Biden administration plans to block a mine in Alaska

WASHINGTON » The Biden administration Wednesday took a major legal step toward protecting Bristol Bay in Alaska, one of the world’s most valuable sockeye salmon fisheries that also sits atop enormous copper and gold deposits long coveted by mining companies.

Citing its authority under the 1972 Clean Water Act, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed a legal determination that would ban the disposal of mining waste in the Bristol Bay watershed. It is a move that could deal a death blow to the proposed Pebble Mine, an intensely disputed project that would have extracted the metals but also irreparably harmed the ecosystem, scientists said.

The proposal, which would create permanent protections for the waters and wildlife of Bristol Bay, about 200 miles southwest of Anchorage, will be finalized later this year. The determination would prohibit any entity from disposing mine-related waste within 308 square miles around the site of the proposed Pebble Mine project.

“The Bristol Bay watershed is a shining example of how our nation’s waters are essential to healthy communities, vibrant ecosystems and a thriving economy,” EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said. “EPA is committed to following the science, the law and a transparent public process to determine what is needed to ensure that this irreplaceable and invaluable resource is protected for current and future generations.”

The fight over the fate of Pebble Mine and Bristol Bay has raged for more than a decade.

In 2020, the Army Corps of Engineers denied a permit for the project that was seen as critical for it to proceed.

The company seeking to build the mine, the Pebble Limited Partnership, appealed that decision and is expected to challenge the legality of the Biden administration’s new plan to protect Bristol Bay.

CEO John Shively called it “ironic” that President Joe Biden has invoked the Defense Production Act to ramp up the mining and processing of minerals used in batteries for renewable energy and electric vehicles while stopping Pebble Mine. Those so-called “critical minerals” typically include nickel, lithium, cobalt, graphite, and manganese. Copper has not been listed as a critical mineral in executive orders issued during the Biden or the Trump administrations.