Bill · S. 1366· Senate(119-S-1366)
Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection Act
- Introduced
- 4/9/2025
- Last activity
- 4/9/2025 — Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
- Sponsored by
- Tina Smith
- Cosponsors
- - 1 - 0
- Introduced
- In Committee
What this bill would do
The Boundary Waters Wilderness Protection Act aims to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and interconnected Federal land and waters within the Rainy River Watershed in Minnesota. This includes areas like Voyageurs National Park. The bill withdraws approximately 225,504 acres of Federal land and waters from various forms of entry, appropriation, and disposal. It specifically restricts location, entry, and patent under mining laws, as well as mineral and geothermal leasing laws. However, the Chief of the Forest Service may still permit the removal of certain materials under specific conditions.
Yes· 3 of 5
Does this better protect air, water and wildlife?+10
The bill provides strong protections for the Boundary Waters and surrounding wilderness by withdrawing land from mining and disposal.
Does this better protect public land such as parks and forests?+7
The bill enhances land management by preserving specific federal ecosystems from industrial entry.
Does this give the federal government more power?+5
The bill increases federal control over these lands by withdrawing them from other forms of entry and disposal.
The opposite· 3 of 5
Would business owners be better off under this?-4
The bill negatively impacts owners in the mining and mineral leasing sectors.
Would union members be better off under this?-3
Restricting mining may negatively impact workers in those specific industries.
Is this likely to create jobs?-2
The restriction on mining and mineral leasing may limit job growth in the extractive industries.
Who it would affect, and how
Potential Positive Impacts for People
-
Protection of Natural Resources: The bill seeks to protect the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, Voyageurs National Park, and interconnected Federal land and waters for current and future generations (Section 2, Title/Introductory text).
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Prevention of Land Disposal: By withdrawing the land from all forms of entry, appropriation, and disposal under public land laws, the bill prevents the loss of these federal lands (Section 2(b)(1)).
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Restricting Mining and Mineral Extraction: The bill limits location, entry, and patent under mining laws, as well as the operation of mineral and geothermal leasing laws (Section 2(b)(2) and (3)).
Potential Negative Impacts for People
-
Restrictions on Resource Extraction: The bill limits the ability to engage in mining and mineral leasing within the specified 225,504 acres (Section 2(b)).
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Conditional Resource Removal: While the bill restricts most mining, it still allows the Chief of the Forest Service to permit the removal of sand, gravel, granite, iron ore, and taconite, provided it is not deemed detrimental to water quality, air quality, or forest habitat health (Section 2(c)).
Groups and Interests Ranking
Every group the model scored this bill for, from -10 to +10. Hover a score for the reason it gave.
- Environment Energy And Infrastructure
- Improves Environmental Protections+10Improves Public Land Management+7
- Governance And Ideology
- Increases Federal Power+5
- Economy And Finance
- Increases Job Creation-2Improves Economic Growth-1
- Demographic And Interest Groups
- Good For Children+5Good For Young Adults+5Good For Business Owners-4Good For Union Workers-3Good For Rural Residents-2
- 7/8/2025
- 1 Cosponsor added.
- 4/9/2025
- Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
- Introduced in Senate
Peter WelchDemocrat · Vermont