SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds as follows: 
(1) The Rainy River Drainage Basin head-
waters begin in northeastern Minnesota and flow 
north to Canada. Located within Rainy River Drain-
age Basin are Voyageurs National Park and Bound-
ary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, which were es-
tablished by Congress to protect their unique and 
pristine water resources. 
(2) Voyageurs National Park which is com-
prised of more than 218,000 acres, is a water based 
national park that contains lakes, shorelines, and is-
lands stretching along 55 miles of the United 
States–Canadian border. 
(3) The Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilder-
ness is the most visited national wilderness area in 
the United States. It is comprised of more than 
1,000,000 acres and over 1,200 miles of canoe 
routes in myriad lakes and rivers. It extends ap-
proximately 150 miles along the United States–Ca-
nadian border. 
(4) The mining of copper and other metals on 
Federal lands in the Superior and Chippewa Na-
tional Forests, within the Rainy River Drainage 
Basin, poses a direct and long-term impact to the 
pristine water quality of Voyageurs National Park 
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and Boundary Water Canoe Area Wilderness from 
sulfide-ore mining contamination. 
(5) The risk of sulfide contamination to Voya-
geurs National Park and Boundary Water Canoe 
Area Wilderness from the mining of copper, nickel, 
platinum, palladium, gold, and silver on Federal 
lands within the Rainy River Drainage Basin puts at 
risk the nationally recognized natural resources of 
the area, as well as the region’s economically vibrant 
tourism industry which generates an estimated 
$852,000,000 annually and sustains more than 
18,000 jobs. 
SEC. 3. WITHDRAWAL OF FEDERAL LAND. 
Subject to valid existing rights, the Federal lands 
within the Rainy River Drainage Basin in Minnesota are 
withdrawn from all forms of— 
(1) entry, appropriation, or disposal under the 
public land laws; 
(2) location, entry, and patent under the mining 
laws; and 
(3) operation of the mineral leasing and mineral 
material laws. 
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SEC. 4. CONDITIONS FOR LEASES OR PERMITS INVOLVING 
MINING ACTIVITIES ON FEDERAL LANDS IN 
THE RAINY RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN. 
(a) MAJOR FEDERAL ACTION.—Approval of any 
lease of, or permit for, an activity on Federal lands relat-
ing to mining in the Rainy River Drainage Basin is 
deemed to be a major Federal action significantly affect-
ing the quality of the human environment if that lease 
or permit involves activities related to mining. 
(b) EIS.—An environmental impact statement con-
ducted for the major Federal action described in sub-
section (a) shall include, among other issues, consideration 
of any potential impacts, as a result of such lease or per-
mit, to units of the National Park System or land in the 
National Wilderness Preservation System located in the 
Rainy River Drainage Basin. 
(c) SUSPENSION OF ACTIVITIES.—As a condition for 
the issuance or renewal of any lease of, or permit for activ-
ity on, Federal lands relating to mining, the entity receiv-
ing such lease or permit shall be required to seasonally 
monitor water quality on Federal lands throughout the 
Rainy River Drainage Basin. If any mining related con-
tamination is detected in a unit of the National Park Sys-
tem or land in the National Wilderness Preservation Sys-
tem in the Rainy River Drainage Basin, all mining activi-
ties on Federal lands under such a lease or permit related 
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to the contamination shall be immediately suspended until 
the head of the Federal agency that issued the lease or 
permit certifies that all contamination has been remedi-
ated. 
(d) REMEDIATION PLAN; BOND.—The Federal agen-
cy shall not approve any mining related activities on Fed-
eral lands in the Rainy River Drainage Basin until the 
entity holding a lease or permit for that mining activity 
has submitted to the Federal agency— 
(1) an acceptable contamination remediation 
plan that outlines the strategies and tactics that the 
entity would undertake in the event that contamina-
tion is discovered; and 
(2) a full reclamation and performance bond 
that is sufficient to return the affected area to its 
original condition and treat any potential contamina-
tion for 50 years following the conclusion of any 
mining activities. 
SEC. 5. APPLICABILITY. 
This Act shall not apply to sand, gravel, granite, and 
taconite operations that exist on the date of the enactment 
of this Act. 
Æ 
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