Negative capability

"Good news" for our local economy here in North Country: the Big Mining Company from Ohio has just announced that they are planning to spend $500 Million to expand production at our local pits. The high price of iron - related to increased Chinese demand - makes it economically desirable to dig deeper and work harder at extracting "Fe" from deep under the earth near Pioneer and Hematite. And local people are excited that there may be as many as 400 new jobs resulting from shifts added at the pelletizing facility. (The raw ore is "processed" here on-site, transformed through crushing, intense water-pressure and considerable heat into small round pellets before being shipped out via the 1000 foot ore-boats that ply the Great Lakes.)

Mining was the reason for the settlement of the Upper Peninsula, and it still is one of the economic pillars. Of course, the mines have a tremendous environmental impact - but jobs are scarce in this economy, and the environmental regulations in Michigan have been drafted largely to ensure the well-being of the mining companies. We will probably soon have an operating nickel mine to go along with the iron pits - and uranium mines may not be far behind. My friends in the mining industry tell me not to worry - there will still be plenty of lakes and trees around. Lake Superior will still be relatively clean. And the jobs will mean that more young people will be able to stay in the region. So it goes in an extraction-based economy!