CELEBRATING EARTH DAY TO PROTECT SHARED WATERS
Water Over Nickel Youth Ambassadors attended a rally at the State Capitol with DNR Commissioner Kelly Applegate. Attending
were Brianna Friend, Elbert White, Waabigwaniins Killspotted, Jazlene Aubid-White, Illyanna Aubid-White, and Cheyanne Peet.
Submitted photo
May 4, 2026
By Kelly Applegate, Commissioner of Natural Resources
I celebrated Earth Day this year at a rally at the Minnesota State Capitol, joining partners, allies, and Tribal Nations in a powerful moment uniting our communities to protect our water, land, and future.
Honoring our earth requires us to honor water. Water cannot be separated from a healthy life. It is a living system that cares for us, our families and food, our cultures and communities, and our future. It is our inheritance as Minnesotans. And Ojibwe teachings tell us we have a responsibility to care for it.
Yet four of our state's most vital and sensitive water-sheds-the Mississippi River, St. Croix River, Rainy River (BWCA), and St. Louis River (Lake Superior—face growing threats from transnational sulfide ore mining companies.
That's why Water Over Nickel, environmental organizations, and Tribal Nations across Minnesota gathered to develop our 'Convening Across Watersheds' shared principles to guide water-related decisions in our state. We announced these principles at the Capitol, and I'm excited to share them with you here:
• Water cares for us. It is the foundation of life.
• Water is vulnerable. Once polluted by acid and toxic metals released from sulfide ore mining, surface water and groundwater may never recover.
• Water protects our health. What we pour into it, we pour into ourselves.
• Water is a shared responsibility. From towns to cities and Tribal Nations, we all have a duty to protect clean water.
• Water cannot be replaced. Fresh water is limited. As demand grows for minerals used in electric vehicles, data centers, artificial intelligence, and defense infrastructure, pressure to mine in sensitive watersheds grows with it.
• Water connects us. Surface water and groundwater in Minnesota link us to our neighbors across communities, states, and generations.
Earth Day was a reminder of what is possible when we come together. Our strength lies in our shared responsibility to each other, to the water, and to the generations who will come after us. This issue is especially important for the Mille Lacs Band with the proposed nickel mine in Tamarack, Minnesota, located miles from our community and placed at the headwaters of the Mississippi and St. Croix River watersheds. What happens there will flow downstream, affecting communities, plants, fish, and drinking water far beyond the mine site.
What's Next
From July 14 to September 12, 2026, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources will open a public comment period on the proposed Tamarack Mine, giving Minnesotans across the state the opportunity to weigh in on the project's future and the required protections for our land and water.
Here's how you can make your voice heard:
First, stay connected. Go to WaterOverNickel.com to sign up for updates about the upcoming public comment period and tools to get involved.
In the coming months, Water Over Nickel and partners will host additional community-centered events, including an upcoming Cultural Arts Showcase that will bring people together in a new way to celebrate culture, creativity, and connection to our lands and waters. More information about how to attend and participate in the Cultural Arts Showcase will be shared soon.
Second, be ready to act. Submit your comment—and encourage others to do the same-when the comment period opens on July 14.
Third, get others involved. Talk with your families, your neighbors, your co-workers about what is at stake and why this moment matters.
When we protect clean water, we protect ourselves and the Earth. Let's choose water over nickel together.
Mingwech.
