HIBBING — When Andrew Reed in 2007 was graduating from high school in Orr, students were under the impression that northeastern Minnesota’s taconite industry was on its last legs.
Within two years – hammered by a national and global economic downturn – total iron ore pellet production plummeted to barely more than 18 million tons. With taconite plants idled, production was far below the industry’s annual capacity of about 40 million tons.
“When I went to school, people thought it was dying,” said Reed. “But no, it’s just getting started.” Reed, a Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Division of Lands and Minerals mineland reclamation specialist in Hibbing, today earns a living because of iron ore.
Every day, Reed monitors Minnesota’s iron ore industry, working closely with mining companies on permitting and helping ensure the protection of the region’s natural resources.
In analyzing the billions of crude ore tonnage that remains across the Iron Range, Reed is confident that he and thousands of others Minnesotans who benefit from the industry, will be working for decades to come.
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