On Friday, July 31st, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill that included an amendment intended to thwart the permit process for the proposed Pebble mine on behalf of Bristol Bay residents, sportsmen and women, fishermen and advocates nationwide.
The amendment to the minibus appropriations bill (H.R. 7617) prevents the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from publishing a “Record of Decision” (ROD) on the proposed mine. The amendment to stop the rushed permit review process was sponsored by Reps. Huffman (CA), DeFazio (OR), Speier (CA), Levin (CA) and Rouda (CA). The bill passed 217-197.
Other Members of Congress made strong statements on Pebble this week. Longtime supporter of Bristol Bay Senator Maria Cantwell (WA) slammed the Army Corps of Engineers in the Senate Commerce Committee hearing for ignoring more than a decade of scientific analysis on the devastating impacts the proposed Pebble Mine will have on Alaska’s Bristol Bay salmon fishery. Watch Sen. Cantwell criticize the Army Corps for their permit review process for Pebble on Wednesday, July 29th.
On Friday, July 31st, Senator Joe Manchin (WV) released a statement calling out the inadequate review process for the mine, and called on the Administration to deny Pebble’s permit. Read Senator Manchin’s full statement here.
Following the release of the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) on Thursday, July 23rd, 2020, the Army Corps of Engineers could issue a decision on Pebble’s most important federal permit in as little as 30 days. Although numerous comments from federal and state agencies demonstrate the FEIS underestimates the true impacts and risks from the project, the record is clear the proposed Pebble mine will cause permanent and unacceptable impacts to the region’s fisheries, waters and its people. Read the initial impressions from the FEIS.
After issuing a harsh warning to the Army Corps of Engineers at a Bristol Bay salmon event last fall, Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski followed up by introducing report language in to the Senate Appropriations committee that called on the Corps to make significant changes to Pebble’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement. Her report language specifically directed the Army Corps of Engineers to address the concerns identified by other agencies like EPA and the Department of the Interior that called the DEIS “so inadequate that it precludes meaningful analysis.”
It is absolutely critical that Senator Murkowski and Senator Sullivan hold the Army Corps accountable for producing a robust FEIS- Alaskans: remind them today to use legislative tools in the Senate to stand up for Bristol Bay and Alaskans they represent.
In order for today’s Congressional action to stand, the same legislation must be passed by the Senate and signed by the President. Please sign the petition to Members of Congress and the President calling on them to do all they can to stop the Pebble mine today.