LANSING, Mich. — The U.P. legislative delegation announced its support Tuesday for the Michigan Strategic Fund’s vote to provide funding for necessary infrastructure upgrades at Highland Copper’s Copperwood Mine project in northern Gogebic County.
“This is a great day for the U.P. and Michigan!” said Rep. Greg Markkanen, R-Hancock. “The west end of the U.P. has been offering its support for this action for over 10 years, particularly the last four years. This is an answer to many prayers and hopes.”
The project has been the subject of discussions and planning for over 15 years and will mark the return of a major copper mine to the region following the closure of the White Pine Mine in 1997.
“The western U.P. has faced economic devastation as state policymakers have forgotten the people they were meant to serve,” said Rep. Dave Prestin, R-Cedar River. “This investment is a critical step toward the prosperous future our residents deserve. We refuse to be left in the dust by nonresidents and their political ideologies. I am proud that we are bringing this investment home for the western Upper Peninsula.”
Rep. Karl Bohnak applauded Tuesday’s vote and the benefits it will bring to the region.
“The hardworking people of the U.P. are anxious to see their communities grow and prosper,” said Bohnak, R-Deerton. “We don’t want to see our schools and fire departments close, and that means we need growth across the economy. Eagle Mine in Marquette County is showing how mining and tourism can operate side by side to benefit a region under some of the strongest mining laws in the nation.”
Eagle Mine began operations over 15 years ago in northern Marquette County and is the nation’s only nickel mine. It was also the first mine to begin operations under Michigan’s unique mining laws, which were unanimously passed by the Michigan Legislature and signed by Gov. Jennifer Granholm in 2004. The laws are not only environmentally strict but also add a severance tax on top of normal business taxes to help local communities and rural areas across the region.
“Copper is essential to our daily lives and to the technology and infrastructure we rely on,” said Rep. Parker Fairbairn, R-Harbor Springs. “We can either mine it here in Michigan, under some of the strongest environmental standards in the world, or remain dependent on foreign supply chains. By investing in the western U.P., we are improving infrastructure in a chronically underinvested region, creating good-paying jobs and generating economic benefits that will be felt across the entire peninsula for generations to come.”
Sen. John Damoose added that the investment will build on the region’s strong mining history.
“The Upper Peninsula has a long heritage in mining, and we know a good opportunity when we see it,” said Damoose, R-Harbor Springs. “The Copperwood Mine project will be great for the entire U.P. and all of Michigan as we seek to regain our position as the center of world manufacturing and build an economy that will remain viable in the 21st century.
“The return on this investment will last for generations.”
The MSF vote provides approximately $5 million to the Gogebic County Road Commission for road infrastructure and nearly $45 million to Copperwood Resources Inc. to improve energy and communications infrastructure. The cost of these improvements will also require equal or greater investment from the company.
“The western U.P. has long suffered neglect from the state in the way of investments and attention,” said Sen. Ed McBroom, R-Waucedah Township. “The loss of Ojibwa Prison was just another broken promise and nail in the coffin a few years ago. This decades-overdue investment by the state will revitalize opportunities for growth and the community right alongside the new jobs created by this new mine. Like Sen. Joe Mack said, ‘Employment, development, economy: those are the good days for the Upper Peninsula.’”
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