On Thursday, May 28th, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sent a letter to Pebble permit reviewers at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers detailing ongoing concerns with impacts of the proposed Pebble mine.

While the letter was delivered on the deadline for the EPA to elevate its concerns about the project under section 404(q) of the Clean Water Act, it stopped short of doing so and will rely instead on the on-going permit review process to address its concerns.

The Pebble Limited Partnership and mine proponents came out quickly applauding the letter and praising the EPA, making sweeping assumptions that the EPA will not use its authority to veto Pebble’s key federal permit currently under review by the Army Corps. However, the letter included a list of ongoing concerns that all highlight the Corps’ rushed process to permit a project that continues to change, has major scientific holes, and poses significant impacts to salmon habitat and water quality.

Specifically, the EPA letter noted that:

A major project change announced May 22, 2020 that would reroute the transportation corridor roads and pipeline along the north end of Iliamna Lake, instead of an ice-breaking ferry across the lake that was initially proposed and reviewed in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the mine and for the public to review. Read Trout Unlimited’s analysis of the project change here.
The “least environmentally damaging project alternative” would still have catastrophic impact to the region. Specifically, the EPA notes it would destroy 2,292 acres of wetlands and 105.4 miles of streams. Secondary impacts due to fugitive dust, dewatering and fragmentation of aquatic habitat would damage 1,647 acres of wetlands and other waters, including 80.3 miles of streams.
The proposed compensatory mitigation measures – how Pebble must attempt to make up for their damage under the law – should be further evaluated and developed in the permit review process.
The State of Alaska’s findings that sockeye salmon in the Koktuli River represent a genetically distinct population of salmon that is evolutionarily important and distinctly unique within the Bristol Bay watershed and Alaska, and that this must be reflected in the Corps’ permit record.

Trout Unlimited’s Alaska Program Director Nelli Williams responded, saying

“The project lacks public support, has no financial partners, is not economically viable without significant expansion and additional impact to the fish and water resources of the region, and will cause devastating impacts that cannot be permitted without violating the law. If you look at the science and economics, it is obvious the proposed Pebble mine cannot be built without damaging salmon and permanently marring an outdoor paradise. The EPA and Army Corps of Engineers should respond accordingly and responsibly, and deny the permit.””

This letter comes in the final weeks of the permit review process for the proposed Pebble mine’s key federal permit. The Corps of Engineers is slated to release a Final Environmental Impact Statement in June 2020, and a decision on Pebble’s permit later this summer.

Bristol Bay needs us to stand up for the people, fish, and fish-based resources of the region to ensure protection from the proposed Pebble mine. Take action today.