Bill > S1366

This bill aims to protect approximately 225,504 acres of federal land and waters in the Rainy River Watershed of the Superior National Forest in Minnesota by withdrawing these lands from various forms of development and resource extraction. Specifically, the withdrawn lands, which are defined by a specific boundary map from a 2022 environmental assessment, would be protected from entry, appropriation, disposal, mining, and mineral leasing. However, the bill includes a provision allowing the Chief of the Forest Service to permit the removal of certain materials like sand, gravel, granite, iron ore, and taconite if such removal would not negatively impact water quality, air quality, or forest habitat. The bill mandates that the relevant maps and boundary figures be kept on file and made publicly available in Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management offices. By protecting this ecologically significant area, which includes the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and interconnected lands near Voyageurs National Park, the bill seeks to preserve these natural resources for current and future generations.

Agriculture and Natural Resources

https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/1366/all-info