Sand mine biggest in Minn

[Lee Borgersen]

Proposed frac sand mining operation could be biggest in Minnesota.

Updated:   02/14/2015


 

A proposed silica sand mining project in southeastern Minnesota could change the nature of the industry in the state.

Or not.

Nobody is quite sure what to expect at the end of February, when Minnesota Sands LLC submits its revised business plan to the Minnesota Environmental Quality Board. The size of the project has varied wildly since Minnesota Sands founder Rick Frick and his partners began pursuing mining operations in the area to extract a key ingredient used in hydraulic fracturing across the globe, including in North Dakota's Bakken Oil Patch.

"Originally, we heard it was 11 mines in three counties," said Johanna Rupprecht, a policy organizer for the nonprofit Land Stewardship Project. "Then it was going to be in two counties, and now even more mines in four or five counties?"

Until the new business plan is submitted, the size of Minnesota Sands' proposal will remain speculation. But, if the project is on the higher end of what Rupprecht has heard from various sources, it would more than double the number of sand mines in the state.

"There have been a few mines proposed here and there that we've heard of ... this would definitely be the biggest mining operation we would have in southeastern Minnesota," Rupprecht said. "Minnesota Sands has not been forthcoming about the size or scope of the project."

Forum News Service was unable to reach Frick for this article.


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The mining and refining of silica sand is prone to releasing fine particles in the air, which can quickly degrade air quality. So, the size of the Minnesota Sands project is of particular importance to environmental groups.

The uncertainty about the project has caused environmentalist groups such as the Land Stewardship Project to be on edge about Minnesota Sands, as they point to air and water quality concerns near mining and processing sites -- particularly in what is called the "Driftless Area" of southeastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin.

"The biodiversity here is pretty special," Rupprecht said. "There are plants and animals found here not found anywhere else in the region."

But to call the Minnesota Sands proposal something that could be calamitous to the environment is premature, says Dennis Egan, executive director of the Minnesota Industrial Sand Council.

"We don't even know what the project is yet," he said, "so how can we say it will be devastating?"


ACTIVITY SPIKE IN WISCONSIN
Silica sand, also known as frac sand, is used in a wide array of industries. It is used in the production of fiber-optic cables and microchips for computers -- hence "Silicon Valley" -- and in sandblasting.

But it is its use as a proppant in the hydraulic fracturing process, propping open the fractures that are created by high-pressure fluids, that has caused the spike in silica sand mining in Wisconsin, and has spurred the Minnesota Sands proposal.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources' lead on industrial sand issues, Deb Dix, said the industry has "exploded" in the past few years in response to increased demand from fracking.

Since 2010, the state has gone from five mining facilities and five


 An aerial view of a silica sand mine outside of Eau Claire, Wis.


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[Boar]

so rick frick wants his frac.

[The General]

Frac baby frac

Drill baby drill