Mining Plans Sound Harmful to the Environment

From 2016-2019, I called Wausau and Marathon County my home. One of the highlights of my time in the area was the pristine and stunning scenery of the north woods. The scenery is not the only benefit of the unmatched forests, lakes, rivers, and other natural features of Marathon County. These features are also essential to the health of everybody living there, the lifeline of many long-existing businesses, and truly a gift not to be squandered. This is why I found it disturbing that some company with no ties to Marathon County wants to come in and put all of these things in jeopardy. I won’t begin to pretend I know all the technicalities regarding the plans of the Canadian company Green Light Metals. However, what I do know is that the company wants to come in and conduct “sulfuric acid mineral exploration drilling project” for the purpose of determining whether they want to operate an open pit mine in the County. Marathon County is already a heavily industrialized region and the thought of more large trucks, and the hauling of rocks and other materials is unimaginable. Also, an open pit mine will place a scar on the land for many years to come. These concerns do not even compare to the strong likelihood of chemical contamination of Marathon County’s water. The thought of drilling chemicals, surfactants, and foaming agents going essentially unrestricted into the lakes, rivers, groundwater, and other water sources of Marathon County seems unjustifiable and frankly sounds gross and dangerous.