In Alaska. . . Mining was the economic
king for many years and then the fish ruled for awhile until mass
quantities of carbon fuels were discovered in the 1960s. The oil
companies assured everyone that they could harvest carbon fuels
cleanly and co-exist with the surrounding pristine habitat, well, we
see where that has ended up. This is why We The People have had to
turn to the federal government to protect us from our own State
government. Our Alaskan government has even gone as far as asking to
join into lawsuits against the residents of Bristol Bay and likewise
has had a foreign corporation ask to join a lawsuit defending illegal
actions by the State of Alaska as pertaining to Bristol Bay. The
State agencies tasked with oversight have already proven themselves
to be ineffective and downright negligent in performing their duties
to protect the natural resources.
"Alaska State Constitution,
Article 8 - Natural Resources, § 3. Common Use: Wherever occurring
in their natural state, fish, wildlife, and waters are reserved to
the people for common use."
The existence and progress of the
Pebble Project isn't by accident either. The State of Alaska has
been setting up for this and almost got away with it. If you look at
the list of characters and the time line of how we got from there to
here in this important issue, you'll clearly see where the State of
Alaska in cooperation with multiple foreign entities has set up for
the destruction of Bristol Bay and the fisheries that are supported
by the Bay.
In 2002 when Frank Murkowski was
running for governor, he put forth a plan to build roads to several
mining projects, including the Pebble Project in Bristol Bay. This
was just part of a string of policies he said he would implement to
aid mining if elected governor. Among his other proposals:
• Delayed implementation of new
environmental regulations designed to protect Alaska's coastline.
• Changes in law to prevent people
who challenge state decisions on mining from receiving legal fees.
• More state rights of way on
federal land to access resources.
• Faster permitting and state
takeover of water discharge permitting from the federal government.
"We need to get in there and
start making things happen," he said.
In implementing his campaign agenda,
In 2003, Murkowski moved the Alaska Department of Fish and Game
Habitat Division biologists to the Department of Natural Resources,
which generally works toward development, saying they were
unnecessarily delaying permits. The Murkowski administration in 2005
moved to change the state's long-time ban on mixing zones, where
large mines or large sewage treatment plants would be allowed to
discharge pollution into any water used by fish for spawning, by
allowing them on a case-by-case basis.
2003 - "Canadian firm strikes
gold at Alaska prospect...
ANCHORAGE - A Canadian mining company
is pursuing plans to develop the Pebble prospect near Iliamna in
Southwest Alaska.
Bruce A. Youngman, vice president of
Vancouver-based Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd., said test results of
minerals at the property showed high-grade gold, copper and
molybdenum throughout the site. Geologists consider it one of the
world's largest untapped gold and copper deposits. Because the
minerals are under a thin layer of gravel, they're configured in a
way that would make for very low cost, open-pit mining, Youngman
said. "It's a world-class mineral district," Youngman told
the Alaska Miners Association annual conference in Anchorage." Alaska
Digest - Staff and Wire Reports - Monday, 11-10-2003
In 2005, Bruce Jenkins, Chief
Operating Officer for Northern Dynasty Minerals confirmed that the
size of the deposit is considerably larger than originally thought.
This was based on exploratory drilling done by his company in 2003
and 2004. The movement to protect Bristol Bay from destructive
development also kicked off in 2005 when, The Alaska Independent
Fishermen's Marketing Association sent a letter to Alaska Governor
Frank Murkowski asking him to oppose the Pebble mine project - which
could turn into the continent's biggest gold mine - as an upstream
threat to the bay's abundant Sockeye. Of course, the governor's
office issued no reply to the request.
As far back as 2005, The Alaska
Department of Natural Resources began secretly changing the land-use
classifications in Bristol Bay and hired mining industry experts to
re-write the 1984 BBAP. This re-write resulted in the
reclassification of nearly 12 Million Acres of Wildlife Habitat Land
to less than 1 Million Acres. Permitting was also streamlined when
Commissioner Irwin created the Office of Project Management and
Permitting (OPMP) to expedite mining permits and re-write the BBAP.
The OPMP was staffed with persons directly associated with the mining
industry that substantially funded the operations of the OPMP that
resulted in favorable reclassification of wildlife lands to suit the
mining industry’s goal of avoiding stringent regulations pertaining
to areas surrounding mega-industrial mines. This office was also
created to assist mining interests in expediting the permitting
process and avoiding environmental concerns further down the road.
Although mining interests did not
directly play a major fund raising role in Palin's gubernatorial
campaign, post-election donations to her inaugural committee came
from four mining companies, including Northern Dynasty, the Pebble
Mine co-developer. The money was spent on inaugural balls and on
travel by the governor and her family for events. The amounts were
not disclosed. The Pebble partners also footed the bill for Governor
Palin's husband Todd, to do a 'fact finding tour' of Alaskan mines to
sway the executive opinion on clean water issues.
The Pebble Limited Partnership was
formed in 2007, just months before Cynthia Carroll, CEO of
Anglo-American PLC met privately with Governor Sarah Palin, Palin
assistant Joe Balash, House Speaker John Harris of Valdez and Senate
President Lyda Green. Mrs. Palin's assistant had in February
submitted a brief to her describing and supporting the legislative
agenda of the Alaska Support Industry Alliance which said, "#6.
Oppose any legislation pre-empting or undermining the regulatory and
permitting process for the Pebble Mine project." The governor's
reply to the brief was an email entitled, "Blocking economic
development is not an honor." where she rails against
environmentalists opposing oil development in ANWR and mineral mining
in Bristol Bay. Palin even said that Alaska needs another refuge
like it needs a hole in the head and promptly charged full speed
ahead with a pro-development corruption driven agenda.
2008 was a good year for Pebble in the
Alaska State Legislature...and in the polls. With a supposed
centrist and no-nonsense Governor whose husband hails from Bristol
Bay, you'd figure that efforts to protect the way of life and sustain
the resources would be a no brainer. During the 25th legislature,
two measures designed to protect the habitat of Bristol Bay were shut
down. The Jay Hammond State Game Refuge proposal introduced by
Senate President Gary Stevens of Kodiak and the Protection of Salmon
Spawning Water bill introduced by Representatives Edgmon, Ramras,
Dahlstrom, Gara, and Kerttula were both killed in there respective
houses' Resource Committees.
The 25th Alaskan Legislature also
could have restructured the mining tax code by adopting HB156,
introduced by Paul Seaton of Homer. But Rep. Jay Ramras, R-Fairbanks,
said he's determined to keep the mining industry from being "taxed
into extinction." Of course making sure the Alaska gets it's
fair share of the minerals mostly held on state lands wasn't a
priority for Governor Palin, "Sharon Leighow, spokeswoman for
Republican Gov. Sarah Palin, said the governor does not support the
bill on mine taxes." The current tax code indicates that
somewhere around 1% in taxes are paid by mining companies on the in
ground/raw value of the ore extracted and not on processed materials.
This was also the year that Sarah
Palin took off her hat as Alaska Governor and essentially defeated
the public initiative aimed at imposing stricter water use standards
to protect the sustainability of the all important waterways of
Alaska. In a campaign questionnaire, she (Sarah Palin) said that "as
part of a Bristol Bay fishing family myself, I would not support any
resource development that would endanger the most sensitive and
productive fishery in the world." but as the vote on the Clean
Water Initiative approached, something changed. A week before the
vote, Palin spoke with initiative opponent Mead Treadwell, the
chairman of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission. He sensed that the
governor was seeing things his way. "Palin said, 'I can't take a
position, but if anyone asks me what I think, I'd say that I don't
like it,' " Treadwell recalled. Mead Treadwell currently serves
as the Lt. Governor of Alaska under Sean Parnell who served as Lt.
Governor under Sarah Palin and succeeded her when she quit her job.
In fact... there was even an earmark
for $25000.00 in the State Capitol budget for the Governor's Office
to "influence" the initiative and promote the benefits of
mining. Under 1/2 Governor Sarah Palin... North Pole Republican Rep.
John Coghill and House Majority Leader Ralph Samuels, R-Anchorage,
added the capital budget $25,000 for the governor's office to educate
the public on Alaska mining and regulation and provide information
"to influence the outcome of an election on initiatives
affecting those mining activities."
2008 also saw the Pebble project hire
a Deputy Commissioner away from the Alaska Department of Fish and
Game. Ken Taylor was employed to be the Vice President for the
Environment. Mr. Taylor also served as Sarah Palin's point man in her
argument against global warming. He was hired by CEO John Shively
who credited his former working relationship with Taylor while
Shively was Commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources.
Shively has been a Juneau insider
since coming here as a Vista volunteer in 1965 after getting his BS
in Political Science. Mr. Shively served as Commissioner of the
Alaska Department of Natural Resources. after his tenure as Alaska
Governor Bill Sheffeild's Cheif-of-Staff. Many Alaskan's will
remember that John Shively was granted immunity during the
impeachment proceedings surrounding Governor Sheffield and testified
to the corrupt practices he and the Governor were utilizing to ensure
a profiteering by a political ally. He was most recently was vice
president of government and community relations for Holland America
Line and served 17 years with NANA Regional Corp. He and other NANA
leaders negotiated development of the Red Dog mine in northwest
Alaska in partnership with Teck Cominco.
In 2009, the several very
pro-development Alaska legislators took issue with the University of
Alaska and their stances on natural resource development. Rep. Anna
Fairclough, R-Eagle River, a member of the powerful House Finance
Committee, has grilled Chancellor Mark Hamilton before her committee,
and questioned his university's support for the oil and mining
industries. "If I ask university staff, the people who are
educating our future leaders, if they support the Chukchi Sea
development, the Red Dog Mine or the Pebble Mine or any type of
industry along those lines, a stereotypical response is they are in
opposition," she said. Rep. Mike Kelly, R-Fairbanks, said some
of the students who visit the Capitol looking for money are openly
anti-development. "They come down here and rail against anything
that brings in the very bucks that they come down here and tell us
that we owe them," he said. he later added that these students
should be better trained in how to lobby the legislature for funding.
The projected income of the Pebble
Project will pay about .8 % in taxes to the State of Alaska. Maybe
someone should educate Representatives Kelly and Faircloth on what's
what with resource development taxing. Over the expected life of the
mine, Pebble has valued the mine at $500Billion meaning the State of
Alaska would receive $2.5-3Billion over a period of 100 years or so,
about $20 Million a year averaged.
Just last year in a presentation to
the conservative Heritage Foundation... "The inability of
America to develop its vast natural resources due to the manipulation
of environmental laws, which have helped clean up America, are
restraining global competitiveness and driving the United States
toward becoming a Second World Country." John Shively, former
Alaska State Commissioner of Natural Resources under Governor Tony
Knowles (D). Mr. Shively works for the partnership of several
foreign corporations, to ensure the continued commercial colonialism
of American natural resources.
In July of 2009, Nunamta Alukestai
filed a lawsuit against the State of Alaska, and more specifically
the Department of Natural Resources. The purpose of the lawsuit was
to stop exploratory drilling being done under permits that were
issued without any public process. There is also another active
lawsuit concerning the reclassification of Bristol Bay in a shady
move that occurred In 2005; the Alaska Department of Natural
Resources restructured themselves and then reclassified Bristol Bay
as a mining district. Plaintiffs allege that the 2005 Bristol Bay
area plan adopted by Natural Resources Commissioner Tom Irwin skewed
away from the region's rich fish and wildlife habitat and that of the
protections offered under the 1984 plan, while encouraging and
protecting the development of mining on nearly all of the 12 million
acres of state-owned uplands whose waters flow into the Bristol Bay
watershed, home of the world's largest Sockeye salmon fisheries.
In 2010, The Pebble Limited
Partnership was fined $45000.00 for violating their Water Use Permit
over a period of three years. “We’ve got a good track record in
Alaska. All the mines are in compliance, we have healthy fish
downstream and good water quality,” Ed Fogels, Mine Permitting
Supervisor, 2008 AK-DNR. These violations were self-reported after
the company was confronted about the use of waters outside of their
permit area. The State oversight that is supposedly good enough to
enforce even simple regulations about where to draw water from didn't
even have a clue. "A DNR official said Friday that state
regulators missed the violations during their inspections because
they were focused on other matters -- mainly ensuring that the
drilling crews were following environmental protocols."
But then, just last year in 2011, a
Superior Court Judge in Anchorage ruled that the exploratory drilling
being done by the Pebble Limited Partnership hasn't caused harm to
the environment. This was the previously mentioned lawsuit that
claimed the exploratory permitting was done illegally because public
notice and involvement never occurred in AK-DNR's proccess. In his
ruling, Judge Aarseth said the state didn't need to, and was not in
violation of the state constitution.
And of course our current executive,
Governor Sean Parnell is as pro-development as it gets when it comes
to who he serves in Alaska. Mr. Parnell was a lobbyist for oil giant
Conoco-Phillips before taking that expertise into becoming a
politician. My guess is that he decided he was tired of giving away
the perks to elected representatives of We The People and wanted some
for himself. In 2010, Gov. Sean Parnell signed into law new
disclosure requirements for those seeking to place initiatives before
Alaska voters. The new requirements were backed by a number of mining
industry supporters following an attack on the Pebble Mine using the
initiative process. Basically it boils down to this... for a person
or entity to begin the process of initiating public authority, they
have to expose themselves to the corporate opposition. If you want
to begin a petition, you must file with The Alaska Public Offices
Commission. This would also include a recall effort as well. Clearly
something that is un-Constitutional.
"This is a way to intimidate
people who might give you money to gather signatures, to choke that
off right at the beginning," Rep. Harry Crawford (D) said after
the vote on the initiative sponsored by Kyle Johansen (R) and Cathy
Munoz (R).
Governor Parnell also took steps to
strengthen the Alaska Department of Natural Resources by moving
Alaska Attorney General Dan Sullivan to head that agency. Under his
leadership, the Department of Law undertook an aggressive strategy of
initiating and intervening in litigation aimed at halting federal
government overreach into the lives of Alaskans and protecting the
state's economic future and responsible resource development
interests. In addition to 'circling up the wagons' to protect
Alaska's flawed permitting and oversight system, the Governor also
appointed Joe Balash as a Deputy Commissioner. Mr. Balash previously
served as Sarah Palin's Executive Aid on natural resource issues and
has close ties to the Alaska Support Industry Alliance.
However, contrary to the Alaska State
Constitution, our current Governor's office also worked hard to
ensure that the Coastal Zone Management Program used by the State for
gathering public input from coastal communities was shelved in 2011.
There is a public initiative being brought before Alaska voters this
year sponsored by The Alaska Sea Party to re-instate the CZMP and
ensure that public input is gathered by the State when considering
development that could affect coastal resources.
Last year Governor Parnell went so far
as to advise President Obama and Energy Secretary Steven Chu on
streamlining the federal permitting system for mines and bringing it
more in-line with the pro-development style that exists in Alaska.
In a letter to President Obama, he said, "Second, as noted by
Secretary Chu, the federal mine permitting system in the United
States ranks as the least efficient or timely among 25 mining
countries, requiring a time frame of seven to 10 years to deliver a
permit. This compares to Australia where permits are often issued in
one to two years. In order to ensure an effective NEPA process, high
ranking managers from federal agencies with decision making authority
(particularly from the EPA) need to coordinate early and often with
each other, permit applicants, and state agencies."
The Pebble Limited Partnership is also
a big spender when it comes to lobbying here in Alaska. "The
Pebble Partnership, developers of the huge Pebble Mine prospect in
Southwest Alaska, spent more on Alaska lobbyist salaries than anyone
else in 2010. The group laid down $378,000 to employ four of the
professional lobbyists at the Capitol." Among those employed by
The Pebble Partnership is Wendy Chamberlain and her ex-husband,
former Anchorage state Rep. Eldon Mulder.
But the real big bucks are spent in
DC... where of course lobbyists are the ones calling the shots. So
far in 2012, lobbying activity 'reported' on behalf of The Pebble
Limited Partnership has exceeded $150,000K and they spent right at $1Million for each of the two preceding years. This includes
lobbying contact with several entities of the United States
government, including The Executive Office of The President of The
United States, The US Senate & House of Representatives, The
Environmental Protection Agency, The Department of Defense and The
State Department. All of these interactions were reported by four
different lobbying agencies, including one appropriately named GovBiz
Advantage. GovBiz also represents the Alaska Federation of Natives.
I can't tell you any more than that, because the lobbying reporting
forms are so ambiguous in their information.
Since major exploration of Bristol Bay
began about a decade ago, the returns of Chinook and Sockeye Salmon
have already shown significant decreases. The two graphs below were
culled from documentation posted by one of the Pebble Project
stakeholders and clearly show that something is happening to the
fish. The only thing different upriver is the increase in
exploration that requires millions of gallons of water to be diverted
from salmon producing waterways and the disposal of untold amounts of
chemicals into the surrounding habitat. These factors along with the
temporary construction of drilling pads and exploration
infrastructure have surely caused undue harm to the spawning grounds.
It is already proven that they are exploring in spawning areas.
 |
| Data from Hunter Dickinson Resources |
 | |
|
On May 18, 2012 the EPA released "An Assessment of Potential Mining Impacts on Salmon Ecosystems of Bristol Bay, Alaska". They are soliciting public comment
through July 24, 2012 before making any determination on any proposed
actions.
But as Ronald W. Thiessen President &
CEO of Northern Dynasty said, "You don't have to be a scientist
to understand that you cannot assess the effects of what you don't
know." in the company's written public comment to the EPA
concerning the Bristol Bay Watershed Assessment. This is the real
crux of the issues at hand. It is proven fact that the natural
habitat in and around Bristol Bay has provided for the lives of
people and animals for an untold amount of time. This resource is
sustainable as along as we protect it from being desecrated by
mining, oil/gas drilling and the infrastructure required to carry out
these short term solutions to historical problems.
However... the pro-Pebble propaganda
machine immediately went on the offensive once the EPA released the
assessment. The Conservatives4Palin website where the motto is "Just
The Facts" posted a blatant lie on the issue saying, "just
last week the EPA announced plans to use the Clean Water Act to
preemptively prevent the Pebble Mine Project from being built in
Alaska". The release of this assessment does not say that the
EPA has made any decision, in fact it does just the opposite. They
are openly soliciting for public comment through July 23 in order to
gather the information necessary to make a determination. Further in
the article, written by Beth Shaw, a Social Worker from Georgia she
says, "It seems that many of the well-heeled in Alaska and
Oregon don’t want the Pebble Mine Project built close to an area
they consider their personal playground, Bristol Bay, Alaska. Without
concern for the native populations of the area." This is another
blatant lie, as Nunamta Alukestai, BBNC and many other entities are
in fact Alaska Native organizations representing We The People of
Bristol Bay. recent polls show that a majority of Bristol Bay
residents and Alaskans oppose the development of the Pebble project
and favor natural resource preservation for Bristol Bay because it's
Our home, Our subsistence and Our future.
Even the mainstream blog TheHill.com
had it's pundit posting a highly inaccurate opinion on the Pebble
Mine issue and totally avoiding the real issue, the survival and
sustainability of Bristol Bay. Rick Manning, Communications Director
for "Americans For Limited Government" and Public Affairs
Chief of Staff at the U.S. Department of Labor during the George W.
Bush Administration used the space to make a blatant attack on
Barrack Obama's environmental record and lack of creating jobs. His
points of losing jobs to environmental concerns is accurately
rebutted by former Alaskan legislator Rick Halford. "Mr.
Manning conveniently ignores the thousands of jobs that the mine
would put at risk." wrote Mr. Halford, who also points out the
thousands of wildlife and nature preservation jobs that exist in
Bristol Bay.
In addition to the supporters of
former Governor Sarah Palin railing against the EPA's May 2012
actions, her successor did the same. He recently presided over a
Resource Development Council luncheon (Sponsored by Pebble) that
turned into a EPA bashing session. During the affair, Parnell said he
might sue the agency over what he sees as the EPA's premature
involvement with the proposed Pebble Mine. The Governor also had the
Alaska Attorney General write a letter to EPA Administrator Lisa
Jackson requesting that they halt the Bristol Bay Watershed
Assessment. The State of Alaska is claiming that they alone have the
authority to coordinate and oversea the permitting of development in
Bristol Bay. Our Governor's office also worked hard to ensure that
the Coastal Zone Management Program used by the State for gathering
public input from coastal communities was shelved in 2011. There is
a public initiative being brought before Alaska voters this year
sponsored by The Alaska Sea Party to re-instate the CZMP and ensure
that public input is gathered by the State when considering
development that could affect coastal resources.
Our voices are also being ignored by
our Alaska Representatives in Washington, DC promptly joined together
in saying that the EPA's actions are pre-mature and unwarranted.
Alaska's longest serving DC representative is Don Young, who in July
of 2010 introduced legislation that would revoke the EPA's 404c Clean
Water Act authority to revoke or prevent development permits. This
action was taken nearly a year before the EPA even decided to do the
assessment on Bristol Bay.
Our Write-In Senator, Lisa Murkowski whom received
untold amounts of campaign assistance from several organizations that
oppose the development of Bristol Bay as a mining district even went
after EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson during last years budget
hearings. Among her concerns was the EPA’s watershed assessment in
Bristol Bay. “This assessment is in response to a petition from the
environmental community to block the proposed Pebble Mine under the
Clean Water Act” Murkowski said.
Pro-development Democratic Senator
Mark Begich also came out saying that the EPA's actions were
premature. As readers may recall, Senator Begich went after the EPA
for 'holding up' permits needed by Royal Dutch Shell to begin
offshore oil and gas exploration near and in Bristol Bay. Mr.
Begich's election committee called the GreatlandPAC has accepted
donations from Pebble employees and associated entities. His record
in the US Senate clearly shows where he stands on this issue.
"Gov. Sean Parnell and Sen. Lisa
Murkowski have said they won't trade fish for minerals. At the same
time, Parnell, Murkowski and Sen. Mark Begich are skeptical of the
EPA and absolutely oppose any invoking of Clean Water Act provisions
to stop the mine before the state permitting process has run its
course." Talk about Pre-Mature, the agency itself is named the
Environmental PROTECTION Agency. Harm has already been caused to the
salmon spawning areas above Bristol Bay.
Please stay tuned for how We The People can come together and right these blatant abuses of power and protect the last great Wild Salmon stock in the world and the entire North Pacific Fishery...