People want to know where nonferrous mining projects stand in northern Minnesota. It’s awfully hard to say, most days, as the local debate tends to float in a nebulous cloud of philosophical disagreement. While the ongoing permit process is important, I’ve long maintained that issue will resolve itself only to the degree these companies are willing to prove their ambitious environmental claims. There’s really only two things you can trust to indicate progress here: boots on the ground and money.

The Mesabi Daily News reports tonight that PolyMet, owner of the first of several nonferrous projects proposed on or near the Iron Range, is backing its Hoyt Lakes-based mining stake with $60 million in private funds garnered from a stock sale. Now, $60 million is a fraction of the project’s cost, but it’s also not nothing. It’s a significant investment. PolyMet still has a long way to go on permitting, but this indicates they appear to be resolute in doing so.