2021 was another major year for Bristol Bay. For the first time in nearly 20 years, our primary effort switched from fighting the once-proposed Pebble mine, to advancing permanent protections for the people and fish of the region.
As we take a moment to reflect on the major successes of 2021 and the work that will come in 2022, we want to say a major thank you to our supporters who have stood with us and continue to support this effort.
Photo: Fly Out Media
Here’s our year-end recap, and the top things you should look for in the coming year.
In 2021, we were most proud of:
Winning our lawsuit against the EPA and getting Clean Water Act protections back on track. This fall the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it would move to vacate its 2019 decision to withdraw proposed protections for Bristol Bay and reinstate the agency’s earlier 2014 Proposed Determination. This victory came after a two-year-long court case. Trout Unlimited was the only remaining plaintiff at the time of the final ruling thanks to the pro-bono work of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter and Hampton LLP. Winning the lawsuit puts protections back on track that would limit the amount of waste water and mine waste discharge that could be released in to Waters of the United States in the Bristol Bay region.
Preventing a Pebble employee from sitting on the State Board of Fisheries. In May, The Alaska state legislature overwhelmingly blocked a Pebble Limited Partnership employee from being confirmed to the State’s Board of Fisheries. Legislators voted 41-18 to prevent Abe Williams, Regional Director for the Pebble Limited Partnership, from being confirmed to the board that oversees the management of the state’s fisheries. We were proud to organize fishermen, Bristol Bay business owners, guides and Alaskans from across the state who participated in to virtual hearings and made phone calls to their legislators to tell them that Pebble has no place statewide decision-making bodies.
Watching Bristol Bay hit an all-time sockeye salmon run record this summer. About 66.1 million sockeye salmon returned to the streams across the Bristol Bay watershed, breaking the previous record of 62.9 million, which was set in 2018.
Having 71 Save Bristol Bay Guide Ambassadors be advocates for the region this season. We were proud to have a big crew of hunting and fishing guides in Bristol Bay who served as Ambassadors this year. They were instrumental in sharing updates on the status of permanent protections for Bristol Bay with visitors to the region, fundraising to help us prepare for the work ahead, and being outspoken advocates for the place they live and work.
Here’s what we have on deck for 2022:
We will work to finalize Clean Water Act protections for Bristol Bay. While Clean Water Act protections from 2014 are back on track, we must work to finalize them for a hedge of protection around the Pebble deposit area in Bristol Bay. The EPA announced it will extend the process until May 31, 2022 to allow time to consider all available scientific and technical information, picking up from where it left off in the development of the 2014 Bristol Bay Proposed Determination. We look forward to seeing EPA’s timeline for finalizing Clean Water Act protections for Bristol Bay.
Advancing Congressional legislation that would durably safeguard the region. In 2020 and 2021, Senator Lisa Murkowski made public commitments to permanently protect Bristol Bay from hard rock mining initiatives. We will continue to advocate and advance legislation that ensures Pebble, or other mining companies with eyes on Bristol Bay, don’t have the opportunity to pursue this kind of development that is incompatible with the fishery.
The 2022 fishing season. Even coming off a major record setting season in 2021, biology teams with University of Washington and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game both expect more than 70 million sockeye to return to Bristol Bay for the first time in recorded history in 2022. We hope that this year provides another successful season for the commercial fleet, for lodge operators and outfitters, and subsistence users putting up fish for the rest of the year!
Thank you again to the Bristol Bay supporters who have stuck with us in 2021, and who will continue to push for the protections that Bristol Bay needs and deserves in 2022. We look forward to sharing updates and calls to action for people to speak up for this place, and for the work we do as a community to safeguard the most prolific sockeye salmon fishery on the planet.