Mine advocates say the Copperwood project will trigger an economic resurgence in the western Upper Peninsula.
Detailed economic planning is just getting under way in Gogebic County, where the proposed Copperwood mine would be located.
To create an economy that endures after the mine closes, the western UP has to answer one hard question: "Why would a business move here instead of Green Bay, Duluth or Minneapolis?"
Copperwood boosters see a once-in-a-generation opportunity
"Mine predicted to reverse sagging regional economy," trumpeted The Daily Mining Gazette of Houghton, Michigan, in March of 2024, after the Michigan Economic Development Corp. approved a $50 million infrastructure grant for the proposed Copperwood mine.
The grant stalled in the state Senate, but the enthusiasm for the mine persists among elected officials and economic development advocates in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
Tom Bergman, Ironwood Community Development Director, puts it this way:
"To be an economically sustainable community we need diverse industries. Copperwood provides an important piece to that picture as well as a jumpstart to a robust local economy."
That's typical of what local and regional officials are saying about the proposed copper mine, which would be located two miles upstream from Lake Superior and right at the edge of the Porcupine Mountains Wilderness State Park.
Mines brought boom and bust to the Upper Peninsula
The Copperwood site is in Wakefield Township, on the far western edge of the UP and north of Wakefield, Bessemer and ironwood, Mich., all communities that flourished when mines were operating in the area.
The legacy mines have been closed for decades, and the local economy has languished, getting by mainly on seasonal tourism revenue.
Incomes are 20 percent below the state average. Half the population has trouble paying for the basics: housing, childcare, and healthcare. The unemployment rate is 5.4 percent. And the population has been declining since the mines went bust 100 years ago. Sources: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, US Census Bureau, Western UP Planning and Development Region, World Population Review
Highland looks to bring mining back in a big way
The Copperwood project would bring 300 construction jobs and 380 long-term mining jobs to the area, plus another 320 indirect jobs, according to project developer Highland Copper Co., Inc., of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The mine's short-term impact is undeniable: good-paying jobs and $12 million per year in local, county and state tax revenue.
The long-term outcomes are harder to predict. Choices made in the next few years will determine whether the mine is a short-term boost or a long-term growth opportunity for the western UP.
Several problems need to be addressed
According to a study by the Upjohn Institute for Employment Research, significant barriers to economic development need to be overcome.
The population is aging.
The housing stock is inadequate.
There’s no local, full-service hospital. It's 40 miles or more from Gogebic County population centers to the closest maternity ward or full-time emergency room.
The UP is a severe child care desert, and that constrains parents’ ability to work.
Even if those problems are magically solved, no business will start up or relocate to the western Upper Peninsula unless there’s a compelling reason to be there. There must be a bottom-line financial and strategic justification for a company to choose the western UP over an established commercial hub elsewhere in the region.
Local officials and economic development experts will need to make that business case as they seek to build a modern and durable economy in the region.
Planning for long-term growth is just getting started
Gogebic County is just now getting a strategic plan on the drawing board. It's received a $50,000 state grant to to draft a countywide economic strategic plan, with a May, 2027, target date.
The Western Upper Peninsula Planning and Development Region (WUPPDR) has a plan of its own in the works.
The draft plan suggests that mine-related infrastructure (better roads, a more robust electrical grid, high-speed internet) could be leveraged to attract high-tech industries capable of producing value-added products from local resources, such as cross-laminated timber and engineered wood siding. Recreational equipment adapted to the local environment could be a driver of small-scale manufacturing enterprises. The report also suggests that remote workers might be drawn in by the outdoor recreation and lifestyle opportunities of the western Upper Peninsula. Finally, the draft plan indicates that tourism will continue to be an essential part of the regional economy.
The WUPPDR report leaves it to local leaders to execute their business development strategies, whatever their final form, by directly connecting employers, large and small, with the infrastructure and services they need to make a go of it in the region.
If the Copperwood mine goes ahead, they'll have at least 11 years of tax revenue to help them resolve the region's housing and healthcare shortfalls, fully prepare their workforce for family-supporting jobs, and market the region's unique attributes to the wider world.
