Mining supporters rail against Clean Water initiative
Published Thursday, April 3, 2008
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Pro-mining forces here are fanning out, talking to every trade group, civic organization and political party that will listen about an initiative they say could halt mining at the Fort Knox and Pogo gold mines.
The mining supporters are taking aim at the Alaska Clean Water Initiative, a ballot measure that targets the Pebble Project almost 700 miles away.
Supporters say the initiative tightens lax regulations where valuable salmon and drinking water streams are concerned.
But mining companies in the Interior think the initiative’s language is so broad that it could affect operations at the Fort Knox and Pogo mines, which provide hundreds of jobs in the Interior and sit on drainages to salmon spawning streams.
The head of a mining trade group presented her industry’s position Wednesday at the Fairbanks Princess Hotel at a meeting of another trade group, The Alliance, which is companies that do business with the mining industry. Lorna Shaw, executive director of the Council of Alaska Producers, has also made remarks before the Fairbanks chapter of the Republican party. More speaking engagements are to come.
Most worrisome to the mining industry is a section in the clean water initiative that calls for preventing “the release or discharge of toxic pollutants and other chemicals into waters of the state,” said Karl Hanneman, a manager at the Pogo mine and president of the Council of Alaska Producers.
“Current water quality standards do not prevent the release of any contaminants,” Hanneman said. “They control the release to manage them to acceptable levels.”
The initiative also bans pollutants that will “affect human health or welfare.” But it fails to detail what sort of effects, Hanneman said.
The initiative allows for a grandfather clause, excluding existing mines from the new regulations, but mine operators say they are constantly renewing permits and seeking new permits. They worry the grandfather clause would not shield them from the new regulations.
Art Hackney, spokesman for the Renewable Resources Coalition, said the backers of the initiative have no desire to shut down existing mines.
“That would only be the case if they are looking for permits, looking for expansion, if they were going to be putting at risk significant salmon spawning streams or streams used by humans for drinking water,” Hackney said. “Most of these mines don’t fall into that classification.”
But Pebble does. The proposed mine, thought to contain the largest deposit of gold in North America, would sit in the Bristol Bay watershed, home to the world’s most productive salmon fishery.
“It’s the last great fishery on the planet Earth,” Hackney said. “They can’t do it without causing problems. There aren’t regulations that deal with the sheer scope of this mine.”
Shaw is working closely with Cherry Patterson, Fairbanks coordinator for Alaskans Against the Mining Shutdown, and said defeating the clean water initiative is her No. 1 task. Both women began working in their respective jobs last week. Shaw formerly worked as the spokeswoman for Fort Knox.
“This isn’t about clean water,” Shaw said. “This is about defeating an industry in Alaska.”
The crowd of about 30 people at the Princess was sympathetic to Shaw’s case.
Jack Dimarchi, a mining consultant, said the initiative is poorly written.
“It looks like a couple of guys sat down over a beer and said, ‘Let’s write a law,’” he said. “It’s blatantly lacking in detail.”
Gary Swoffer, president of Denali Industrial Supply Inc., said almost half of his business is mining companies.
“I’m concerned for me and for the 18 people who work for me,” he said.
Shaw and a handful of others are also taking their case to Rotary clubs and chambers of commerce in Anchorage, Wasilla, Eagle River, Big Lake, Nikiski, Juneau, Bethel and Ketchikan.
They are on a waiting list to rent space for a booth at the Fairbanks Outdoor Show. The general manger at the Fort Knox mine is scheduled to address the Greater Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce about the initiative on Apr. 29.
Shaw said it won’t be clear until June whether a clean water initiative will appear on the August ballot. But the mining industry did not want to wait until June, two months before a possible vote, to launch its campaign.
“I think it’s important to get the message to every Alaskan,” Shaw said.
Community Discussion
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I'm glad that this article made it clear that Lorna Shaw, the ED of the Council of Alaska Producers is the former spokesperson for Ft. Knox. I hope that this is not a conflict of interest anymore.
I'm interested in knowing if either side is willing to compromise here. Would the Renewable Resource Coalition be willing to re-word the Clean Water Initiative? Would the Council of Alaska Producers entertain the possibility of adopting tighter regulations--proactively--maybe for the sake of good PR?
So why do people insist on bypassing the current regulations? Is anyone out there even aware of the real motivations of the person leading the charge on the Renewable Resource Coalition? Go look. The primary financial backer is a lodge owner in the Bristol Bay area. Talk about a conflict of interest! Its really not about mining at all. It's about protecting his business venture fronting as a concerned environmental group.
Remember the problems POGO ran into with getting their permits passed through a very tough permitting process? I wonder the wisdom in bypassing those already tested scientific methods and rewording them to suit ones own personal agenda? Where's their scientific proof that the existing regulations are insufficient? Why must there be any comrpomise for the sake of good PR?
I think this is bad legislation and until they can come up with solid data to support their logic, I think we should not be moving forward with any additional regulations of an industry that is already heavily regulated.
Heavily regulated or not, people still have concerns about the mining. It just seems as though the industry would get a lot farther with their naysayers by demonstrating that they're willing to go above and beyond the current regulations. I think that would do a lot more for their image than putting a granite boulder in front of the food bank.
Mining is a huge part of Alaska and certainly has a place for a lot of reasons. I think Pebble and Donlin should be developed and those mines in production should probably stay in production. But I don't disagree with anyone who is calling for development and production to take place responsibly. There are questionable tactics being utilized by both sides here. It would save a lot of time and money if both parties could cut all of that out and make an earnest effort to listen to what the other guy is saying. The bottom line being the bottom line, I wonder if that is even possible.
Because of current regulation, mining is the cleanest business in Alaska. Don't believe it? Go compare what a mine must do before it can discharge "waste" water to what comes down the pipe to your kitchen. Need more conviencing? Find documentation of a fish ever being harmed by mining in Alaska and then ask, 'Why can the pollock fishery waste half of the entire Yukon River run'? Still don't get it? Go down to the Chena River and watch what is coming out of all those drainage pipes this spring and wonder, 'Is that good for salmon'?
The 'Clean Water Initiative' is what it is, one fat, rich man's land grab of all of S.W. Alaska.
Please, by all means, make Bob Gilliam's dreams come true, vote for the 'clean water initiatives' and all hail King Gilliam.
Or, do the right thing and don't vote for the initiatives and send a loud and clear message to Gilliam and his cronies, 'No, you can't buy Alaska with nothing more than slick, shoddy advertising.
Mining also put over 10,000 pounds of cheese in the Food Bank saving the Alaska Maid dairy in the process.
"WASILLA, Alaska (AP) - Three gold mining companies have purchased $75,000-worth of cheese from dairy farmers in the Matanuska Susitna region.
NovaGold Resources, Barrick Gold Corp. and Fairbanks Gold Mining Inc. each recently wrote a $25,000 check to the Alaska Farmers and Stockgrowers Inc. for 10,500 pounds of cheese made from local milk.
The money is helping a new dairy near Palmer get off the ground.
It's also projected to assist dairy farmers who have been without a market for most of their milk since the Matanuska Maid Dairy shut down in mid-December.
Beus said the cheese the companies purchased will, in turn, be donated to charities of the companies’ choosing. In a prepared release, Alaska Farmers and Stockgrowers Inc. lays out its plan for the cheese futures".
Has Bob Gilliam Helped anybody lately, other than himself?
https://www.againsttheshutdown.com/go.cf...
This is the link to join the Alaskans Against the Mining Shutdown.
I joined the coalition, and I am proud to say that my family's income relies directly upon mining here in the state. Poeple also don't realize that the clean water initiative doesn't single out Usibelli coal mine, which provides most of the coal used to fuel this town's electricity. You think your surcharge is high now for your electricity bill, imagine if Usibelli was shut down due to this poorly written bill.
The soci-ecos haven't bankrupt this country yet but they are sure trying. Can't mine, can't log, can't drill for oil, can't build new refinaries, or power plants.
Don't know why anybody pays them any attention or votes them into political office.
O.K Time for a lesson in logic. Households like Businesses require money to exist. Not money that is doled out from well meaning Philanthropists or Government subsidies, But, Earned money for value added goods and services. From this action Businesses attract money if the market will accept their platform. Henceforth, allowing them to pay out wages to employees to further the Tax base and support other Businesses. Free enterprise is exactly that! The government has a record of destroying or discouraging business through "well meaning regulation" proposed by inexperienced stuffed shirts whom want to usurp the management of a small business that they couldn't have started themselves. I prefer to refer to it as "Intrusive Overbearing Barriers to Entry" and in many cases regulation strives to force those who have less staying power out of the market all together. Regulation is not the answer. Responsible stewardship of our resources is. So shut down or No shut down, Regulation is not the right answer!
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