Local governments near the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness have asked this question before, and they’re still wondering: How much money is the BWCA worth?

The root of the question stems from payments made to three counties that are positioned in and around the BWCA Wilderness, those being Cook, Lake, and St. Louis counties.

During a public meeting Oct. 13 in Grand Marais, officials in Cook County continued to push the federal government for reliable and adequate payments for what they’re calling some of “the most valuable lands in the United States” that sit locked inside the BWCA Wilderness.

This discussion begs for a larger question: Should the BWCA come with a price tag? And if local governments rely on a price tag in order to function, who should determine the monetary value of the land and water in the BWCA Wilderness?

In 1948, United States lawmakers passed the Thye-Blatnik Act to buy resorts and private lands in what would eventually be named the BWCA Wilderness. The bill also provides payments in-lieu-of-taxes (PILT) to Cook, Lake and St. Louis counties for federal wilderness land to make up for lost private property taxes. A valuation process is completed every 10 years to determine how much each county receives through this piece of legislation. Dating back to 2018, these three counties in northeastern Minnesota maintain the federal government is not adequately compensating local governments in the form of payments for land set aside in the BWCA Wilderness.

Following an appraisal that was done in 2018, land inside the BWCA Wilderness was determined to be worth $800 an acre, according to the Forest Service. The land is valued mostly on timber and how much money the forest could generate should a timber sale be conducted, according to Cook County Assessor Bob Thompson. If resort or commercial development could be considered, the land should be worth more. And if minerals (copper, nickel, cobalt, etc.) were considered, the land could be worth up to $4,000 per acre, county officials insist.

The primary reason for the fluctuation on the payments stems from who does the appraisal and what aspect of the land determines its value. For example, if timber is the lone driver of the appraisal, it will be much different than say, potential development, or mining.

Government-to-government payments aren’t rich for deep storytelling, but they’re ripe for spirited conversations between local officials in these three counties and the people elected to represent these areas in Washington D.C. They also have strong implications for local taxpayers who live near the BWCA Wilderness, as Joe Friedrichs from Paddle & Portage media shares in this report.

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