A funny thing happens to the “Magna Carta of environmental law” – a term coined by the environmental zealots at the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) to describe the NEPA process – when it comes to the proposed Pebble Mine in southwest Alaska. The process – around since 1969 – outlines the steps development projects must undertake in order to have a thorough review of potential environmental impacts.  Since its creation, over 160 countries have followed suit, creating their own review processes based on the NEPA standards.  Every major and minor development project undertaken in the past 50 years has…

A 2014 Obama-era decision to all but halt the Pebble Mine project in Southwest Alaska was overturned on Tuesday morning. The “Proposed Determination” ordered by the Environmental Protection Agency was hailed by environmentalists at the time as ground-breaking and necessary to stop a mine that allegedly would threaten Bristol Bay salmon runs.  However, others called it an extreme overreach by a government agency, since this was the first time a proposed determination under section 404(c) of the Clean Water Act had been issued in the 45-year history of the NEPA process. The Pebble Partnership’s CEO, Tom Collier, issued the following…

With the world seemingly succumbing to the Eco-Left’s ideology that renewable energy sources need to be prioritized moving forward, the issue of how to create enough storage capacity is becoming a high-priority discussion. Recently, Tesla noted that they may be facing significant shortages of copper, lithium and nickel for their electric vehicles. The U.S. Government listened to Tesla and others, and Alaska Senators Murkowski and Sullivan, along with West Virginia Senator Manchin and Arizona Senator McSalley introduced the “American Mineral Security Act”.  That act would, per the sponsor statement, ”facilitate the availability, development and environmentally responsible production of domestic resources…

If you were one of the thousand or so people who showed up to the Dena’ina Center in Anchorage on April 16th, you saw and heard two very distinct groups of people testify during the public hearing on the Pebble Project’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). From one group, you observed testimony, complete with tears and pleas to cancel the process. Their testimony was grounded in emotion, not facts. Their feelings towards bears and salmon – which won’t actually be harmed by the project – outweighed their concerns towards their fellow Alaskans who desire work. From the other group, you…

Homer, Alaska is a beautiful town on the southern end of the Kenai Peninsula.  It is a town built on fishing and tourism, and a town that recently had three of its city council members face a recall over an anti-Trump, pro-sanctuary city resolution. On April 11th, Homer High School was the location for the town’s opportunity to provide input on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for the proposed Pebble Mine.  With extreme environmental groups – including Cook Inletkeeperand Save Bristol Bay– advertising a rally to oppose the DEIS and Pebble’s plans, the general consensus…