Groups seek the rejection of Pebble applications
MINE: Company would need water if it develops the project.

July 21, 2006
Anchorage Daily News (AK)
By PAULA DOBBYN

Fishing, conservation and Native groups on Thursday asked state officials to reject a mining company's application for water rights to two rivers that feed salmon-rich Bristol Bay.

"When you talk about dewatering salmon streams, people just freak out. And with good reason," said Tim Bristol, head of Trout Unlimited in Alaska.

Northern Dynasty Mines Inc. sought state approval this week to pump water from Upper Talarik Creek and the Koktuli River near Iliamna Lake. If the Vancouver, British Columbia-based firm develops the mammoth Pebble gold and copper deposit, it will need water to treat mine waste and for other industrial uses.

The headwaters of Talarik and Koktuli, which border Pebble, are birthing grounds for some of Bristol Bay's world-famous wild salmon.

The company hasn't decided yet whether to develop Pebble but if it does it expects to apply for permits in a year or two, Northern Dynasty executives have said.

Groups wanting to deny the water rights include Trout Unlimited, International Federation of Fly Fishers, Fly Fishing Magazine, Alaska Independent Fishermen's Marketing Association and the tribal governments of Ekwok and Nondalton.

The Bristol Bay manager of Peter Pan Seafoods also weighed in Thursday.

"I was somebody who initially took a middle-of-the-road position, kind of a wait-and-see," said Norman Van Vactor of Peter Pan, a fish processor.

"At the end of the day, I made the personal decision to do everything I possibly could to stop" Pebble and the potential development of a mining district in the Bristol Bay region, he said.

Pebble's location in the headwaters of two rivers that feed Bristol Bay makes the project unfeasible, Van Vactor said.

"This is just not the place for a mine of this magnitude," he said.

Dick Mylius, director of the Division of Mining, Land and Water, said he cannot simply reject Northern Dynasty's application for water rights. It must be considered as part of the company's overall mine development plan, he said.

Northern Dynasty hopes to build not only Alaska's largest mine but North America's biggest gold and copper mine.

Richard King, administrator of Ekwok Village Council, said his village depends on fish that spawn in Upper Talarik and the Koktuli. Ekwok is downstream from the Pebble deposit.

"This action by Northern Dynasty is a direct threat to our culture and our way of life," King said.

Northern Dynasty executives have urged people to remain neutral on the project until it's designed and engineered.

"The concerns and issues raised are legitimate, and I welcome an open dialogue," said Bruce Jenkins, Northern Dynasty's chief operating officer.

But that doesn't mean concerns reflect reality, he said. And the company objects to anyone trying to stop the process before permit applications are on the table.

"It's wrong and anti-democratic," Jenkins said Thursda

Date: 7/21/2006