August 10, 1973 - MER’s Greg Barron reports on Reserve Mining trial, where issues of asbestos from dumping tailings into Lake Superior are being argued. Dr. Donald Baumgartner, an engineer for the Environmental Protection Agency, testified for the state using a taconite settling study that shows particles can carry great distances in Lake Superior. Reserve Mining claims taconite is carried to a 600 foot "Great Trench."
September 4, 1973 - MPR’s Stewart Stonick reports on court testimony from Dr. William Nicholson of the Environment Sciences Lab of Mt. Sinai Hospital. Nicholson is the 14th expert witness to testify against Reserve Mining's taconite dumping practices.
February 2, 1976 - U.S. Senator Hubert H. Humphrey comments about Reserve Mining at a public meeting in Duluth. Audio also includes comments from a United Citizens for Clean Water and Air spokesman.
April 8, 1977 - Midday presents an MPR Special report on the Minnesota Supreme Court's unanimous decision that Reserve Mining Company be allowed to use the "Milepost 7" site for its taconite tailings on-land disposal. Program includes various reports, interviews and commentary from both sides of the court fight.
March 18, 1981 - Results show water quality has shown marked improvement since Reserve Mining stopped discharge of taconite tailings directly into Lake Superior. Environmentalists believe fibers found in the taconite tailings have carcinogenic characteristics of asbestos.
August 1, 1986 - Ed Wahlberg, a striking steelworker leader at U.S. Steel taconite plant in the Mesabi Iron Range, talks about the misleading public perception regarding wages at plant.
April 29, 1996 - Jerrold Peterson, economist at University of Minnesota-Duluth, discusses the state of economy in northern Minnesota with the decline of mining operations in the region as a major employer.