Saving Seafood

State now has an opportunity to veto Pebble Mine. Pebble foes aren’t getting their hopes up.

August 31, 2020 — Opponents of the Pebble Mine say it’s not enough that the Army Corps of Engineers announced last week that the project, as proposed, can’t get a wetlands permit. Anti-Pebble advocates want a veto. The Environmental Protection Agency has that power. And as of this week, the state has that authority, too. But it won’t last long.

The Corps of Engineers has asked the state for a “certificate of reasonable assurance” that the Pebble Mine will comply with federal and state water quality laws. The Army Corps can’t grant Pebble’s permit if the state refuses to issue that certification.

Salmon State campaign strategist Lindsey Bloom says the state should seize the moment.

“This is the state of Alaska’s one and only opportunity in the Clean Water Act permitting process to really red-light or green-light the permit,” said Bloom, a commercial fisherman from Juneau who works on salmon conservation issues.

As she and other Pebble opponents see it, the mine can’t meet Alaska water quality standards because, according to the environmental report the Army Corps released in July, the mine and its transportation corridor would impact nearly 200 miles of streams and thousands of acres of wetlands.

Read the full story at KTOO

ALASKA: Pebble mine must now clear an unusually high hurdle before it can be developed, experts say

August 28, 2020 — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Monday left a narrow path toward construction of the proposed Pebble mine in Southwest Alaska, setting stricter requirements for its development than for other big projects in Alaska, according to people familiar with permitting laws.

Whether mine developer Pebble Limited Partnership can meet the requirement will determine whether the controversial project can be built.

Following statements from prominent supporters of President Donald Trump expressing opposition to the mine proposal, including Donald Trump Jr., the Trump administration this week announced Pebble can’t be permitted “as currently proposed” under the federal Clean Water Act.

The copper and gold prospect could be worth tens of billions of dollars over its life, but critics say its location in the Bristol Bay region poses a risk to the valuable salmon fishery there.

Read the full story at the Anchorage Daily News

Corps sets conditions for Pebble Mine that may be impossible to meet

August 26, 2020 — The Army Corps of Engineers has not killed the proposed Pebble Mine — just issued a letter imposing conditions that may be impossible to meet.

Mine opponents say the Corps is finally listening to fishermen and the people of Bristol Bay who say the mine threatens the salmon and their way of life.

In an emailed statement, Bristol Bay Native Corporation President Jason Metrokin said the Pebble Partnership “has never, even after decades of planning and outreach, been able to prove that it can be built and operated without causing significant degradation to the Bristol Bay region and its fisheries.”

The Corps’ letter outlines what Pebble’s developers would have to do to mitigate damage to wetlands and streams.

Read the full story at KTOO

Rep. Huffman Statement on Pebble Mine Permitting Decision

August 26, 2020 — The following was released by The Office of Congressman Jared Huffman (D-CA):

Today, Representative Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) issued the following statement regarding the United States Army Corps of Engineers announcement to delay the permitting decision for the proposed Pebble Mine project in Bristol Bay, Alaska:

“Delaying the permit for the Pebble Mine is welcome news, but let’s be clear: the only reason this environmental atrocity came this close to happening is because the Trump administration is a favor factory for polluting industries,” said Rep. Huffman. “The previously rejected permit was revived and fast-tracked by this administration, and the only reason they finally hit the pause button is because – thankfully – some individuals close to President Trump made a personal appeal. We can welcome the outcome, but let’s not confuse any of this with environmental stewardship or good government.”

Representative Huffman led 53 of his colleagues last June in a letter to the United States Army Corps of Engineers urging them to deny the flawed permit for the proposed Pebble Mine project in Bristol Bay, Alaska. Rep. Huffman has continued to be a vocal opponent of the project, including leading amendments in both the FY2020 and FY2021 appropriations bills barring the federal government from moving forward with the flawed permit. Both amendments passed the U.S. House of Representatives.

 

Alaska Pebble Mine opposed by Trump Jr. hit with unexpected setback

August 25, 2020 — The federal government Monday announced that a controversial copper and gold mine in Alaska would cause substantial environment damage, could not receive a permit with its current proposed plan, and ordered the company to offset those impacts in order for the project to move forward.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sent a letter to Pebble Limited Partnership, the company behind the proposed mine, that said the footprint of the mine’s adverse impacts would cover nearly 3,000 acres of wetlands, 132.5 acres of open water and 130 miles of streams, along with areas affected by other infrastructure. Pebble has 90 days to reply with a plan to mitigate the damage.

While the letter does not outright block the mine, environmentalists and former officials call it a significant setback for the project that has in recent weeks attracted opposition from prominent Republicans including the President’s son, Donald Trump Jr., Vice President Mike Pence’s former chief of staff Nick Ayers, and Fox News’ Tucker Carlson. The Army Corps said in a statement that the project “as currently proposed, cannot be permitted” under the Clean Water Act.

Read the full story at CNN

Senator Cantwell Statement in Response to Army Corps of Engineers Blocking Pebble Mine

August 25, 2020 — The following was released by The Office of Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA):

Today, Senator Cantwell issued the following statement in response to the Army Corps of Engineers’ decision that the Pebble Mine project in Alaska’s Bristol Bay cannot move forward as proposed due to the substantial adverse environmental impacts the project could have on the Bristol Bay watershed:

“The Trump Administration and the Army Corp of Engineers finally said what scientists, fishermen, sportsmen, Tribal leaders, and restaurateurs have been saying all along — a mine at Bristol Bay would kill too many salmon and is an unacceptable place for mining. There is nothing Pebble Mine can say or do to mitigate an unmitigated disaster.

“I am so glad Alaskan and Washington Senators agree that protecting salmon habitat is critical. Those who care about the northwest economy must be diligent about continuing to fight the Pebble Mine.”

Senator Cantwell has been leading the fight to protect Alaska’s Bristol Bay—one of the largest salmon fisheries in the world—and the fishermen and industries that rely on these salmon.  The seafood sector makes up 60 percent of the 30 billion dollar maritime economy in Washington state, which as a whole supports over 146,000 jobs.

Cantwell has been vocal about the disasters that Pebble Mine would bring to the Pacific Northwest, repeatedlycriticizing various members of the administration for downplaying the threat of the mine. In October of 2017, Cantwell and other members of the Washington state congressional delegation urged President Trump to listen to Washington fishermen and businesses before removing protections from Bristol Bay. In May 2018, Cantwellcalled on the Trump administration to hold public meetings in Washington state on the proposal and increase transparency for the permitting process. In July 2019, Cantwell slammed the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw protections for Bristol Bay. And just last month, Senator Cantwell criticized an environmental analysis released by the Trump administration that said the proposed Pebble Mine would not post a serious environmental threat.

Trump set to block controversial Alaska gold mine

August 24, 2020 — The Trump administration is planning to block the proposed Pebble Mine in Alaska early next week, six people familiar with the plans told POLITICO, marking a surprise reversal that could be the death knell for the massive copper and gold project.

Environmentalists and conservation groups have warned that the project would threaten world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery, and the move to block it comes after President Donald Trump faced pressure to nix it from an array of interests, including GOP mega-donor Andy Sabin, Bass Pro Shops CEO Johnny Morris and the his eldest son, Donald Trump, Jr.

“With any government, whether it be Obama or Trump, nothing is certain until it happens and that’s just the nature of this beast,” Sabin, who has spoken directly with Trump about the proposed mine, told POLITICO. “But I’m fairly certain that you’re going to get good news.”

The Army Corps of Engineers office in Alaska is planning to hold a conference call on Monday with groups connected to the proposed mine discuss the decision, three people with knowledge of the call told POLITICO. An administration official confirmed the call with POLITICO.

Read the full story at Politico

The Army Corps failed to enact endangered species protections for Willamette River salmon, judge rules

August 19, 2020 — A federal judge has ruled in favor of claims that federally owned dams on the upper Willamette River have failed to carry out Endangered Species Act protections for chinook salmon and steelhead.

U.S. District Judge Marco A. Hernandez ruled Tuesday that the Army Corps of Engineers and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) fell short of their legal obligations by delaying action or failing to take necessary steps under a 2008 Willamette River Biological Opinion plan. The plan included dozens of measures to ensure the survival and recovery of upper Willamette River wild spring chinook and winter steelhead.

It was a result of a previous lawsuit filed in 2007 by environmental organization Willamette Riverkeeper and Northwest Environmental Defense Center against the Corps for not producing a Biological Plan for the Willamette Basin and failing to comply with the ESA.

Read the full story at OPB

Trump Says He’ll Listen to Both Sides on Alaska Mine Project

August 6, 2020 — President Donald Trump said Wednesday he would “listen to both sides” after his eldest son and a campaign adviser urged him to intervene to block a proposed copper and gold mine in Alaska’s Bristol Bay region.

Donald Trump Jr. on Tuesday agreed with a tweet from Nick Ayers, a former aide to Vice President Mike Pence and a senior adviser to the Trump campaign, expressing hope the president would direct the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to block the proposed Pebble Mine.

Trump Jr., in response, wrote: “As a sportsman who has spent plenty of time in the area I agree 100%. The headwaters of Bristol Bay and the surrounding fishery are too unique and fragile to take any chances with.”

The EPA has said the Bristol Bay watershed supports the largest sockeye salmon fishery in the world and contains significant mineral resources. An environmental review released by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers last month — and assailed by critics as deficient — stated that under normal operations, the alternatives it looked at “would not be expected to have a measurable effect on fish numbers and result in long-term changes to the health of the commercial fisheries in Bristol Bay.”

The corps has yet to make a permitting decision. When it does, it could issue a permit, approve a permit with conditions or issue a denial. The project, should it advance, also would face a state permitting process.

Read the full story at U.S. News

President’s son Donald Jr. on Twitter calls for blocking Alaska mine in sensitive fishing area

August 5, 2020 — The president’s namesake and the vice president’s former top staffer both tweeted Tuesday asking President Trump to block a giant gold and copper mine from being built at the headwaters of the world’s greatest sockeye salmon fishery in Alaska.

Just last month, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issued a final environmental analysis allowing a small Canadian firm to go ahead with its Pebble Mine near Bristol Bay. The Army Corps in its new report said the project would not cause grave harm to the region’s watershed.

But Nick Ayers, Vice President Pence’s former chief of staff, said in a tweet that “Like millions of conservationists and sportsmen, I am hoping @realDonaldTrump will direct @EPA to block the Pebble mine in Bristol Bay. A Canadian company will unnecessarily mine the USA’s greatest fishery at a severe cost. This should be stopped and I believe @POTUS will do so!”

Read the full story at The Washington Post