Pebble Mine- Bristol Bay, Alaska  
                             
    The Pebble Open Pit Gold & Copper Mine seriously endangers the most spectacular and abundant ecosystem in North America.

The real threat to Alaska's fishing and hunting is not ANWR, but rather the proposed development of an open pit mining district at the headwaters of the two most famous river drainages in Alaska, the Mulchatna/ Nushagak River drainage and the Newhalen / Kvichak River drainage, both of which feed into Bristol Bay. This is the premier fishing and wildlife area in all of Alaska and toxic by-products are an inevitable result of open pit mines. These spawning waters are the source of the most productive commercial and sport salmon fisheries in the world. The land is the home ground for the 120,000 plus Mulchatna caribou herd, plus numerous moose, bear and other animals. To see a video of the area in the Bristol Bay watershed that will be impacted, please contact us. Local opposition to the proposed open pit Pebble Mine, and the proposed 1000 square mile mining district around it, is strong and growing stronger. Recent developments, including an expansion of the Pebble Mine site and the mine owners request to drain water from adjacent salmon streams require everyone's special attention.

  

News & Updates:

For all the latest developments
in the threats to salmon
and clean water
in the Bristol Bay area of Alaska, please read more >>>


Links, Pebble Photos
& More
Reference Library

    
                   
    At risk is over 25 million salmon which are harvested annually by commercial, sport fishing and native interests; a tourism industry that provides large number of jobs for Alaskans, including employment by lodges, guides, and outfitters which are dependant on the fishing and hunting resource in the Bristol Bay area; and finally, at risk is the reputation and image of Alaska. It doesn't matter how well the project is done, inevitably the end result will be one heck of an eyesore and a tarnished image of Alaska as the last pristine wilderness in America.
         
The threat to the clean water and land comes from the proposed development of a huge gold and copper mining district encompassing more than 1000 square miles featuring an open pit method of mining using cyanide and/or other toxic chemicals to leach the gold out of the rock. The mining company furthest along in the permitting
process is a Canadian company by the name of Northern Dynasty Minerals and their proposed "Pebble Mine"

project. The Pebble Mine project itself will cover over 20 square miles of land between the open pit, the tailings, the mill, and the tailing containment pond. More than 8 other mining companies have staked claims in the area and will no doubt proceed if the Pebble Mine gains the necessary governmental approvals. The Renewable Resources Coalition is fighting the Pebble Mine, the mining district designation, and it's ill-advised road from Cook Inlet to the mining area on many fronts to protect the threatened fishing and hunting resources in this area of Alaska.

This is not just about habitat preservation, but about government policies that go to the heart and soul of Alaska and Alaska's future. The rainbow trout, the Mulchatna herd of caribou, the arctic grayling, salmon of all species -- these are just a few of the creatures whose habitats and very existence are now in danger in the Bristol Bay watershed of Alaska. These animals and others, including humans, are dependant on the clean water ofstreams and

 

Fish killed by major mine spill in
January 2000.
 
rivers in the area for their basic survival. The threat extends to every fishing, hunting, and tourist business in Alaska that relies upon the pristine natural resources of Southwestern Alaska. Particularly at risk is commercial fishing in Bristol Bay which depends on Alaska's wild fish products being seen as pollutant free. See their letter to Governor Murkowski. The impact on individual Alaskans will be equally substantial for those living and working in the area. If these mines are permitted by government policy, sport fishermen, subsistence fishermen and hunters, sport hunters, and property owners, among others, will all have irreparable damage done to their interests. Many native groups have already voiced their opposition to the proposed Pebble mine, including Alaska's Inter-Tribal Council.

 
               

Pit Mine Examples:


Modern open pit mines, such as this copper operation in Peru, are visible from Earth orbit. If developed, the Pebble Mine could be the largest open pit gold mine in North America.

 

Pollution from the Summitville Gold Mine in Colorado sterilized 17 miles of the Alamosa River. The mine was abandoned and its operator, Summitville Consolidated Mining Corp. Inc. declared bankruptcy.
 
       
                       
Join Us and Help Now!
                       

© 2007 Renewable Resources Foundation, Inc. All Rights Reserved.