LEWISTON, Minn. – The grassroots organization Land Stewardship Project is pleased that the U.S. Supreme Court has, in effect, respected the people of Winona County to keep their communities safe from frac-sand mining. Johanna Rupprecht, who led LSP’s 17-month campaign for a county ban on frac mining, said it was the right decision for the Court not to interfere with the county’s frac ban. “In passing the ban, the Winona County Board of Commissioners was fulfilling the proper role of local government, listening to the will of the people, and acting boldly to protect the common good for both people and the land,” she said. Rupprecht called Minnesota Sands’ opposition and fours years of court fights as a “desperate attack” on the on the county’s “democratically enacted decision.”
Rupprecht. Land Stewardship organizer.