Graymont's proposed royalty payments.

"Over and over, Graymont appears to be generous," Schmidt noted. "First with the royalty increase from 18.75 to 30 cents/ton of usable dolomitic limestone. Second, it can indicate they are significantly underpaying the state. Third, by so doing, they are robbing people of the State of Michigan of revenue that would go into the DNR's land trust. Finally, by appearing generous, they apparently must think that it is still profitable for them. What kind of profit margin would they being making? Unlike regular mining operations, there is much less risk for Graymont with a known limestone deposit."

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission will hold its regular monthly meeting Thursday, March 19, at the Ralph A. MacMullan Conference Center, 104 Conservation Drive, in Roscommon. Following public comments, MDNR Director Creagh is scheduled to announce his decisions on several land transactions, including a revised land transaction application submitted by Graymont, Inc. For the agency's  background on Graymont’s proposals, visit the MDNR website at www.michigan.gov/graymontproposal.***

The MDNR is accepting written comment from the public concerning the newest revision of the Graymont proposal through Thursday, March 19.

"We strongly urge folks to review the facts," said SWUP's Maxwell, "and then write directly to Director Creagh, asking him to reject the Graymont land deal. Concerned citizens still have time to protect their public lands, in their own words."

Written commentary may be submitted to:
DNR-GraymontProposalComments@michigan.gov
 
Notes:

*Full texts of the Treaty and the Consent Decree can be found here: http://article32.org/

** Click here to read the Feb. 27 letter of opposition.

*** See also our Feb. 22, 2015, article, "DNR Chief approves mineral rights exchange with Graymont but delays decision on 10,000-acre land transaction; residents, groups express opposition to Graymont project."