Renewable Resources Coalition - Weekly News Update

****Top Story****

Bristol Bay residents submit petition for vote on Pebble
CLEAN WATER: Three present list of signatures to challenge mining.
By ELIZABETH BLUEMINK
Anchorage Daily News
April 26, 2007

Three Bristol Bay area residents applied to the state this week for a statewide ballot initiative to restrict mining activities near streams and rivers used for drinking water or inhabited by salmon.

The bill's backers said they were motivated by concern over a potential mine at the huge and controversial copper and gold Pebble prospect, north of Iliamna at the headwaters of two Bristol Bay drainages.

To view article in its entirety, please click on

http://www.adn.com/money/industries/mining/story/8827660p-8728461c.html

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My Turn: Protect Alaska's wild salmon
Bristol Bay commercial fishermen weren't asking for open-pit mining
By BILLY MAINES
Juneau Empire
April 23, 2007

A few years back, our Bristol Bay commercial fishermen were hurting from the bottom falling out of the salmon market. They were asking for help to make ends meet. They were asking for assistance to help make loan payments, put food on the table, and help pay for their fuel and electricity. They were asking folks to help them address the decline in salmon prices.

To view article in its entirety, please click on

http://juneauempire.com/stories/042307/opi_20070423005.shtml

Bipartisan Bill Introduced in House to Protect Bristol Bay, Epicenter of Nation's Most Productive Fishery
PRNewsire – USNewswire
April 19, 2007

WASHINGTON, April 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Representatives Jay Inslee (D-WA), Wayne Gilchrest (R-MD), and Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) are expected to introduce legislation today in the U.S. House of Representatives that would permanently prohibit oil and gas leasing in

Bristol Bay, Alaska and the surrounding waters in the Bering Sea.

On January 9, 2007, President Bush rescinded a long-standing presidential moratorium that prohibited drilling in Bristol Bay. In July,

the Minerals Management Service will release a 5-year plan that is expected to recommend oil and gas development in Bristol Bay and other areas along our nation's fragile coastlines.

To view article in its entirety, please click on

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/04-19-2007/0004569632&EDATE

Immense Pebble project will be beneficial to all Alaskans
COMPASS: Points of view from the community
By CHUCK HAWLEY
Anchorage Daily News
April 18, 2007

George Matz's April 10 Compass ("Pebble debate an echo of our past") reflects a populist view of Alaska that has been long held but without much factual basis.

The bottom line -- and a much more accurate view -- is that Alaska's copper, gold, silver, oil, gas, fish and even tourism have never had much inherent value within Alaska: They have value because they are needed or desired in an outside world that has what Alaska lacks to develop them, namely capital. There are parallels between Wrangell Mountains copper and the Pebble deposit.

To view article in its entirety, please click on

http://www.adn.com/opinion/compass/story/8803408p-8704632c.html

Northern Dynasty shares plans
By HAL SPENCE
Peninsula Clarion
April 18, 2007

Still years away from filing for its first mining permit, Northern Dynasty Mines Inc. continues work on its broad-ranging baseline environmental studies program in anticipation of answering the concerns of a skeptical public with what the company hopes will be provable scientific fact.

To view article in its entirety, please click on

http://www.peninsulaclarion.com/stories/041807/news_0418new004.shtml

EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS CORNER
It’s our process, stupid
Dick Cattanach
Associated General Contractors of Alaska

Spring Edition

For the 1992 presidential campaign, James Carville crafted a simple, yet powerful, phrase to keep his candidate focused on the primary strategy of their campaign. Despite attempts by his opponent, the media and special interest groups to distract the Clinton campaign by interjecting important, yet extraneous issues, the phrase “It’s the Economy Stupid” helped keep the campaign focused and resulted in a landslide victory.

Some AGC members wonder why AGC got involved in the controversy surrounding the Pebble project. Was it the prospect of 2,000 jobs during construction? Was it the promise of 1,000 high paying jobs once the project was operational? Was it the glamour of having the largest copper resource in North America – and perhaps the world – located in the state? Perhaps it was the prospect of a project costing $1 billion to $3 billion to develop located nearby? Or, perhaps those who believe that AGC never saw a development project it didn’t like are correct?

To view article in its entirety, please click on

http://www.agcak.org/akancasn/doc.nsf/files/1354B45786266DDD87257026005FEF26/$file/ExecDirCorner.pdf

Letters to the Editor

What is truth about Pebble?
Ray Fowler
Homer News
April 26, 2007

http://www.homernews.com/stories/042607/letters_8_002.shtml

The new pro-Pebble mine group, "Truth About Pebble," is making the Pebble mine debate very easy, because they have told us, up front, that they are telling us The Truth.

This is so simple. Alaskans could have saved billions of dollars if we had simply had a group named the "Truth About Transporting Oil." We would have known exactly who to believe and we wouldn't have ended up with the Exxon Valdez spill or the BP pipeline blowout.

And if, 25 years ago, my home state of Montana had been lucky enough to have a group called the "Truth About Giant Open Pit Mines," we wouldn't have ended up with permanent pollution problems from every one of those new mines.

Truth About Pebble is now making the same promises, nearly verbatim, that pro-mining groups made in Montana and elsewhere, and Truth About Pebble is using the same basic play book that has resulted in tragedy elsewhere: Tell the citizens to simply relax and trust the permitting process. When it is granted, dig a massive pit, extract the minerals and store the waste in a toxic lagoon.

Truth About Pebble promises us that using the same basic approach that has failed elsewhere will somehow turn out just fine over at Iliamna. They must be right. They've already told us it's The Truth.

Hammond refuge deserves hearing
Steve Kahn – Port Alsworth
Anchorage Daily News
April 25, 2007

Senate Bill 67, "An Act Establishing the Jay Hammond State Game Refuge," which brilliantly dovetails the state's respect for an honored citizen and protection of resources at a time when they most need safeguarding, has not yet been given a hearing in the Senate. Please let Sen. Charlie Huggins, chairman of the Senate Resource Committee, know that this is an important issue that should not be delayed. Could it be that foreign interests, which complain about not being allowed due process on one hand, could be influencing the stalling on the other? Makes me wonder.

Commercial and subsistence fishing both deserve respect, preservation
Antone Johnson – Anchorage
Anchorage Daily News
April 23, 2007

You can call me “un-Alaskan” or “un-American” if you want; it doesn’t matter to me. I know what I am, I know who I am, I am Native Alaskan. I was born and raised in the Bristol Bay area. Raised to be a commercial fisherman during the summer. Raised in a subsistence lifestyle during the winter. Commercial fishing and subsistence fishing and hunting go hand-in-hand. Both support each other and provide for a lifestyle handed down from generation to generation. Fishing has been a big part of my life and still is, and always will be. It’s something I want to hand down to my children, as my parents and grandparents handed down to me.

If it takes someone like Robert Gillam to help protect this lifestyle, then so be it. I would like to personally thank Gillam for his contributions to protect a way of life in Bristol Bay. If I am un-American or un-Alaskan for opposing a project that threatens my way of life, than I guess I am just that. I was taught by my grandpa, the late Chief Antone Johnson of Koliganek, to respect the land and the necessities it provides. To support the Pebble project would be a dishonor and a show of disrespect for all that he taught me.

Help save Bristol Bay watershed by supporting establishment of refuge
Pudge Kleinkauf – Anchorage
Anchorage Daily News
April 20, 2007

For many years I have had the opportunity to fish for trout, grayling and, of course, salmon in Bristol Bay. Myself and many others -- anglers, area residents and visitors alike -- are concerned about the future of these world-renowned fishery resources in the face of proposed mining and other development. Senate Bill 67, the Jay Hammond State Game Refuge bill, wants to put the last great salmon fishery first, ensuring adequate protections for the fish habitat provided by some of the most critical rivers in Bristol Bay. The fish that live there are one of our state's most precious resources and need us to speak on their behalf.

There's a lot at stake in the Bristol Bay watershed, and the facts show that development poses huge risks that Alaskans need to be aware of. More than 70 percent of mines in the United States have violated the water-quality standards to which they promised to adhere during their permitting process. We can't take the gamble that would happen here. We need to let the Legislature know we support the idea of a fish and game refuge in this area. Call or e-mail your legislator and the members of the Senate Resources Committee where SB 67 is now awaiting a hearing. Let them know you support establishment of the refuge. It won't happen unless we speak up.

Pro-Pebble mine group blurs truth in statistics on salmon population
Ray Bulson – Eagle River
Anchorage Daily News
April 18, 2007

"The Truth Report" is a series of ads run by Truth About Pebble, a pro-Pebble group that is trying to debunk what it says are myths about the impact the mine will have on Alaskans and their environment. To counter the claim that salmon and mining can't coexist, the March 1 report provided a graph showing that Fraser River salmon populations have been increasing for the past 60 years despite being near the Gibraltar copper mine and dozens of other mines in British Columbia.

However, the graph's conclusion is wrong. How do I know that? Because the graph was annotated with a statistical indicator called R-squared. As a chemical engineer for 25 years trained in statistics, I've learned that R-squared, also known as the correlation coefficient, quantifies how well the line drawn on the graph represents the actual data. When R-squared is 1.00, the line represents 100 percent of the data. For an R-squared of 0.90 the line represents 90 percent of the data and the remaining 10 percent does not, and so on.

In the case of the Fraser River salmon population graph, the R-squared is 0.4024. Therefore, 40 percent of the data supports the conclusion that the salmon population is increasing; the other 60 percent does not. In reality, the graph more likely should show a population decrease.

If Truth About Pebble uses this kind of misleading data, you have to wonder how much truthfulness is in their other claims.

Let public, not PR, decide Pebble
Billie Rae Gillas, former Alaskan 1969 – 2005, Galveston, TX
Anchorage Daily News
April 16, 2007

I question the integrity of those who so vehemently oppose the Pebble project. The ad attack maligning former House Speaker Gail Phillips is a dirty campaign trick. The motives behind such an attack are certainly dubious. A public process determines the suitability of a proposed project. Do the people behind the Renewable Resources Coalition not believe in the public process? Or is the process only good if it favors a strictly environmentalist cause? What could this group be so scared of that it feels the need to circumvent the public process and sling mud to hide its agenda?

Reform of mining tax laws overdue, reform badly needed
By Sue Ely – Eagle River
Anchorage Daily News
April 12, 2007

I am writing in response to the April 3 article, "Pebble foes threaten mine tax initiative."

Although Pebble is the highest-profile project on the table right now, the tax reform issue is a much broader review of the entire mining industry in Alaska. It's about ensuring that Alaskans, as owners of the mined resource, receive a more reasonable share of mining revenues as required by the Alaska Constitution.

Alaska's mining tax laws haven't changed since 1955, before statehood. What has changed is that international mining companies have moved into Alaska and are rapidly extracting billions of dollars worth of our mineral resources, making only minimal contributions to the state. These mines have helped Alaska earn the No. 1 spot on the Environmental Protection Agency's pollution list, yet we are below the national average for mining tax receipts.

Between 2001 and 2003, $2.9 billion in mineral value was extracted from Alaska, and yet the industry only paid the state $18.4 million in taxes, royalties and fees. That is 1.6 percent of the total mineral value. Compare that to the 12.5 percent base royalty rate that oil production pays, plus a production tax. With several large mines on the drawing board, it's not hard to see why many Alaskans are discussing tax reform.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The writer serves as legislative organizer for the Alaska Center for the Environment.

Northern Dynasty's talking the talk; let's see if it can walk the walk
By – William Fell, Anchorage
Anchorage Daily News
April 12, 2007

The headlines tell of buried treasure under the floor of one of our most beautiful rooms in our house we call Alaska. These headlines push our want button. We cannot let wants destroy reason. We have learned from other renters in our house (Exxon, BP, etc.) that renters sometimes act like renters, not like owners. They do not follow through on judged responsibilities, even in years of great profits. They have shown frugality, without ethics.

If Northern Dynasty is going to rent one of the most beautiful rooms in our house, it cannot rip up the whole floor and build a pit in this room. This pit, holding millions of gallons of toxic mining waste, will make a large part of this most beautiful room in our house toxic for maybe 100 or more years after the mine is closed. Bad exchange.

I have great faith in human ingenuity. If there is a real need for this gold, science can progress to a better method to extract this resource. Northern Dynasty should not start until it can demonstrate on a very small scale of one square mile (or thereabouts) complete resource removal and no toxic waste left on site.

Cyanide seeps from Fort Knox Mine
LARGEST GOLD MINE: Tests show the lethal chemical didn't escape from site.
By ELIZABETH BLUEMINK
Anchorage Daily News
April 26, 2007

Cyanide was found seeping this winter from a hillside next to the dam that holds back waste from Alaska's largest gold mine, the Fort Knox Mine near Fairbanks.

Testing ultimately showed cyanide didn't migrate off the mine site, but the seep's discovery provoked a quiet flurry of construction and water testing at Fort Knox between January and this month.

My Turn: Time to act against climate change
By KATE TROLL
Juneau Empire
April 25, 2007

With the latest report from the International Panel on Climate Change, there is no more pussy-footing around it; greenhouse gas emissions from human activity are creating ecological, economic and social challenges around the world, including Alaska, which is ground zero for global warming.

My Turn: Coeur, you did it wrong
Dumping tailings into Lower Slate Lake violates Clean Water Act
By FRED EINSPRUCH
Juneau Empire
April 25, 2007

In response to Rick Richins' My Turn of April 16, I would like to set the facts straight. Coeur Alaska has not done it right. Here is why:

1) Richins writes, "America's commitment to clean water has always taken into account a balance of water uses." This is not based in fact. The United States ignored water and air pollution from industrial sources from its founding until the mid-20th century. Prior to passage of the Clean Water Act in 1972, industry (including the mining industry) largely belched toxic pollution into the waterways with no restraint. Coeur's plan to use Lower Slate Lake as its industrial toxic waste dump, killing all existing life in a public-clean water resource, is a clear violation of the Clean Water Act. Coeur, you got this wrong.

My Turn: A novel proposal for the governor
By BILL YANKEE
Juneau Empire
April 22, 2007

I'm proposing that Gov. Sarah Palin appoint Coeur Alaska to take over the former Fish and Game Habitat Division (now run by the Department of Natural Resources).

Now you might think this would be the "fox guarding the henhouse," and you would be right. Nevertheless, hear me out.

Juneau's business community has gone on the record of supporting Coeur's Kensington Mine, including its controversial tailings proposal, which involves submerging tailings in Lower Slate Lake.

Gold exploration raises hackles along Kuskokwim
STRONG OPPOSITION: Mining in Kisaralik Lake area causes concern.
By TOM KIZZIA
Anchorage Daily News
April 20, 2007

News that a gold mining company was flying equipment into the pristine mountains around Kisaralik Lake spread fast along the Kuskokwim River in the past few weeks.

Villages up and down the river quickly passed resolutions opposed to mining exploration in Kisaralik region, which they said is a vital traditional hunting and fishing area. Tribal and Native corporation officials complained the state allowed the exploration without public notice.

Coeur to remove temporary dam
Court nixes 'interceptor' ditch to divert snowmelt
By BRITTANY RETHERFORD
JUNEAU EMPIRE
April 20, 2007

Coeur Alaska, under court order, will remove a temporary dam intended to hold spring snowmelt near Lower Slate Lake and the Kensington gold mine, federal officials said Thursday.

“Everybody is struggling to come up with the best environmental solution. This is what we feel is the best one," said Victor Ross, a project manager for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

The cofferdam was intended as a temporary structure to hold back water while building a permanent barrier as part of the mining company's tailings disposal plan for the Kensington Mine, about 45 miles north of Juneau. Tailings are the ground rock left over after the metal is extracted.

Bristol Bay group buys into Ocean Beauty
By WESLEY LOY
Anchorage Daily News
April 16, 2007

Bristol Bay Economic Development Corp. will buy a 50 percent share of Seattle-based fish processor Ocean Beauty Seafoods Inc., the companies just announced.

Bristol Bay, based in Dillingham, is one of the state’s six Community Development Quota companies. Through a federal program, the CDQ companies harvest Bering Sea fish and crab set aside for the benefit of Western Alaska villages.

In an April 2 My Turn column, Russell Heath, the executive director of the Southeast Alaska Conservation Council, said Coeur Alaska has attempted to break the law, specifically the Clean Water Act, by developing a mine plan that would place inert tailings fill into "waters of the U.S.," even though such action is in full compliance with nearly 60 federal, state and local permits.

Heavy snowpack leads to flooding concerns at mine
By Tim Bradner
Alaska Journal of Commerce
April 15, 2007

There have been record-breaking snowfalls in the Juneau area this winter, and the spring thaw will be unusually wet and sloppy.

Coeur Alaska Inc. is watching a temporary cofferdam built at Lower Slate Lake near its Kensington Mine very closely out of concern that an unusually heavy melt could lead to erosion of the structure and flooding from the lake.

The cofferdam figured in an injunction ordered by federal courts stopping construction of a permanent dam at Lower Slate Lake after conservation groups filed lawsuits against federal permits issued to Coeur for mine construction.

'Lousy corporate citizens'
Labour boss blasts Rio Tinto
MICHELLE STEWART
The Aurora
April 16, 2007

The president of the province’s Federation of Labour made a special trip to Labrador West last week in support of Steelworkers on strike against the Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC).

Reg Anstey, a familiar face and voice on the labour scene since the 1970s, visited the picketline and offered a motivational speech to the membership at the union centre.

The veteran advocate for labour didn’t mince words when he spoke of IOC’s controlling company Rio Tinto.

9th Circuit upholds Bougainville residents’ right to sue Rio Tinto, PNG in U.S.
The U.S. Ninth Court of Appeals has allowed Bouganville Island residents to pursue legal action against Rio Tinto.
By: Dorothy Kosich
Mineweb
April 17, 2007

The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals Monday upheld the right of Bougainville Island residents in Papua New Guinea to pursue class-action litigation against London-based über miner Rio Tinto.

The plaintiffs claim that they or their families were victims of numerous violations of international law as a result of Rio Tinto's Bougainville copper mining operations, and the decade-long uprising generated by the controversy over the mine. Rio Tinto has argued that the plaintiffs need to exhaust all PNG court remedies prior to seeking U.S. court intervention.