American Rivers Organization Declares
Bristol Bay Rivers #8 on
"Most Endangered American Rivers" List!

National awareness of the threat a major mining district and the Pebble mine would pose to the Nushagak and Kvichak Rivers in the Bristol Bay area of Alaska is increasing by leaps and bounds today as these rivers have just been designated some of America’s Most Endangered Rivers of 2006. Inclusion of Bristol Bay on the America’s Most Endangered Rivers list presents concerned citizens with a unique opportunity to influence upcoming BLM decisions regarding millions of acres in the Bristol Bay Watershed.

You can learn more about this opportunity and the rest of America’s Most Endangered Rivers, and take action by clicking on this link: http://www.americanrivers.org

Please, take a moment today to join thousands of others who are contacting the BLM on behalf of Bristol Bay by following the Bristol Bay links on American Rivers homepage today. If you are not able to access the American Rivers site, please use the information below to contact the BLM and ask them to protect the millions of acres of land they manage today in the Bristol Bay Watershed.

The following is the text of the press release and action alert American Rivers just sent out.

AMERICAN RIVERS PRESS RELEASE
BRISTOL BAY AMONG AMERICA’S “MOST ENDANGERED”
Bristol Bay Rivers on American Rivers‚ Annual List Released Today
Report available at http://www.AmericanRivers.org

WASHINGTON ˆ Plans for North America's largest-ever open pit copper-gold mine threaten the largest and most productive wild salmon fishery in the world in and around Bristol Bay, which American Rivers listed today as America's #8 most endangered river for 2006.

The annual America's Most Endangered Rivers report highlights ten rivers facing a major turning point in the coming year, where action by citizens can make a huge difference for both community well-being and river health. American Rivers and its partners on Bristol Bay ˆ Alaskans for Responsible Mining, Nondalton Tribal Council, Alaska Sportsman's Lodge, and Alaska Independent Fishermen's Marketing Association ˆ today called on the Alaska Department of Natural Resources and the Bureau of Land Management to block this mine proposal and protect Bristol Bay from other large-scale mining activity.

The Bristol Bay watershed is an intricate system of lakes, streams, and rivers southwest of Anchorage, Alaska that remains remarkably unchanged by human activity. The watershed is an integral part of the state‚s economy and has provided sustainable jobs, subsistence foods, and other benefits to Native Alaskans including the Yupik Eskimos, Aleuts and Athabascan Indians for generations.

The Kvichak River is home to the single largest salmon run on the planet. The Nushagak River hosts the largest king salmon run in Alaska. The region‚s spectacular salmon runs result in an annual catch numbering in the tens of millions. The area also includes Alaska‚s first designated trophy trout area, attracting more wilderness recreation than any other area of the state.

"Bristol Bay's mind-boggling bounty of salmon, wildlife and spectacular scenery is an economic engine that could provide for commercial fishing and tourism worth millions for decades to come." said Rebecca Wodder, president of American Rivers.

Threatening the Kvichak and Nushagak rivers just to cash in on yet another one-shot gold rush is like burning down your house because the night is a little chilly.

Governor Murkowski and the BLM are attempting to develop an enormous mining district in the pristine Bristol Bay watershed. This proposed district poses the single greatest threat to the region‚s environment and the commercial, sport and subsistence fishing economy. Of particular concern, Northern Dynasty Mines, Inc. proposes building the Pebble Project, North America‚s largest open pit gold and copper mine, in the Bristol Bay headwaters. The pit would be close to two miles in diameter and more than 1600 feet deep and some proposals from the mining company show a footprint spanning 20 square miles, the size of the island of Manhattan.

Open pit metallic sulfide mining has been devastating to many of our rivers on the west coast. The proposed Pebble mine couldn‚t be in a more sensitive or crucial spot, right on two major river drainages and salmon spawning grounds. The fact is, once groundwater and aquifers are contaminated and heavy metals begin leaching into the system, there is very little that can be done to reverse the damage.

"It's just not appropriate in smack in the middle of an intricate habitat that helps perpetuate humans, wildlife, and other species of fish that all depend upon clean water for survival."said Brian Kraft, general manager and owner of Alaska Sportsman's Lodge. Opposition to the mine among Alaskans in growing rapidly, and includes the state's senior Senator, Ted Stevens. Opponents are calling on the Alaska Department of Environmental Quality to block permits for the mine, and on the BLM to protect its Bristol Bay lands in the Draft Resource Management Plan, currently scheduled to be released in August 2006.

"The proposed open-pit Pebble Mine, and the more than 1,000 square miles of additional mining claims staked throughout the Bristol Bay‚s headwaters, pose an enormous threat to salmon habitat, fish populations and the Wild Alaska Salmon brand."said David Harsila, president of the Alaska Independent Fisherman's Marketing Association.

Just the specter of a gigantic open pit gold and copper mine at the headwaters of the Bristol Bay is enough by itself to ruin the Wild Alaska Salmon marketing plan. These schemes pose a grave threat to pure water, Wild Alaska Salmon, and the tens of thousands of jobs they sustain. About America‚s Most Endangered Rivers

Each year, American Rivers solicits nominations from thousands of river groups, environmental organizations, outdoor clubs, local governments, and taxpayer watchdogs for the America's Most Endangered Rivers report. The report highlights the rivers facing the most uncertain futures rather than those suffering from the worst chronic problems.

The report presents alternatives to proposals that would damage rivers, identifies those who make the crucial decisions, and points out opportunities for the public to take action on behalf of each listed river. This year‚s report details how nearly a century of federal flood damage reduction efforts poured tons of concrete and billions of dollars into massive engineering projects that too often destroy natural flood protection and lure communities into harm‚s way.

The rivers named in this year's America's Most Endangered Rivers report are: Pajaro River (Calif.), Upper Yellowstone River (Mont.), Willamette River (Ore.), Salmon Trout River (Mich.), Shenandoah River (Va. & W. Va.), Boise River (Idaho), Caloosahatchee River (Fla.), Bristol Bay (Alaska), San Jacinto River (Tex.), Verde River (Ariz.).

ACTION ALERT: TEXT AND SAMPLE LETTER
Act now to protect the Bristol Bay Watershed!

The River: The Bristol Bay watershed is an intricate system of lakes, streams, and rivers southwest of Anchorage, Alaska that remains remarkably unchanged by human activity. The watershed is an integral part of the state’s economy and has provided sustainable jobs, subsistence foods, and other benefits to Native Alaskans for generations. The Kvichak River is home to the single largest salmon run on the planet. The Nushagak River hosts the largest king salmon run in Alaska. The region’s spectacular salmon runs result in an annual catch numbering in the tens of millions. The area also includes Alaska’s first designated trophy trout area, attracting more wilderness recreation than any other area of the state.

Why It’s Endangered: Alaska Governor Frank Murkowski, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and a small group of mining companies plan to develop a major mining district in the Bristol Bay watershed.

Of particular concern is the proposal by Northern Dynasty Mines, Inc. to build the Pebble Project—North America’s largest open pit gold and copper mine—in the Bristol Bay headwaters. The open pit could cover more than 2 square miles and be at least 1,600-feet deep. The entire mine complex, including a tailings lagoon potentially holding billions of tons of chemically treated mine waste, would cover approximately 15 square miles. One lake and several streams—teeming with salmon, northern pike and other game fish—could be completely eliminated. Wildlife could drink from the toxic tailings lagoons, and runoff from the mining operation could taint drinking water supplies and salmon spawning and rearing habitat.

The Pebble Project is part of a new, more toxic gold and copper rush taking place in Alaska, driven by the demand for gold jewelry in China and India. This new gold and copper rush relies upon open pit mines using cyanide and other toxic chemicals to leach gold and copper from the rubble—leaving a legacy of water pollution in their wake and costing American taxpayers billions of dollars in cleanup costs.

What You Can Do: Send a message to the Bureau of Land Management and other decision-makers opposing this damaging project. Tell the BLM to we won’t trade Alaska’s greatest natural treasure for all the gold trinkets in India!

SAMPLE LETTER
Honorable Kathleen Clarke
Director, Bureau of Land Management
Department of the Interior
1849 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20240

Dear Director Clarke:

As a concerned citizen, I urge you to keep the current hardrock mining restrictions in place for the Bristol Bay planning area. The rivers in the planning area form the heart of the Bristol Bay drainages, and support the largest and most productive wild salmon fishery in the world. Opening up these lands to hardrock mining would result in a perpetual risk of toxic runoff that threatens to harm the health of nearby communities, while potentially decimating the fishery and poisoning nearby wildlife.

The Bristol Bay watershed is an intricate system of lakes, streams, and rivers southwest of Anchorage, Alaska that remains remarkably unchanged by human activity. The watershed is an integral part of the state's economy that has provided sustainable jobs, subsistence foods, and other benefits to Native Alaskans for generations. The Kvichak River is home to the single largest salmon run on the planet. The Nushagak River hosts the largest king salmon run in Alaska. The region's spectacular salmon runs result in an annual catch numbering in the tens of millions. The area also includes Alaska's first designated trophy trout area, attracting more wilderness recreation than any other area of the state.

Even minute quantities of leached toxins associated with hardrock mining are deadly to juvenile salmon and trout. According to the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, the hardrock mining industry is the biggest toxic polluter in the country, which does not bode well for the health of the Bristol Bay wild salmon-based economy.

I am not alone in my concern for the Bristol Bay. Voices as disparate as former Alaska Governor Jay Hammond, Senator Stevens, and David Keene, Chairman of the American Conservative Union, have all expressed sincere doubts about opening up such a sensitive area to intensive hardrock mining. The BLM should do all it can to protect this economic, cultural and natural resource, and not open its lands to mining.

Thank you for your consideration.
[Name, Address, Phone]

For more information on how you can help save the Bristol Bay watershed of Alaska and
the Nushagak and Kvichak Rivers, please click here.