|
Pebble Mine- Bristol Bay, Alaska
The Pebble Open Pit Gold & Copper Mine puts at
risk the most spectacular and abundant ecosystem in North
America.
The world's most productive wild salmon fishery is threatened with the proposed development
of an open pit mining district at the headwaters of it's river drainages
-- the Mulchatna/ Nushagak River drainage and the Newhalen
/ Kvichak River drainage, both of which feed into the
renowned Bristol Bay. The proposed Pebble Mine, which
would be the first of many, would include the largest
dam in the world, larger than Three Gorges Dam in China,
and made of earth not concrete, to hold back the toxic
waste created in the mining process.
This is the premier fishing
and wildlife area in all of Alaska and toxic by-products
are an inevitable result of such large open pit mines.
These spawning waters are the source of the most productive
commercial and sport salmon fisheries in the world. See
map. The land is the home ground for the 120,000 plus
Mulchatna caribou herd, plus numerous moose, bear and
other animals. Local native opposition to the proposed
open pit Pebble Mine, and the proposed 1000 square mile
mining district around it, is strong and has been registered
at over 75% by one recent poll
by Hellenthal and Associates. Some more recent polls show an even higher opposition to the mine by natives living in the area.
Many native groups have already voiced their opposition
to the proposed Pebble mine, including the Inter-Tribal Council. To see a list of who opposes
the mine and who is favor of the project, see The
Pebble Scoreboard. Also see a thank you from the native
village of Nondalton to former U.S.
Senator Ted Stevens for his opposition to the mine. Commercial
fishermen are also strongly opposed to the proposed
mine. The position of U.S. Senators Begich and Murkowski regarding the proposed development of the mine is unclear.
The Bristol Bay Watershed is home to Alaskas greatest
wild salmon runs and its renewable natural resources contribute
more than $400 million annually to Alaskas economy.
Much of the economic value of Bristol Bays wild
salmon and trout is derived from the regions reputation
for pure clean water, healthy habitat, and pristine wilderness
setting. The proposed Pebble Mine and Bristol Bay Mining
District pose an unacceptable risk to Bristol Bays
wild salmon ecosystem and economy and -- at the same time
-- would provide very little economic benefit to all Alaskans.
Mining Taxes a Joke?
As Governor Hickel and the late Governor Jay Hammond have
both observed, the hardrock mining industry is not paying
its fair share for the purchase of mineral resources from
the people of Alaska. In fact, according to an analysis
commissioned by Rep. Paul Seaton (R-Homer) earlier this
year, Alaska's mining industry bears a light tax
burden compared to Alaska's other high value resource
industries. State revenue generally amounts to only about
7/10 of 1% of the mined resource value, while an additional
1% is paid to municipalities. State revenue from oil and
gas amounts to about 20% of total production value, while
an additional 2% is paid to municipalities. Seatons
analysis tells us that the oil and gas industry pays the
state nearly 30 times more for a dollar of Alaskan resources
than does the hardrock mining industry. This enormous
discrepancy is not consistent with the Constitutional
requirement that all resource development provide the
maximum benefit to all Alaskans.
Applications for Mining Permits by
Northern Dynasty.
Nearly 2,000 pages of mine plans and permit applications
submitted to DNR by Pebble proponent Northern Dynasty
in late 2006 show the direct destruction of salmon habitat,
the withdrawal of all water from the upper reaches of
Upper Talarik Creek and the South Fork Koktuli River,
and the construction of some of the largest dams in
the world right in the heart of the Bristol Bay Watershed.
The presence of such industrial activity, coupled with
the mining industrys track record, pose an unacceptable
risk to Bristol Bays wild salmon. The Canadian company Northern Dynasty has formed the "Pebble Partnership" with the British company Anglo-American to attempt to develop the project. Additional permit applications are anticipated for 2009.
This is not just about habitat preservation, but about
government policies that go to the heart and soul of
Alaska and Alaska's future. The rainbow trout, the Mulchatna
herd of caribou, the arctic grayling, salmon of all
species -- these are just a few of the creatures whose
habitats and very existence are now in danger in the
Bristol Bay watershed of Alaska. These animals and others,
including humans, are dependant on the clean water of
streams and rivers in the area for their basic survival.
The threat extends to every fishing, hunting, and tourist
business in Alaska that relies upon the pristine natural
resources of Southwestern Alaska. Particularly at risk
is commercial fishing in Bristol Bay which depends on
Alaska's wild fish products being seen as pollutant
free. See Alaska Independent Fishermans Marketing Association's
letter
to then Governor Murkowski asking him to stop the Pebble
Mine. The impact on individual Alaskans will be
equally substantial for those living and working in
the area. According to the EPA the hardrock mining industry
is the single largest source of toxic releases in the
U.S. Mineral processing chemicals, including cyanide,
and the mined minerals themselves can be highly toxic
to salmon, trout, and people as well. Acid mine drainage,
common and difficult to predict and control, poses an
additional threat to resources downstream of metallic
sulfide mines. The mining of metallic sulfide mineral
deposits such as Pebble -- by open pit and underground
methods alike -- has caused significant harm to clean
water, fish habitat and regional economies around the
world in recent years. If these mines are permitted
by government policy, sport fishermen and hunters, subsistence
fishermen and hunters, and property owners, among others,
will all suffer irreparable economic and social damage
in perpetuity.
The Alaska Large Mine Permitting Process.
Compounding these risks is the fact that our existing
state and federal mine permitting processes are ineffective,
highly biased, and have been significantly weakened in
recent years. A new, peer reviewed scientific study of
large mines permitted throughout the U.S. in recent years
shows that the permitting process commonly predicts 100%
compliance with clean water regulations but that this
prediction has been wrong in 76% of cases reviewed (See http://hooknbullet.org/study.htm for more information.) Pebble mine supporters proudly
tout the fact that Alaska has never denied a large mine
permit application. To see why Alaskans do not trust the
DNR permitting process for large mines, see what a former
high ranking official of Alaska's Fish and Game Department
said at a hearing on a proposal to create a fish refuge
in Bristol Bay. Read his testimony which is entitiled the Myth of "Rigorous
Permitting".
Recent changes in Alaskas regulatory regime have
significantly increased the risk that hardrock mining
activity poses to water quality, fish habitat and Alaskas
reputation for pure water and healthy wild salmon. These
changes include, but are not limited to, the Murkowski
Administrations decision to allow increased pollution
of salmon spawning habitat under the guise of mixing
zones, the elimination of the ADF&G Habitat
Division, and the practice of allowing mining companies
to pay for and oversee baseline environmental surveys
and to pay the salaries of the state employees charged
with reviewing permit applications.
Lance Trasky, former ADF&G Habitat Regional Division
Supervisor for Bristol Bay for 26 years testified recently
to the Board of Fisheries regarding the proposed Pebble
Mine. His testimony included the following warning.
If mine permitting is allowed to proceed under
current state and federal standards and permitting processes
the very large scale mining of sulfide based copper
ore in the Nushagak and Kvichak drainages will physically
destroy thousands of acres of very high quality spawning
and rearing habitat and over time will almost certainly
seriously degrade fisheries habitat and fisheries production
in downstream portions of these drainages. For
more information, on the history of how Alaska's pemitting
process got flawed, see "Alaska's
mine permitting process".
The proposed Pebble Mine and Bristol Bay Mining District
pose an unacceptably high risk to Alaskas greatest
salmon producing region while promising an unconstitutionally
low reward. Both the proposed Pebble Mine and Bristol
Bay Mining District are opposed by a majority of the regions
residents and should not be allowed to proceed to development.
Northern Dynasty's Proposed Pebble Mine Plans.
Most recently, in 2006, Northern Dynasty began the
permitting process by filing applications for water rights
and for permits to build at least 5 incredibly large earthen
dams on the North and South Fork of the Koktuli River
at the headwaters of the Bristol Bay watershed. The proposed
dams would be tailings settling ponds or in another words,
toxic waste storage sites. The one earthen dam would be
740 feet high and 4.3 miles long. The other dam would
be 700 feet high and 2.9 miles long. The larger dam would
be higher than the Hoover Dam or the Grand Coulee Dam
which are of course made of concrete. These proposed earthen
dams are in one of the most active earthquake zones in
Alaska. Please
see the attached letter with specifics from Lake and Peninsula
Borough to DNR requesting that all such applications be
suspended. Clearly, if these applications for permits
are approved it will only be a matter of time before a
disaster will occur. To properly understand the threat
to Alaska's most prolific ecosystem, we recommend studying
a map of the area which will indicate the most unfortunate location
for the proposed mine. As former Governor Jay Hammond
said "I can't imagine a worse location for a mine
of this type unless it was in my kitchen".
For more information, please see the RRC Executive Summary and other links contained on this website. |