In a story published today by E&E reporter Manuel Quiñones, we learned that two lower 48 Senators, Joe Manchin (D-WV) and David Vitter (R-LA), plan to introduce a bill that threatens the Clean Water Act provision thousands of Americans have supported authorizing the EPA to protect Bristol Bay from threats posed by Pebble Mine.
According to the article:

“The legislation is in response to EPA's retroactive veto of a large mountaintop-removal coal mining project in West Virginia, plus the agency's proposed pre-emptive limits to the Pebble LP gold and copper mine in Alaska.

Manchin and Vitter have generally wanted to limit EPA's ability to veto the Army Corps of Engineers' Clean Water Act Section 404 dredge-and-fill permits to within the permitting process.”

Needless to say, we’re disappointed that two senators from the Lower 48 can jeopardize protections for the salmon of this region that provide for a generations-old subsistence culture, world-class angling and 14,000 fish-based jobs. Truly, there is no place like Bristol Bay left on earth.

Luckily, there is something you can do to help!

Please post to Senator Manchin’s Facebook Wall And say:
When it comes to the world-class fishery in Bristol Bay, Alaska we need proactive Clean Water Act protections for jobs, salmon and culture.

Or post on Twitter: @Sen_JoeManchin When it comes to #bristolbay, Alaska we need proactive Clean Water Act protections for jobs, salmon and culture.

Thank you for staying active on this issue, and we’ll see you today on social media!
-SBB Team