Minnesota court dismisses environmental group's objection to Essar project

The Minnesota Court of Appeals has ruled that an environmental group's objections to the Essar Steel Minnesota mining and steelmaking project are without merit.

Environmental groups had argued that state agencies hadn't looked closely enough at the potential effects of global warming resulting from the Essar plant when issuing the environmental permits to allow the plant's construction. However, the appeals court ruled Tuesday that the environmental permits issued for the plant had a sound basis, and dismissed the lawsuit..

India-based Essar's mining and steelmaking project is currently under construction in Nashwauk, Minnesota, located in the so-called “iron range”, known for its rich natural abundance of iron ore.