Biden officials point to the Eagle mine as proof that mining critical minerals in the U.S. can gain public support while avoiding pollution and trampling Indigenous rights. Not everyone is convinced.
MICHIGAMME TOWNSHIP, Michigan — In the sun-drenched forests of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula stands the black, gaping mouth of the nation’s only operating nickel mine.
Hundreds of feet below in the darkness, heavy machinery blasts, scrapes and prepares to haul up to the surface rock rich with tiny flecks of high-grade nickel and copper formed more than 1 billion years ago.
The Eagle mine’s steady stream of dark, gray ore will eventually be shipped to a nearby mill to be processed, placed on rail cars and sent to smelters in Canada before being sold into a global market to feed booming demand for stainless steel — and increasingly, batteries for electric vehicles.
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