Shocking Ignorance at the Editorial Board Level

Sykes posts WMC's line-by-line refutation of moronic JS editorial claims about the proposed mining law for the Gogebic project.  It's too bad that the JS editors are merely transcriptionists for the Far Left GreenGoddess worshipers.  (JS statements are italicized below).

The bill would allow mining corporations to dump toxic waste into wetlands.

This is completely false, and ridiculous. Like current law, the bill requires any mining company to go through a permitting process before disturbing any wetland. The Wisconsin DNR and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers cannot grant a wetland permit unless applicable water quality standards will be met.

Further, iron mining does not utilize toxic chemicals.  What gets "dumped" is stuff that came from Gaia in the first place.

Even more:

....current law does not require mitigation for wetland impacts occurring as part of a mining project. [In contrast,] Assembly Bill 426 requires compensation activities and/or mitigation at a ratio of up to 1.5 to 1 for each acre of wetland adversely impacted in the mining process. As a result, the bill may result in a net increase of wetland acreage in our state

 The bill would allow mining corporations to contaminate the groundwater of neighboring properties

This statement is completely false.

The bill requires the DNR to review a mining permit in 360 days, which is much shorter than the 3 ½ year average of the Army Corps of Engineers.

Except for the fact that the ACE does not "review" mining-permit applications.  Moreover:

Minnesota and Michigan have 120-180 day deadlines for iron mining permits. The 360 day timeline proposed in Assembly Bill 426 is significantly longer than those of our neighboring states

Plenty more at the link.

Perhaps the Editorial Board should have run the following instead:

We oppose mining in Northern Wisconsin.  When and if we find good reasons, we'll get back to you.  --Signed, The Luddites.

Much more honest, anyway.