MADISON, WI (AP)-- A bipartisan group of lawmakers is developing an alternative to barring the public from 3,500 acres of forest around a proposed mine site in northern Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin State Journal reports the lawmakers are working on a compromise that would create a 300-foot perimeter around mine-related activities and a 50-foot buffer along an access road.
Sen. Dale Schultz, R-Richland Center, says it could be introduced as early as this week, though Gogebic Taconite spokesman Bob Seitz has already called it unworkable.
Sen. Tom Tiffany, R-Hazelhurst, is also working on a less-restrictive alternative to his original proposal, which he said was aimed at protecting miners from potentially violent protesters. He says it would allow land access during gun deer season and provide a 50-foot buffer zone along trout streams.
