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Alaska votes to restrict large mine
The Hill ^ | 11/05/2014 | Timothy Cama

Posted on 11/05/2014 9:37:30 PM PST by balch3

Alaska voters approved a ballot measure aimed at adding a hurdle to the potential development of a major copper and gold mine.

The measure requires the state’s legislature to approve any proposed mining project in the Bristol Bay watershed. It targets the Pebble Mine, a planned copper and gold mine that would be the largest of its kind in the world.

Environmentalists, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and some Alaska native tribes want to stop the mine due to its potential impact on wildlife in Bristol Bay and the watershed, including a massive salmon population.

Sixty-five percent of voters approved of the proposed restriction, compared with 35 percent opposing, Alaska Dispatch News reported.

The measure could be moot, since the EPA has proposed restrictions on the mine that would effectively block its development. Northern Dynasty Minerals, Pebble’s developer, is working on legislative and judicial fronts to challenge the EPA’s decision.

In addition, independent gubernatorial candidate Bill Walker opposes the mine. The race had not been called as of Wednesday, but Walker leads current Gov. Sean Parnell (R) in votes.


TOPICS: Front Page News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; US: Alaska
KEYWORDS: 2014election; alaska; dansullivan; election; election2014; markbegich; mine; politics; sarahpalin
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A victory for environmental whackos in the same election that swept the GOP to majority. On this day of historic conservative vindication, there was a disturbing progressive undercurrent-successful minimum wage ballot initiatives, the continuing trend of drug legalization, this measure, and another one banning GMO crops in Hawaii.
1 posted on 11/05/2014 9:37:30 PM PST by balch3
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To: balch3

The GMO thing. I’m not really a fan of GMO, but there were some articles a while back about how pretty much every crop on earth now has tested positive for GMO ‘cross pollination” or whatever term they used...basically meaning it’s all GMO to some degree.

Horse/barn door.


2 posted on 11/05/2014 9:44:44 PM PST by Norm Lenhart (Feet to the fire folks. YOU PROMISED!)
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To: balch3

Who needs more jobs when you can just sit around and smoke dope now?


3 posted on 11/05/2014 9:45:42 PM PST by Jagdgewehr (It will take blood.)
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To: balch3
Most Alaskans, including Repubs oppose mineral development if the developers refuse to guarantee to not walkout if something goes south and destroys the local environment; gold mines are notorious for such actions. Kinda like back east when strip miners would forfeit the small bond rather than recover the land destroyed. Here in Alaska, Pebble is in the biggest salmon watershed in Alaska. Too many locals depend on the fish to survive. Alaskan ain't enviro whackos just live in a special place that hasn't been destroyed like in lower 48. The pot thing, I can't figure either. But then I live in a community where we have never had any police. Nearest State Troopers are over 200 miles away and our dirt highway is closed, 10 foot of snow on summits.Can you envision how much freedom exists when you live in a community that doesn't have any prop taxes,laws about this and that, and no police to enforce anything; real freedom

Some environmental choices are too important to play around with over a few hundred jobs for 30 years.

4 posted on 11/05/2014 9:57:12 PM PST by Eska
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To: Eska
Alaskan ain't enviro whackos just live in a special place that hasn't been destroyed like in lower 48.

Well said and makes me homesick!

5 posted on 11/05/2014 10:04:07 PM PST by knak (The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing)
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To: Eska

Ok, that makes sense. A key part of capitalism is that businesses must be held accountable when they are negligent or damage private/public property.


6 posted on 11/05/2014 10:06:49 PM PST by LS ('Castles made of sand, fall in the sea . . . eventually.' Hendrix)
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To: balch3

The hoopla about “GM” Crops is a bunch of luddite BS. Libs would prefer people starve to death.


7 posted on 11/05/2014 10:14:56 PM PST by Impy (Choke on it dems, your tears are delicious)
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To: balch3

“Environmentalists, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and some Alaska native tribes want to stop the mine...”

It’s always the same: stop development but give me funds in taxpayer revenues for my own, little games.

Money for me, but not for thee.

If bullsh*t were bullion, the streets of the world would be paved with gold.


8 posted on 11/05/2014 10:25:34 PM PST by Jack Hammer
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To: balch3

I swear, some of my fellow conservatives are just like the knee-jerk liberals we laugh at. Just take a few minutes and research tailing ponds failures. Just building this mine will destroy a huge amount of salmon spawning grounds. These tailing ponds that contain millions of gallons of basically battery acid has to survive forever without leaking which is impossible. There will be breaches which will destroy Bristol Bay fishing. Mount Polley Mine Dam failure in Canada is the most recent example. I hate the EPA but on this I’m with them.


9 posted on 11/05/2014 10:31:37 PM PST by ParityErr (It's impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.)
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To: balch3

Environmentalists and the EPA, blocking development for far too long.


10 posted on 11/05/2014 10:33:05 PM PST by wastedyears (I may be stupid, but at least I'm not Darwin Awards stupid.)
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To: knak

Pebble will never happen, just plain wrong way to go and everybody has known it for the last 5 years.


11 posted on 11/05/2014 10:41:20 PM PST by Eska
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To: Eska

You give control of your lands to the EPA in washington DC.

you all really trust government don’t you?

An EPA that says global warming is the biggest threat to the world when actually global warming is a hoax.


12 posted on 11/05/2014 10:50:34 PM PST by Democrat_media (call Congress 202-224-3121 to stop Obama's executive order for Amnesty for illegals)
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To: balch3
A victory for environmental whackos in the same election that swept the GOP to majority.

Correction: A demonstration of democracy. It was put to a vote.

13 posted on 11/05/2014 11:28:26 PM PST by gunsequalfreedom (Conservative is not a label of convenience. It is a guide to your actions.)
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To: Norm Lenhart
The GMO thing. I’m not really a fan of GMO, but there were some articles a while back about how pretty much every crop on earth now has tested positive for GMO ‘cross pollination” or whatever term they used...basically meaning it’s all GMO to some degree.

Does that mean all those crops now need to pay a royalty to Monsanto?

14 posted on 11/05/2014 11:29:14 PM PST by gunsequalfreedom (Conservative is not a label of convenience. It is a guide to your actions.)
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To: ParityErr

I’m with you.


15 posted on 11/05/2014 11:30:22 PM PST by gunsequalfreedom (Conservative is not a label of convenience. It is a guide to your actions.)
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To: Democrat_media
You guys ought to wake up to what Pebble is all about rather than delude yourselves into believing it's something different. I've called Alaska home for 20 years and understand well enough what it's all about.

I've been on FR since 1996, I sometimes wonder about the new comers?

16 posted on 11/05/2014 11:46:46 PM PST by Eska
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To: balch3

Not really. Any mine of the sort proposed has a huge chance of wiping out the Bristol Bay sockeye runs (the largest in the world) or at best severely reducing them.

Beyond that, there is also a possibility of reducing the crab population (Opilio, King, etc) in the Bay and Bering Sea. The dead salmon help supply the nutrients the entire ecosystem needs to maintain the abundant marine life and livelihoods of many Alaskans. Wave good bye to Pollock (fish sticks), Hake (artificial crab), Halibut, and True Cod. These are multibillion dollar fisheries, as well as supplying a large portion of the fish in the nation’s grocery stores.

No relatively transient mine will replace the lost food sources, income, or jobs over the long term. The Bay and Bering fisheries also help the US Balance of Trade

Its a battle between food and metals - and you cannot eat metal. More metal or more food - the voters clearly saw this choice and voted for food.


17 posted on 11/06/2014 3:04:35 AM PST by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now it is your turn ...)
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To: Eska

Dont post your liberal clap trap here on FR!! Everyone here knows that mining is a perfectly safe and environmentally friendly endeavor!! With no impacts whatsoever!!!


18 posted on 11/06/2014 3:07:14 AM PST by wyowolf
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To: Eska

Well...

My neck of the woods (literally) has seen much mining in the past. One of my family’s favorite camping / fishing spots was once the site of major salt works (plural). Other parks and reserves are former strip mine locations. My Dad was heavily involved in research and projects to reclaim strip mined land. For example:

http://www.illinoismuskies.com/Pyramid.pdf

On fact, one present “problem” is that the State has so much park land in the area that due to low usage (per acre) they can’t afford to maintain it all. There have been rumblings that the largest park might be closed. (One problem is that so few people seem to know it exists — or maybe they are all “absorbed” by social media these days...?)

At any rate, altered is not necessarily “destroyed”, and “destruction” is often temporary. Sometimes what follows is actually better. However, mining must be done with a modicum of sense, and there I would agree with you. In this region, no mining that I know of has been done since the 1960’s without the mining company doing a pretty good job of restoration — obviously because they were required to. In the case of a major fishery, even more care should be taken, as that affects a lot more people than just the fishermen.


19 posted on 11/06/2014 4:03:28 AM PST by Paul R. (Leftists desire to control everything; In the end they invariably control nothing worth a damn.)
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To: balch3

Reasonable environmental protections are necessary in the case of mining operations: The question is what is reasonable in each instance. However, the successful minimum wage initiatives, etc., are worrisome, as a mere “anti-incumbent” mood at best only slows the “progressives” slightly. Illinois, for example, also passed a “Millionaire’s Tax” initiative. Fortunately, at least in the near future, that one will likely be blocked by governor-elect Rauner, but in the long run, one can just “see” the moneyed citizens leaving. Why stay in Illinois? IL will be lucky to have any jobs outside the Gov’t that are not minimum wage jobs...


20 posted on 11/06/2014 4:23:02 AM PST by Paul R. (Leftists desire to control everything; In the end they invariably control nothing worth a damn.)
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