Pebble Partnership CEO Tom Collier issued the following statement to the announcement from Governor Walker seeking to suspend the federal National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process being administered by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

PLP CEO Tom Collier issued the following statement regarding the announcement today from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: “The settlement of our litigation with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced last May gave us the right to fully participate in a normal, lawful permitting process under the Clean Water Act with a thorough review by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE). In today’s announcement EPA confirmed this critical point and the news does not change our approach.”

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) today published a notification that the permit application submitted by the Pebble Limited Partnership (PLP) has been accepted. This formally begins the permitting process under the rigorous National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process and other permitting efforts associated with the project.

The Pebble Partnership announced today that it notified the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) that it would submit its permit application to the agency on Friday December 22, 2017. This action will initiate the thorough project review process prescribed under the National Environmental Policy Act.

The Pebble Partnership announced today that long time Alaskan and retired Major General Mark Hamilton will join the project as Executive Vice President of External Affairs. Hamilton is also President Emeritus of the University of Alaska.

The Pebble Partnership announced today that Stephen Hodgson will join the project as Senior Vice President of Engineering & Project Director and James Fueg will join the project as Vice President of Permitting. Pebble CEO Tom Collier said these are key senior technical positions that will help lead the project to and through the environmental permitting process.

The EPA is seeking public comments on its decision to withdraw its unprecedented preemptive Proposed Determination against the Pebble Project.  Comments must be received on or before October 17, 2017.  Information about commenting is included at the end of this document.

The Pebble Partnership welcomed today’s announcement from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that it has initiated steps to withdraw its Proposed Determination restricting development at the Pebble Project. PLP CEO Tom Collier had the following statement regarding the announcement.

The Pebble Limited Partnership today announced an agreement to resolve the long-standing preemptive actions by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) against the project. The resolution effectively ends the litigation and establishes a clear path for the Pebble Project to initiate permitting under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

On January 30, 2015, the independent panel investigating the Mt. Polley tailings embankment failure in British Columbia, Canada released its final report and recommendations.

On July 18th, the EPA opened a 60-day public comment period soliciting input about their intention to preemptively place restrictions on development of a mine at Pebble – before a single permit has been sought for the project.

The Pebble Limited Partnership issued the following statement regarding a decision in Alaska Superior Court upholding the legal claims raised by PLP and the State of Alaska regarding the legality and constitutionality of the so-called Save Our Salmon Initiative from 2011.

The Pebble Partnership today announced that Pebble CEO John Shively will assume the role of Chairman of the Board of Directors for the Pebble Project—a move that allows Shively to be a part of the strategic leadership team for advancing the project. With this move, PLP will appoint Tom Collier to the position of CEO for the company.

PLP issued the following statement regarding the announcement by U.S. Senator Mark Begich that he has come out against the Pebble Project.

The Pebble Partnership is committed to working with the National Marine Fisheries Service and sharing information, including findings from our environmental studies in the area, as the agency assesses whether a listing of the Iliamna Lake Seal is warranted under the Endangered Species Act. We remain confident our project can proceed responsibly without affecting the habitat of the seal or its population.

In his letter, Shively criticizes the editorial team’s ignorance related to the economic, environmental, regulatory and human realities experienced in Alaska and the multiple unfounded claims contained within the story that show a lack of basic journalistic principles. To date, National Geographic has not responded to the request for corrective action. 

The Pebble Limited Partnership issued the following statement regarding the so-called “Bristol Bay Forever” initiative, certified today by the Lt. Governor for signature collection.

Calling the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) draft Bristol Bay watershed assessment inadequate, rushed and inaccurate, the Pebble Partnership Monday submitted comments and technical data to the EPA charging that the draft assessment is incomplete and fails on a scientific and a regulatory basis. Materials submitted by PLP, which include opinions and expertise from engineers, mining experts and international technical and environmental consulting firms, underscore the fundamental gaps in the process and omission of critical practices associated with 21st Century mining. Perhaps the most glaring issue is the hypothetical mine the EPA created on which to base its assessment – a mine that could not be permitted in the United States according to today’s rigorous regulatory standards.

Validating what has long been documented by the state of Alaska Economic Trends reports, southwest Alaska continues to struggle to maintain a stable economy due to a lack of year-round employment opportunities, one of the highest costs of living in the nation and seasonal local industries.

Results from the Pebble Environmental Baseline Document (EBD) socioeconomic studies in southwest Alaska verify downward economic trends previously reported by state agency groups throughout the past decade and recorded as part of Census studies from 1999 through 2009. The results from the five years of EBD studies confirm a general population decline in most areas, as well as a high cost of living and low year-round employment opportunities.