$50M grant for copper mine project in Upper Peninsula in limbo after lawmaker no-vote

(FOX 2) - Millions of dollars in grant funding for a massive mining project in Michigan's Upper Peninsula is in limbo after the Senate committee declined to approve the funds this week.

The appropriations committee approved more than $240 million in grants for Down Chemical, the University of Michigan, and Detroit Diesel.

But absent from the approvals was the $50 million that would have gone toward a proposed copper mine near the Porcupine Mountains WIlderness State Park in the western UP.

The no-vote comes a week after the Michigan House Appropriations Committee voted to approve the funding amid jeers from activists concerned about the environmental consequences the mining project would have on Lake Superior and the surrounding wilderness.

The 505-acre Copperwood project would create 380 permanent jobs, another 300 construction jobs, lead to $425 million in investment, and act as a source of economic revival for the remote area of the state, Highland Copper, the company behind the project, has said.

The proposed project comes amid a new appetite for precious metals amid an industry-wide transition toward electric vehicles, which require certain minerals to make the batteries that power the new generation of automobiles.

According to a fact sheet released by an economic development group pushing the project, the mine would need to meet "some of the strictest" regulations in the country.

"The Copperwood project has been designed responsibly, in line with Michigan’s stringent mining regulation which requires significant environmental controls and mitigations," Highland Copper CEO Barry O’Shea said. "We believe Copperwood can bring a needed economic boost to the Western UP, support domestic supply of copper, and be respectful of the region’s natural beauty."

Protect the Porkies, an advocacy group that has pushed back on the mine, cites research claiming the proposed mine would likely not revitalize the economy.

view from Summit Peak towards Lake Superior, Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park, Michigan, USA. (Photo by: Dukas/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

"If mining led to wealth, then the Upper Peninsula should be the richest place on earth, along with Appalachia and maybe Zimbabwe," said Tom Grotewohl, the group's founder.

The group argues the impacts from infrastructure upgrades that would accompany the mine would alter the landscape will beyond the estimated 10.7-ytear life of the facility.