Yellow Dog, photo by Luminous Light Huntress

Stand for the Land is asking folks to show up at the State Capitol this Thursday (June 3) at 11:30 AM for a peaceful rally as they deliver a petition to the Natural Resources Commission regarding Michigan’s first permitted sulfide mine. The event features speakers and Michigan musicians and you can get all the details on Facebook.

The mine is located on the Yellow Dog Plains north of Marquette, where this lovely little river flows. Acid mine drainage from sulfide mines has killed many of the rivers in the west, and there has yet to be a sulfide mine that hasn’t created acid mine drainage.

Have a look at what acid mining has done to Sudbury, and then see if the “jobs” argument holds water when you put the 100 or so mine jobs in one hand and Michigan’s countless tourism industry jobs in the other.

The Yellow Dog Watershed has this to say about the river & watershed:

The Yellow Dog River Watershed lies in eastern Baraga and western Marquette Counties in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The area is known as the Huron Peninsula and is one of the last wild areas in the state. The river begins in the McCormick Wilderness Area as an outflow of Bulldog Lake. It then runs 52 miles and drops 1096 feet at an average rate of 1:150ft through granite gorges, open plains, and hemlock forests to end in Lake Independence. From there, another outflow, the Iron River, runs from Independence to Lake Superior. The Iron River was historically part of the Yellow Dog River but had its name changed once industry came to the area.

The watershed encompasses 98 square miles and drains over six smaller subwatersheds. The Lost, Bob, Bushey, Big Pup, and Little Pup creeks all flow into the Yellow Dog River. Waterfalls abound along the Yellow Dog and its tributaries. The terrain is very hilly (some flatlanders might even say mountainous) with high ridges and low valleys giving a spectacular view. The highest point in the watershed is over 1600 ft. Not only can you see the river and forests from the hilltops but also Lake Superior. Wetlands abound and the forest type varies from old growth pine groves to aspen regeneration to stands of hardwood/conifer mix.

Be sure to check this out bigger.