Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency <\/span>announced its intent<\/span><\/a> to reinstate proposed protections for the watersheds of Alaska\u2019s Bristol Bay, a significant turn of events that could prevent the proposed Pebble Mine from devastating North America\u2019s best salmon stronghold.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis is a very positive move by EPA today\u2014one that puts us a step closer to significant protections for Bristol Bay,\u201d says Guido Rahr, CEO of Wild Salmon Center. \u201cThe Nushagak and Kvichak rivers are two of the world\u2019s most important salmon strongholds. Toxic mining in their headwaters\u2014and the possibility of a toxic spill there\u2014would present a permanent threat to their productivity. It\u2019s now time for EPA to follow the science and act without delay in protecting these rivers and the Bristol Bay fishery from this threat.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n Under the Clean Water Act, EPA has the authority to veto a permit for development projects like Pebble Mine and restrict or prohibit mining entirely to protect drinking water, fish and wildlife habitat, and recreation. This authority has been used 13 times since the Clean Water Act was passed in 1972, most frequently during the Reagan Administration, which vetoed six projects in the mid- to late-1980s. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n Under the Obama Administration, EPA developed Clean Water Act protections for Bristol Bay and nearly finalized them in 2014. But a lawsuit by the developers of Pebble Mine stalled the protections and the EPA under the Trump Administration moved to reverse them completely. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n Today\u2019s decision by the Biden Administration\u2019s EPA will eventually reopen the Clean Water Act protection process. However, that doesn\u2019t mean the region\u2019s important salmon and trout runs are guaranteed protection. Wild Salmon Center, together with our coalition of Tribal, business, nonprofit, and community organizations in the Bristol Bay Defense Fund, will be working to supply the scientific evidence and rally the public\u2019s support for putting the headwaters of the region\u2019s most productive rivers off limits to hard rock mining.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n Today\u2019s decision by the Biden Administration\u2019s EPA will eventually reopen the Clean Water Act protection process. However, that doesn\u2019t mean the region\u2019s important salmon and trout runs are guaranteed protection.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Regardless, EPA\u2019s action today is a hopeful sign that the agency is again committed to following science. It comes just over one year since then-candidate Biden committed to protect Bristol Bay.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n It also comes on the heels of Bristol Bay\u2019s most productive fishing season in history, with more than 65 million sockeye returning to the region\u2019s rivers. A new economic analysis places <\/span>the value of the Bristol Bay fishery at $2.2 billion<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n Throughout this summer, the Bristol Bay Defense Fund and its partners, led by United Tribes of Bristol Bay, have urged the Biden Administration to \u201cFinish the Job\u201d on Clean Water Act protections. The agency’s announcement comes after reams of letters and prominent ad campaigns requesting action from Tribes, sport and commercial fishermen, international fishing brands, seafood businesses, conservation groups, and others. EPA\u2019s action is a critical part of BBDF\u2019s campaign strategy to win permanent protection. BBDF is also working to pass Congressional legislation that would further codify protections for this special place.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n The Tribal-led fight to protect Bristol Bay began more than a decade ago in response to the proposed Pebble Mine located at the Bay\u2019s headwaters. Pebble Mine would be the largest open-pit mine in North America, producing more than 10 billion tons of toxic waste that will remain there forever. Although the company failed to earn a key permit from the Army Corps of Engineers last year<\/a>, Northern Dynasty Minerals CEO Ron Thiessen\u2014the head of the company behind the Pebble Mine proposal\u2014recently said \u201cwe have by no means given up on this project\u201d amid bipartisan public opposition. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n EPA\u2019s action today provides hope that this threat will not loom over the region indefinitely. Let\u2019s celebrate this step in the right direction. And stay tuned for more as the Clean Water Act protection process continues. <\/span><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/wildsalmoncenter.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/AK-BB-NushagakR-Ryan-Peterson-1500.jpg\")
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