Why have opposite standards for Memoninee River contamination?

The answer to the headline question seems to be because corporate profits trump native people's health, land and water rights, and that's a really bad answer. Read on:

I'm listing below materials posted by the WI DNR about upcoming meetings and comments periods pertinent to the successful cleanup of the lower Menominee River's long-standing contamination. That's great news for that portion a big Great Lakes watershed shared by Michigan and Wisconsin.

But think about this: At the very same time (as I have noted, earlier), events are unfolding on the upper Menominee River which could lead to new contamination if a sulfide metals open-pit mining operation is allowed to blast, dig and otherwise obliterate land on the riverbank that is sacred to Menominee tribal residents.

The contradiction between successfully cleaning up the lower portion of a river while moving towards the inevitable contamination of the upper portion of the same river would be like a celebrating the final removal of cancerous colon tumors with a cigarette buying spree for more decades of lighting up.

Mine opponents have been raising awareness across the region for years, including erecting and staffing a display at Lakeshore State Park 

at Lakeshore State Park in Milwaukee across from the Summerfest grounds.

More data, sources and citations are here:

The open pit would be as deep as five Statues of Liberty standing on top of each other. Milling would leave behind a permanent tailings impoundment at least 140 feet tall, with walls made of (reactive) waste rock, holding 4.9 million cubic meters of wet tailings. The tailings dam uses the risky “upstream” design that has resulted in catastrophic dam failures around the world. The mine’s total footprint covers 1087 acres....Because the Back Forty would be a sulfide mine, it threatens to leach sulfuric acid, which is extremely hazardous to freshwater rivers, lakes, streams and groundwater. The Center for Science in Public Participation warns that the mine’s “ARD (Acid Rock Drainage) risk is very high. Most material contains sulfides… (…) All tailings are expected to generate acid, with the exception of tailings produced in year 3 of mining. Additionally, over 75% of the waste rock is expected to generate acid.” Sulfide mining could pollute groundwater or devastate the Menominee River, which drains into Lake Michigan.

From the DNR:

• March 12 Citizens Advisory Committee public program on delisting the Lower Menominee River AOC. The Lower Menominee River Area of Concern Citizens Advisory Committee is hosting a public program on March 12 to share information about the community’s role in the pollution cleanup and habitat restoration, the history of the AOC, and to explore ideas for what is next to continue stewardship of these waters. The event will be held at the Ironworks, located at 1333 Main St., Marinette, WI 54143, from 5:00 - 7:30 PM CST. 
• Draft Final Delisting Report available for public review and comments now through April 24. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy invite public review and comments on the Lower Menominee River Area of Concern Draft Final Delisting Report through April 24, 2020. The report is available online at this link. Both Wisconsin and Michigan provided the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Great Lakes National Program Office with a preliminary report earlier this year that summarized the reasons for delisting. The U.S. EPA then took the next step in the delisting process to seek input on the proposal from tribal representatives and the International Joint Commission, which is an agency created by a U.S. and Canadian treaty to resolve disputes over waters along our shared border. These comments were then incorporated into the draft delisting report that is now available for public review and comments.  
  
  
  Wisconsin DNR and Michigan EGLE will hold public informational meetings on April 8 and 9. The Wisconsin DNR and Michigan EGLE are hosting public informational meetings on April 8 and 9, 2020, about the proposal to delist the Lower Menominee River Area of Concern.The April 8 meeting is scheduled from 5:00 – 7:00 PM CST at the University of Wisconsin – Marinette Campus in the main building cafeteria, located at 750 West Bay Shore Street, Marinette, WI 54143. The April 9 meeting is scheduled from 6:00 – 8:00 PM CST at Murray’s Irish Pub and Grill, located at 715 1st Street, Menominee, MI 49858.Both meetings will give people more information about the pollution cleanup and habitat restoration work that was accomplished in the Lower Menominee River AOC and what the delisting process entails, as well as opportunities for people to ask questions and provide feedback to the agencies.The agencies welcome public comments on the delisting report. 
  
  
  Questions and comments may be directed to: Brianna Kupsky, Wisconsin’s Lower Menominee River AOC CoordinatorWisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Office of Great Waters2984 Shawano Ave. Green Bay, Wisconsin 54313 920-662-5465 or brianna.kupsky@wisconsin.govStephanie Swart, Michigan’s Lower Menominee River AOC CoordinatorMichigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and EnergyP.O. Box 30473. Lansing, Michigan 48909517-284-5046 or SwartS@michigan.gov  
  
  
  Background The international Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement between the U.S. and Canada was amended in 1987 to create an Areas of Concern program to clean up Great Lakes rivers and harbors most severely affected by pollution and habitat loss.Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and northeastern Wisconsin meet at the Menominee River, which flows into Lake Michigan’s Green Bay. Environmental harm by historical pollution from coal tar, paint sludge and arsenic earned the lower three miles of the river along with the Green Bay shoreline three miles north and south of the river mouth an AOC designation. 
  
  
  The Lower Menominee River was listed as having six problems, called "Beneficial Use Impairments" in the AOC Program. 
  
  
  All six of these impairments have been addressed, so now the agencies aim to "delist" or remove the Area of Concern designation from the Lower Menominee River. This will be Wisconsin’s first of five AOCs to be delisted.Significant funding for the pollution cleanup and restoration work was provided by the federal Great Lakes Restoration Initiative administered by the U.S. EPA. Wisconsin and Michigan share responsibility for the river’s rehabilitation, and the states have worked closely with each other and with local citizens to address the pollution and habitat loss. Many local and federal agencies have been important partners as well.
  
  
  To learn more about the Lower Menominee River AOC visit our website.