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Thursday marks 50 years since a group of people concerned about the future of the Boundary Waters and its miles of forest and water gathered at Tobies Diner in Hinckley — not for their famous caramel rolls, but to make a plan to protect the wilderness from motors, resorts, logging and mining. 

The challenges of 1976 facing what became 

Friends of the Boundary Waters Area Wilderness

 are similar to those faced by the group today after Congress 

 near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. 

“One of the reasons it has always sparked so much controversy is that it's doubly rich,” Pete Marshall, communications director for Friends of the Boundary Waters, told MPR News. “It's very rich in natural beauty, and it's also rich in natural resources. And it does seem that every generation needs to kind of pick up the baton and fight for the Boundary Waters again.” 

A representative of Twin Metals and MiningMinnesota 

 that the ban’s reversal doesn’t mean mining will begin immediately, but it reopens the doorway for exploration. 

Marshall said that, after feeling “betrayed” by lawmakers in Washington, D.C., the advocacy group is looking to state legislators to step up and enact their own protections for the BWCA against mining. 

“I think people in Minnesota take all the water we have for granted, and we are one of the states where it's an exception to have this amount of water,” Marshall said. “The sheer amount of clean water, of lakes that are bordered by this ancient granite bedrock, great white pines and birch trees, it really makes it into a unique wilderness area that's unlike any place in the country.”

Listen to the full conversation by clicking the player button above.

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The challenges of 1976 facing what became Friends of the Boundary Waters Area Wilderness are similar to those faced by the group today after Congress overturned a federal ban on mining near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.

The challenges of 1976 facing what became Friends of the Boundary Waters Area Wilderness are similar to those of today after Congress overturned a federal ban on mining near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. 

Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness marks 50 years with familiar challenges

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