Penokee Hills

Penokee Hills in danger from Gogebic Taconite

Michael Henderson

COMM/215 Essentials of College Writing

07/05/2014

COLETTE WANLESS-SOBEL

Penokee Hills in danger from Gogebic Taconite

How taconite mining will destroy the area.

While visiting the Penokee Hills, lake superior indian reservations I became aware of the Ojibwe and their struggle to stop a taconite mining operation charged by the Gogebic Taconite corporation. In a conference on the first day it was made clear the harm that would befall the whole bad river watershed and how it affects the indian reservation and ultimately lake superior itself. On the second day I didn't bother with the conferences but instead had a native guide take my group out to the mining site even though there had been reports and incidents of privately contracted corporate mercenaries in the area. After a long hike through dangerous terrain I came to a sacred place called 'spirit rock' which was as far as we could go without further threat from the mercenaries. This is where our guide explained the potential damage to the local fish spawning grounds and wild rice growth deemed sacred to the Ojibwe.

If the Gogebic Taconite corporation is allowed to mine the Penokee hills region there would be severe and irreversible damages. State scientists said in an internal report that iron mining in northern Wisconsin poses a variety of potential threats to human health and to the water supply that connects a complex ecosystem ranging from upland forest to wetland bogs to Lake Superior(STEVEN, V. W. 2014). The proposed mining pit would strech about five miles and any habitat would be destroyed. Furthermore, waste runoff would contaminate and destroy the environment surrounding an even larger area around the pit.

Not only did I see first hand what type of potential damage could be caused by such an operation but the use of private mercenaries to...