Mine Owners Try to Silence Defenders of Alaska Fishery

Owners of the proposed Pebble Mine near Bristol Bay, Alaska, are trying to take away the power of local people to oppose the project that would threaten one of the world’s best salmon and rainbow trout fisheries.

As reported by the Anchorage Daily News, the Pebble Partnership is suing to block an initiative designed to give citizens a voice in decisions about large-scale development. Since the Pebble Mine was not named in a petition for the initiative, why are the owners trying to block it?

 Here is what Shannyn Moore says in the opinion piece:

“Because no matter how much money Pebble spends on slick advertising and no matter how many times they repeat their mind-numbing mantra of ‘wait and see,’ the fact is, mine backers know that many residents oppose their development.

“No amount of spun-sugar can mask the bitter fact that if developed, Pebble would become the largest open pit mine in North America. It would require the construction of dams higher than Seattle's Space Needle. It would wreak havoc on the area's hydrological cycles. It would use more power and water than Anchorage every day. And it would generate millions of gallons of dilute sulfuric acid, all in a place with lots of earthquakes and volcanic activity.”

Learn more about this issue and how you can help defend one of the world's last great salmon fisheries by clicking on the "Protect Bristol Bay" button on the left side of the page.