A poll released Tuesday showed 62 percent of Wisconsin citizens support the state’s mining legislation, which is an exact contradiction of poll results from Public Policy Polling released Feb. 20 that showed 62 percent of respondents opposed the bill.
Conservative polling firm Tarrance Group released the poll, which also reported 50 percent of respondents “strongly” support the bill.
The Feb. 20 poll conducted for the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters, which opposes the mining bill on environmental grounds, reported 62 percent strongly oppose the bill.
The contrasting poll results reflect the debate among state politicians over the proposed mining bill. Most state Republicans, who initially proposed the bill, back it as a way to stimulate the northern economy, while state Democrats oppose the bill, saying the bill would help to create a mine that would degrade the northern environment.
The bill, which loosens existing environmental standards, is designed to ease the state’s mine permitting process for companies interested in opening a mine in the state.
