Yesterday's Ad in Politico

For those of you not familiar with Politico, it is a D.C. based multi media publication that political wonks of all stripes read everyday.

Parker said the decisions "border on scandalous."

This could get interesting.

Legal settlment with State could effect Pebble Mine

The Alaska natural resources department will have to justify its rationale for how it re-designated land use in the Bristol Bay region nearly a decade ago, a process that could have ramifications for the proposed Pebble Mine.

An agreement in a 2009 case brought by tribes, Trout Unlimited and fishermen calls on the department to make revisions to its 2005 land use plan. Plaintiffs' attorney Geoffrey Parker said Wednesday that the plan -- drafted as interest in the massive gold and copper prospect near the headwaters of one of the world's premier salmon fisheries was heating up -- eliminated more than 90 percent of prior inland habitat classifications in the region, with a tilt toward mining.

LINK (via: Alaska Daiy News)

Pebble is strategic. It can and will be permitted.

The headline is a direct quote from page 29 of Northern Dynasty's September 2012 presentation on the Pebble Mine.

LINK (PDF)

What I really think of the Pebble Mine

(via: Rides and Rivers)

A Response from TU Colorado (with Chum response)

Hey guys,

I would like to respond to your unreasonable attack and accusations against the Boulder Flycasters, the local chapter of Trout Unlimited in Boulder, Colorado, and one of the most celebrated chapters in our state, maybe even the country.

First, for the record, I am a Moldy Chum fan – I have your stickers (just bought a new set a few weeks ago, in fact), ball caps, and t-shirts that I wear with pride, and have for years. I have your website posts in my RSS feed, so I see your content served fresh, daily. Even have one of your old fly stickers on the back of my truck. In fact, I am one of your “Reel Purists” on the Reel Pure website. I appreciate your quirky and off-the-cuff comments and posts, and of course the fishing stuff is great.

But when I saw your post this morning blasting the Boulder Flycasters for their invitation to the Keystone Group to speak at their chapter meeting about the Pebble Mine, I could not believe my eyes. It was a “WTF” moment and quite frankly, was so out of line that I was hoping it was just a snarky quip about Pebble. As the morning wore on, I realized that was not the case.

Let me make this perfectly clear…

We steadfastly support protection of Bristol Bay, and feel that the best way to assure that is to not develop the Pebble Mine. Trout Unlimited is THE LEADER when it comes to the protection of this amazing and precious place. Colorado Trout Unlimited, and its 23 chapter’s state wide, has signed on in allegiance with National Trout Unlimited in support of the efforts to stop this mine in its tracks. We have participated in that effort in a number of very substantial ways. We have hosted an array of fundraisers, petition drives, events, movie showings and premiers, and have even had members and journalists go to Bristol Bay to see the site and participate in this process. Some of these events have been held in Boulder, hosted by the Boulder Flycasters.

That said, we think it is a good thing to hear different perspectives and get a wide range of information into the hands of our members and the public. Indeed, one of the worst problems plaguing our nation's dialogue on many controversial issues is THE REFUSAL TO LISTEN to others with whom we disagree and instead to retreat into our own echo chambers. We happen to believe that civil dialogue and exchange of ideas and information is a good thing, and helps individuals make more informed decisions. The fact that we will be hearing other points of view from a Keystone mediator funded through Pebble Mine does not in any way change our values or our commitment to the protection of Bristol Bay's wild salmon - it just means we want to understand all the different perspectives.

Trout Unlimited is a moderate, open-minded, and balanced organization. In few cases do we just flat say no. But this time, if you look at our record and our actions across the country on this issue, that is exactly what we have done. Just because we are willing to listen to the other side of the argument does not mean that we are weak or are caving, it means that we are mature enough to listen and engage.

The Boulder Flycasters are one of the most celebrated chapters in the state of Colorado – most recently for their significant local stream restoration efforts (costing hundreds of thousands of dollars and thousands of volunteer man-hours). They also have award-winning youth education and communications programs.

Instead of being condescending and negative towards a very dedicated group of volunteers, I would like to invite you to come to Colorado sometime, roll up your sleeves and participate in some of the great volunteer work that is being done here to conserve, protect, and restore Colorado’s coldwater fisheries…work that is being done to provide healthy places for you and others to fish, float, contemplate, and make money, together, in this amazing place.

Sincerely,

Sinjin Eberle, President
Colorado Trout Unlimited

Hi Sinjin,

Perhaps the utter bullshit adjective was a bit strong. In retrospect - "does not pass the smell test" might have been a little less emotionally charged.

This is simply a case of us questioning the logic behind inviting Keystone (arguably a pro Pebble Mine group hiding behind the guise of fair and balanced) to a function hosted by a chapter of TU. It was never our intent to "attack" the integrity, work, or reputation of the Boulder Fly Casters - or question their position on Pebble. Over the years we have proudly supported the efforts of TU (support that goes well beyond the pages of the Chum).

As you know, we have never been afraid to call it like we see it and we'll never buy the "both sides of the argument" defense when it comes to Pebble. No offense, but there is absolutely nothing to be open minded about when it comes to what's at stake in Bristol Bay.

Thanks for taking the time to respond.

Earth to Boulder Fly Casters

From the Boulder Fly Casters

The Pebble deposit is a massive storehouse of gold, copper and molybdemum, located in the headwaters of the Kvichak and Nushagak Rivers, two of the eight major rivers that feed Bristol Bay. If built, Pebble would be one of the largest mines in the world. Because of its size, geochemistry and location, Pebble runs a risk of polluting Bristol Bay, one of the world’s few and most productive wild salmon strongholds that supports a $500 million commercial and sport fishery.

Our speaker on September 27 will be Todd Bryan, of the Keystone Center, who is heavily involved in the Pebble Mine proposal as a facilitator and mediator.  He will present perspectives on both sides of the issue and will have recently returned from his work in Alaska.

From Ground Truth Trekking:

In 2007, the Pebble Limited Partnership (PLP) brought the Keystone Center, an organization that specializes in convening stakeholder dialogues, into the discussion about the proposed Pebble Mine in southwest Alaska. The Center is currently developing a multi-stage dialogue designed to identify and discuss issues concerning potential development of the mine, particularly relating to public evaluation of PLP baseline data.  Some opponents of the mine have raised concerns about the neutrality of the process since the Center was hired by the mining company. Additionally, some people feel that there has been insufficient consideration in the dialogue of the "no mine" option.

Translation? Keystone Center is a bought and paid for sham for the Pebble Partnership.

Shame on the Boulder Fly Casters, a TU chapter, for inviting Keystone in when they could turn to TU to speak about the issue. Keystone is just an attempt to distract folks from the real process going on with EPA - which is fair and independent science.

There is no compromise on the Pebble Mine, period. It is utter bullshit for a chapter of TU to entertain a speaker who says there is an argument to made for the mine.