Sen. Mark Begich cautiously weighed in on the revised draft in a Friday statement

Alaska Senator Mark Begich certainly is a fierce advocate for wild salmon stocks when it comes to the threat posed by genetically modified salmon

“Alaska has been supplying the world with nutritious salmon for decades,” Begich said. “We cannot afford to experiment with the world’s largest wild salmon stocks without the certainty that these fake fish won’t pose a serious environmental risk, especially to wild salmon and their habitat. I am introducing these bills to prevent against science experiments ending up on the plates of Alaska families.”

His fierce advocacy for wild salmon suddenly wanes when it comes to the latest EPA findings that the Pebble Mine would destroy 90 miles of streams and up to 4,800 acres of wetland salmon habitat.

“While I remain opposed to a pre-emptive veto of this or any other project, an open, public process that answers Alaskans’ questions and puts better science on the table is a good thing. I look forward to reviewing this assessment and hope it answers questions about whether this project can meet the high hurdle of developing a large-scale mine while protecting our renewable resources.”