After more than 1 million public comments, the EPA said it will not dismiss an Obama-era conclusion that the proposed Pebble gold mine in southwestern Alaska could cause “significant and irreversible harm” to the Bristol Bay watershed, reported the Washington Post. Instead, the EPA said it will seek additional comments and that its decision “neither deters nor derails the application process” for the mine. Opponents worry the mine could ruin the Bristol Bay fishery, the largest sockeye salmon fishery in the world.
In an announcement, the EPA said it “stands ready” to work with Pebble Limited Partnership and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in reviewing permit applications. The main backer of the mine, Northern Dynasty, said it was confident that regulators will approve the design of the mine in the end. “We expect the permitting process for Pebble to advance expeditiously over the next few years,” said its chief executive, Ron Thiessen.
The head of the conservation group American Rivers told the Post the EPA probably recognized it needed to go through the same administrative process that the Obama administration followed when it ruled against the Pebble mine. That review took three years. In a statement, EPA administrator Scott Pruitt said “it is my judgment at this time that any mining projects in the region likely pose a risk to the abundant natural resources that exist there. Until we know the full extent of that risk, those natural resources and world-class fisheries deserve the utmost protection.”