DNR to begin to auction Iron Range mineral rights

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources opens bids on Thursday, April 28 for mineral leases that allow companies to prospect for copper, nickel, gold and other metals across northern Minnesota.

Mining supporters say the leases are an important step toward tapping the state's vast mineral wealth and creating hundreds of jobs. The leases would also raise money for the state through taxes and royalties, according to the Associated Press.

But critics tell the Duluth News Tribune that the system is stacked against private landowners, some of whom don't realize they don't own what's under their own land.

In the auction starting Thursday, the state is offering 621 parcels of land. The parcels are in areas where mineral deposits are likely, but generally haven't been confirmed. Four counties are involved in the explorations -- Lake, St. Louis, Itasca and Koochiching. Cook County has documented iron ore deposits, but they are all in the BWCAW.

On federal land within the Superior National Forest, there are prospecting applications for valuable metals across 44,000 acres -- none in, but some close to the Boundary Waters.