The Biden administration blocked a major gold and copper mine from advancing in Alaska after determining it would have detrimental effects on Bristol Bay, home to world-class salmon fisheries.
The decision is a victory for conservationists and salmon fishers but will also diminish the supply of the kinds of minerals that will need to be produced in massive quantities for the build-out of clean energy and electric vehicles envisioned like Democrats.
The Environmental Protection Agency announced Tuesday it rejected developers’ 2020 plan to establish the Pebble Mine by prohibiting the routine discharge of dredged or fill material in nearby watersheds as was provided in the mine plan. EPA’s final determination, which was made using authorities under the Clean Water Act, extends the prohibition to any similar mine plan that would seek to exploit the reserves in the broader Pebble mineral deposit.
INTERIOR BLOCKS LEASING IN NORTHERN MINNESOTA, THREATENING TWIN METALS MINE
The proposed project would lead to a permanent loss of some 8 1/2 miles of salmon streams, as well as supporting streams and 2,100 acres of wetlands and other waters, said EPA Assistant Administrator for Water Radhika Fox.
“After reviewing the extensive scientific and technical record spanning two decades, EPA has determined that specific discharges associated with developing the Pebble deposit will have unacceptable and adverse effects on certain salmon fishery areas in the Bristol Bay watershed,” Fox said.
Pebble Mine’s developers could develop a separate project and propose it to the Army Corps of Engineers, which, along with EPA, is charged with implementing permitting under the Clean Water Act, so long as it doesn’t have “similar” impacts to its current proposal for the mine, according to Fox.
“This is about a specific sized project in this geography that has significant adverse impacts on such a critical ecosystem,” she said.
The Biden EPA expressed its intent to block the Pebble Mine from advancing in a September 2021 court filing, keeping with a pledge President Joe Biden made on the campaign trail to do so, and the agency in December recommended the Clean Water Act determination that was ultimately finalized Tuesday.
Pebble Mine’s development plan had failed to pass muster during the Trump administration already, with the Army Corps declining in November 2020 to issue necessary water permits after determining the mine’s plan “for the discharge of fill material does not comply with Clean Water Act guidelines.”
Bristol Bay is the world’s most productive wild salmon ecosystem, according to EPA, and mineral development there had wider opposition than some other big-name mining projects. Donald Trump Jr. came out against the mine in August 2020, saying Bristol Bay “and the surrounding fishery are too unique and fragile to take chances with.”
The Biden administration is under pressure to fast-track more mining projects to support the “green transition,” a term referring to the economic initiative to shift from fossil fuel energy to cleaner sources. Minerals like copper, nickel, and lithium are integral inputs in those cleaner generating sources, such as wind turbines and their generators.
At the same time, mining projects frequently face challenges from environmental groups over their effects on landscapes or wildlife, and the administration has acted on those concerns in some cases by blocking projects whose proponents insist are necessary if Biden is to meet his climate policy goals.
The Interior Department just announced the withdrawal of more than 225,000 acres of federal land in northern Minnesota from consideration for mineral leasing over concerns that mining there would pollute the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness.
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Developers of the Twin Metals mining project sought to mine the area for nickel and cobalt, both of which are inputs in many electric vehicle battery designs, as well as other metals.
