Creation Justice Ministries Condemns Use of Congressional Review Act to Overturn Protections for the Boundary Waters During Earth Month

WASHINGTON – On April 16th, 2026, in a narrow 50-49 vote, the U.S. Senate moved to invoke the Congressional Review Act to overturn a 20-year ban on mining in the watershed of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. This decision threatens more than 225,000 acres of God’s creation within the Superior National Forest, placing one of the most pristine and visited wilderness areas in the United States at risk of irreversible contamination.
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Protecting public lands is a moral and spiritual imperative. Anyone – Christian or not – who has visited The Boundary Waters can see that these lands and waters are a sacred gift; a vast, interconnected web of lakes, rivers, and forests that provides a sanctuary for both wildlife and the human spirit. To "rightly share" this creation means ensuring its health and integrity for future generations, not sacrificing it for the short-term profit of multinational corporations.

“The decision to greenlight sulfide-ore copper mining upstream of the Boundary Waters is a betrayal of our responsibility to be faithful stewards of God’s Creation,” said Avery Davis Lamb, Executive Director of Creation Justice Ministries. “Water is a gift from God, and the toxic runoff from this type of mining poses an existential threat to the purity of the BWCAW watershed. We are called to protect and restore nature, not to abandon it to the interests of foreign-owned mining corporations who leave local communities to bear the burden of environmental degradation.”​​

Photo credit: Quiet Parks International, Recal Travel and Save the Boundary Waters

Creation Justice Ministries stands in solidarity with the Indigenous communities, local residents, and the millions of visitors who look to the Boundary Waters for recreation, reflection, and renewal. Our faith compels us to resist policies that prioritize industrial exploitation over the health of the land and its people.
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We urge the administration and our leaders in Congress to remember that ecological integrity and justice should be a top priority in making any policy decision. The journey to protecting the Boundary Waters is not over. We will continue to mobilize our communities of faith to defend this national treasure and to demand policies that reflect our deepest values of stewardship, justice, and love for all of God’s creation.

For questions: Contact Madison Mayhew, Policy and Advocacy Manager: [email protected] ​