The water seems to be the only abundant resource presently available for this project. An old mine pit located some 5 miles away has been filling up for some time and the nearby town of Bovey has become alarmed that the pit lake may overflow and flood low-lying areas. Residents put together a plan to start pumping the clean, clear water into Trout Lake with a huge pipeline. This plan would have been ideal for the lake.

Instead, Excelsior Energy is planning to pipe the water to the project site at a rate of up to 5,000 gallons per minute. The waste water is to be discharged in Dunning Lake, Big Diamond Lake, or Little Diamond Lake. This would flow into the wetlands that can be seen from Scenic Highway 7 or US Highway 169 and the new Mesabi Bike Trail on to Holman Lake, Swan River and eventually to the Mississippi watershed.

Excelsior Energy estimates that 90% of the Mercury will be removed prior to discharging the remaining waste into the watershed. However, there is a history of unresolved water permit violations at the Wabash River Plant, upon which this project is based -- process wastewater levels of selenium, cyanide and arsenic were in violation of the Wabash permit, and levels of selenium and cyanide were "routinely" out of compliance.

Documents:
Wabash River Final Report
Final Technical Report
August 2000

Water Contamination Specifics for North Dakota Coal Gasification Plant

In the Matter of the Cities of Annandale and Maple Lake NPDES/SDS Permit Issuance for the Discharge of Treated Wastewater
STATE OF MINNESOTA
IN COURT OF APPEALS
A04-2033
Filed August 9, 2005
Reversed
Wright, Judge
Dissenting, Schumacher, Judge