Post should have taken a deeper look at EPA, Bristol Bay and Pebble

Robert Heyano, president of United Tribes of Bristol Bay responds to the Washington Post's recent story on the proposed Pebble Mine.

The Post’s article intimates that the battle over Pebble began with a tribal petition to EPA requesting that it use its authority under the Clean Water Act to prohibit mining in the Bristol Bay watershed. In doing so, the article misses the key reason the tribes submitted the petition in the first place.

LINK (via: Alaska Dispatch News)

EPA becomes target by planning for rare ‘veto’

Photo: Courtesy of the EPA

The Washington Post's Joby Warrick does some heavy lifting for those opposing the EPA's action on the Pebble Mine.

The EPA is doing its job.

Here is the language of section 404c for Mr. Warrick's reference.

The Clean Water Act authorizes the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) (Section 404(a)) or an approved state (Section 404(h)) to issue  permits for discharges of dredged or fill material at specified sites in waters of the United States. Section 404(c), however, authorizes EPA to restrict, prohibit, deny, or withdraw the use of an area as a disposal site for dredged or fill material if the discharge will have unacceptable adverse effects on municipal water supplies, shellfish beds and fishery areas, wildlife, or recreational areas.

In his article Mr. Warrick falsley states that 404c is a "tactic" that has not been employed in 40 years.

According to the EPA in 2008 they initiated 404c actions on the Yazoo Pumps flood control project in Mississippi and then again in 2009 on the Spruce Mountain Coal Mine #1 in West Virginia. Now I'm no reporter but a simple Google search might have helped Mr. Warrick get his facts straight.

LINK

This fight is far from over folks.

Xboundary

An open-pit mining boom is underway in northern British Columbia, Canada. The massive size and location of the mines--at the headwaters of major salmon rivers that flow across the border into Alaska--has Alaskans concerned over pollution risks posed to their multi-billion dollar fishing and tourism industries. These concerns were heightened with the Aug 4, 2014 catastrophic tailings dam failure at nearby Mt. Polley Mine in BC's Fraser River watershed.

Take action to help protect our rivers, jobs, and way of life, at salmonbeyondborders.org.

What a disappointment

Patagonia Fly Fishing Ambassador Dylan Tomine with a report from the recent Hatchery vs Wild Symposium put on by the American Fisheries Society.

I went down to Portland to check out the Hatchery vs Wild Salmonid Symposium put on by the American Fisheries Society. Given the title, and AFS’ history of fish conservation work (including endorsement of Snake River dam removal) I figured it would be a relatively balanced examination of the science around this issue. What a disappointment.

LINK

How Storm-water Is Threatening the Puget Sound’s Fragile Ecosystem

Many experts say that storm-water, the toxic mix of dirt and contaminants that rain picks up as it flows across city streets, has never been sufficiently regulated under the Clean Water Act. And as the population of the Seattle area has boomed, storm-water has become the number one source of toxins in the Puget Sound.

Bruce Babbitt blasts Utah’s land transfer plan

Former Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt was the guest speaker at last week's Outdoor Retailer Industry Breakfast. Babitt took the opportunity to blast Utah Governor Gary Herbert's campaign to force the handover of 31 million acres of public lands. Utah leaders have set aside $2 million for the fight and plan to hire a private legal firm to push the issue.

LINK (via: The Salt Lake Tribune)