Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness — Mining Protection Area Buffer (MN)

Tracked preemption from the Minnesota overlay bundle.

Overview

Effective
1978-10-21
Sunset
Authority
federal
Scope
state:MN

Trigger predicate

When this evaluates true for a parcel, the law's preempted fields take precedence over base zoning.

parcel.is_adjacent_to_bwcaw == True

Preempted fields

2 fields on the base district schema are rewritten when the trigger fires.

FieldOpValueNote
review_typerequireusfs_bwcaw_consultation_and_mineral_withdrawal_checkThe BWCAW (1.1M acres) and adjacent Mining Protection Area within Superior National Forest are subject to a 20-year federal mineral withdrawal (PLO 7917, Jan. 2023) covering ~225,000 acres of the Rainy River Watershed. Local zoning along the wilderness boundary (Cook, Lake, St. Louis counties) cannot authorize uses that conflict with BWCAW Wilderness Act protections.
base_districts[*].allowed_usesrestrictno_motorized_recreation_no_new_sulfide_ore_mining_in_withdrawal_area

Citation

Authority source
BWCAW Act of 1978 (Pub. L. 95-495); 36 CFR Part 293; Public Land Order 7917 (Jan. 26, 2023 — 20-year mineral withdrawal); coordinated with Minn. Stat. § 84.523 (state Mining Protection Area)
https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/01/26/2023-01588/public-land-order-no-7917-withdrawal-of-national-forest-system-lands-superior-national-forest

Research notes

Federal-primary overlay captured at state-overlay scope because it gates land use in three NE Minnesota counties. The 2023 mineral withdrawal halted Twin Metals' proposed copper-nickel mine pending the 20-year review. State-level coordination via Minn. Stat. § 84.523. Per-parcel geographic predicate keyed to USFS BWCAW boundary + mineral withdrawal polygon. Federal conflict check enabled (federal primacy).