Anchorage, AK -- The Pebble Partnership recently filed a Request for Appeal (RFA) of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Record of Decision (ROD) on the Pebble Project. The RFA was submitted to the USACE Division Engineer. PLP CEO John Shively had the following statement about the RFA:
“Following the decision by the USACE to issue a negative ROD for the Pebble Project, our team did a comprehensive review of the USACE documentation supporting their position. One thing became abundantly clear to us and that is the conclusions reached in the ROD are not supported by the record established in the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the project. The ROD also made it clear that the negative decision was rushed. The USACE rejected our Compensatory Mitigation Plan (CMP) a mere five days after it was received and without giving us an opportunity to address any of the issues listed, which showed that it was never given fair consideration. Additionally, there were several federal and state documents that were not complete before the ROD was issued.
“The ROD abandoned decades of precedent in how wetlands and resource projects in Alaska should be managed and regulated. We believe we have presented a strong case in our appeal and look forward the next steps in advancing this important mineral asset. Pebble contains a world-class resource that belongs to the people of Alaska and could bring much needed employment and economic activity for the region and the state. The FEIS found that the project can be developed without damage to the Bristol Bay fishery, a finding that was mostly ignored in the decision to deny Pebble a permit.”