Dear John,

This week we moved another step closer towards safeguarding the watershed of the Boundary Waters - using sound policy and science. 

The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency validated our water quality monitoring program, by submitting Birch Lake to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) national list of impaired waters. 

Birch Lake lies just upstream of the Boundary Waters and is ground zero for proposed copper mining in the watershed. By recommending Birch Lake's inclusion on the national impaired waters list, light is being shed on pollution that has been ignored in this area for years. 

Our science & research program got us to this important moment - approximately 90% of the water quality data on Birch Lake was collected by our team.

Why does it matter that Birch Lake is on the EPA's list? The listing means that: 

• It will become more difficult for mining interests to obtain permits in the future.
  
  
• The machinery of the Clean Water Act will begin to turn, requiring the cleanup of the mining pollution still being dumped into Birch Lake.
  • This is great news for Wild Rice, Minnesota’s state grain. Sulfate pollution changes the ecology of lakes and streams and can be toxic to wild rice, which grows abundantly in Birch Lake.

The continuation of our water research program is crucial to protecting the Boundary Waters long term. The impact of this effort lies in its rigor and high-quality, which ensures the validation and acceptance of our data by state and federal agencies.

Today is a perfect time to make a gift to support this work, thanks to a generous donor who stepped up with a $50,000 matching gift challenge! Every donation made between now and THIS FRIDAY, April 5th will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $50,000. This is a remarkable opportunity to double the impact of your support. 

Not familiar with our water quality monitoring program? We’ve been working for the past four years on intensively monitoring Birch Lake for sulfate. We have a small but mighty team conducting professional-level scientific research.

Support the cutting-edge scientific work of Save the Boundary Waters by making a financial gift. Rush a 2X gift right now >>

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Save the Boundary Waters
P.O. Box 625
Ely, MN 55731
United States

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