1.This Act may be cited as the
Superior National Forest Land
Adjustment Act of 2008
.
2.
(a)The
Congress finds the following:
(1)Fragmentation of
property rights on certain lands described herein within and adjacent to the
Superior National Forest in Minnesota hampers the ability of the Forest Service
to manage associated forested areas as well as the ability of private mineral
owners to utilize their mineral rights.
(2)The United States
primarily owns the surface estate in the lands described in section 3, subject
to reserved and outstanding mineral rights, with such lands located within a
well-established mining district with a large open pit mine lying directly to
the north and a mine railroad lying directly to the south.
(3)The public
interest in selling the federally owned property estate interests in lands
described in section 3 under the terms and conditions of this Act would appear
to outweigh the interest served by maintaining such lands under Federal
ownership subject to a final determination under this Act.
(4)The sale of some Federal surface and
subsurface rights in land under this Act will facilitate mining in the areas
described in section 3, and thereby improve the local and national economy by
providing needed mineral resources, enhancing the property tax base, and
promoting employment opportunities through expanded job creation and will allow
for the acquisition of desirable public holdings that are located within or
adjacent to Forest Service land by the Forest Service.
(5)Minnesota and the Army Corps of Engineers,
in cooperation with the Forest Service, are preparing an environmental impact
statement for the proposed mining operations by PolyMet Mining, Inc., on and
adjacent to the lands authorized for conveyance by this Act, more fully
described in the notice of intent of the Department of Defense (70 Fed. Reg.
38122 (July 1, 2005)) and a draft environmental impact statement is expected to
be released for public review and comment in the near future.
(6)Proceeds from the
sale of lands authorized by this Act shall be used by the Forest Service to
purchase desirable private inholdings within and adjacent to the Superior
National Forest consistent with the land and resource management plan for the
Superior National Forest.
(b)In
this Act:
(1)The term
lands includes interests in lands.
(2)The term
Secretary means the Secretary of Agriculture.
(3)The term
surface mining means the excavation of lands for the purposes of
obtaining minerals, including excavation by such methods as contour, strip,
auger, open pit, and area mining.
3.Land conveyance
authority, Superior National Forest, Minnesota
(a)
(1)After considering
the public interest factors described in paragraph (2), the Secretary of
Agriculture may sell in accordance with this Act any or all right, title, and
interest of the United States in and to the lands within the Superior National
Forest in Minnesota described in subsection (b).
(2)The sale
authorized by this Act may proceed if, based on the environmental documentation
provided in accordance with section 5(b), or other information as the Secretary
may choose to utilize, the Secretary determines that a sale will—
(A)result in better
and more efficient management and development of Federal lands and resources
taking into consideration the property interests and reservations for mining
uses and surrounding use of the lands which are the subject of this Act;
(B)help consolidate
the ownership of lands or interests in such lands, including mineral rights and
surface ownership, thereby promoting economic development;
(C)result in receipt
to the public of consideration equal to appraised market value as defined
herein; and
(D)allow with
proceeds from any sale the purchase of replacement lands which result in a net
benefit to the multiple use resources of the Superior National Forest.
(3)This subsection
prescribes the sole public interest determination required for any sale.
(b)Lands authorized
for conveyance
(1)The federally owned lands subject to sale under this
Act are certain lands located in St. Louis County, Minnesota, comprising
approximately 6,700 acres, more fully described as follows:
(A)Township 59 North, Range 13 West, 4th
Principal Meridian:
(i)Sections 1 through
9, inclusive.
(ii)Sections 10, 11,
17, and 18, those portions lying north of and subject to the right-of-way held
by the Erie Railroad.
(iii)The N½ of section 12.
(B)Township 59 North, Range 12 West, 4th
Principal Meridian:
(i)Section 6: Lots 3,
4, and 9, inclusive.
(ii)Section 7: Lots 3
and 4, inclusive.
(C)Township 60 North, Range 13 West, 4th
Principal Meridian:
(i)The S½SE¼ of section 33.
(ii)The S½S½ of section 34.
(iii)The S½S½ of section 35.
(2)The
lands described in paragraph (1) are generally depicted on a Forest Service map
dated October 4, 2007, and entitled PolyMet (Proponent) Case
#4544
, which shall be on file and available for public inspection in
the office of the Forest Supervisor, Superior National Forest, until such time
as the lands are conveyed.
(3)Modification of
boundariesThe Secretary may
modify the boundaries of the lands described in paragraph (1) based on factors
such as buffers and other land management considerations.
(c)The lands sold
under this Act shall be conveyed by quitclaim deed executed by the Forest
Service, Eastern Region, Director of Air, Soil, Water, Lands, and Minerals. The
Secretary may reserve such rights-of-way or other rights or interests in the
lands as the Secretary considers necessary for future public land management
purposes or is otherwise in the public interest.
(d)Any appraisal of the lands to be sold under
this Act shall conform to the Uniform Appraisal Standards for Federal Land
Acquisitions, and the appraisal shall be subject to the approval of the
Secretary. For purposes of appraisal, it shall be assumed that the lands
authorized for conveyance under this Act are subject to the right of the United
States, as surface owner to allow or deny all forms of surface mining.
(e)Consideration
for a sale of lands under this Act shall be in an amount not less than the
appraised market value as determined in accordance with subsection (d).
(f)The Secretary may sell lands described in subsection (b) at
public or private sale, including competitive sale by auction, bid, or
otherwise, in accordance with such terms, conditions, and procedures as the
Secretary determines are in the best interests of the United States, subject to
the following:
(1)The Secretary shall first offer the sale of
such lands for consideration at the appraised market value to Poly Met Mining,
Inc., a Minnesota corporation, which shall have 90 days from the date of the
offer during which to contract for the purchase of such lands.
(2)During the 90-day period referred to in
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall not offer to sell such lands to any party
other than Poly Met Mining, Inc.
(3)In the offer under
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall require Poly Met Mining, Inc., to cover the
costs of survey, appraisal, and other expenditures directly associated with the
proposed sale.
(4)The Secretary may
reject any counteroffer made by Poly Met Mining, Inc., in response to the offer
of the Secretary under paragraph (1) if the Secretary determines that the
counteroffer is less than fair market value or is not in the public
interest.
(g)The
Secretary may utilize brokers or other third parties in the disposition of the
lands authorized by this Act and, from the proceeds of a sale, may pay
reasonable commissions or fees.
4.
(a)The
Secretary shall deposit the proceeds of a sale authorized by this Act in the
fund established under Public Law 90–171 (commonly known as the Sisk
Act
) (16 U.S.C. 484a).
(b)Monies
deposited under subsection (a) shall be available to the Secretary until
expended, without further appropriation, only for the acquisition of lands
within and adjacent to the Superior National Forest. Monies deposited into the
fund described in subsection (a) shall not be subject to transfer or
reprogramming for wildland fire management or any other emergency
purpose.
(c)Priority land
acquisitionsIn utilizing funds derived from any sale of lands or
interests authorized by this Act, in acquiring lands the Secretary shall give
priority to—
(1)privately owned
inholdings within the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness;
(2)lands having
important recreational, scenic, or natural values; or
(3)eliminating
nonconforming uses of land within the Superior National Forest when such uses
are or may be reasonably expected to have detrimental impact on the area’s
recreational, scenic, or natural values.
5.
(a)For purposes of
compliance with Executive Order 11990 (42 Fed. Reg. 26961 (May 24, 1977)) and
Executive Order 11988 (42 Fed. Reg. 26951 (May 24, 1977)), the Secretary shall,
within 7 years after the date of final conveyance of lands or interests under
this Act, ensure that the total functional value of the wetlands acquired
pursuant to section 4 is equal to or exceeds the functional value of the
wetlands sold under this Act.
(b)Environmental
analysis requirement
(1)For conveyances
authorized by this Act, the Secretary shall assume that the future use of the
lands so conveyed will be for surface mining.
(2)For conveyances
authorized by this Act—
(A)the Secretary
shall be a cooperating agency on the environmental impact statement described
in section 2(a)(5); and
(B)the final
environmental impact statement described in section 2(a)(5) shall disclose and
document the material environmental effects, if any, from the anticipated sale
of the land and property interests under this Act, to the extent required under
the National Environmental Policy Act of
1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and regulations promulgated
thereunder.
(3)In complying with
the requirements of this subsection, the Corps of Engineers, the State of
Minnesota, and the Forest Service shall not be required to repeat notice or
comment procedures, including scoping, already accomplished as of the effective
date of this Act with respect to the preparation of the environmental impact
statement described in section 2(a)(5), or republish a revised draft
environmental impact statement to the extent one is published prior to the
effective date of this Act.
(4)For purposes of
implementing this Act, the Forest Service shall only be required to utilize the
final environmental impact statement described in section 2(a)(5), including
the information required under paragraph (2) and shall not be required to do
additional analysis or data gathering.
(5)The closing of
any land sale authorized under this Act shall not occur before the date on
which notice of the final environmental impact statement described in section
2(a)(5) is published in the Federal Register.
(c)Deadline for
sale of landsTo the extent
practicable, the sale of lands authorized by this Act shall be completed within
180 days after the date described in subsection (b)(5).