Senate bill would create game refuge over Pebble

February 7, 2007
Homer Tribune (AK)
By Layton Ehmke

With the endorsement of the Jay Hammond family, Senate Minority Leader Johnny Ellis of Anchorage and Senate Majority Leader Gary Stevens of Kodiak are sponsoring a bill that would create a game reserve in the late former governor’s namesake.

If passed, the bill would effectively create another layer of insurance over the headwaters of Bristol Bay — also an area of great interest to the mining industry.

Bristol Bay currently has five critical habitat areas along the Alaska Peninsula, with concentrations of waterfowl and shorebirds twice per year — as it is a major migratory stopover for birds heading for northern nests, according to the Department of Fish and Game. The Legislature classifies some areas as essential to the protection of fish and wildlife habitat, which are then categorized as refuge, critical habitat or sanctuary. Access to many of these lands then requires a special permit.

The act to establish the game refuge was last referred to the Senate Resources Committee at the end of January. A representative from Stevens’ staff said that as of yet, no hearing date has been set where it will remain until its sponsor requests a hearing.

Hammond’s family contacted Sen. Stevens about the proposed refuge legislation, showing their support for the refuge modeled after the management plan Hammond crafted.

In a letter to Stevens, the family expressed support for the core legislation, saying that the idea of honoring Hammond with a refuge for the watershed of Bristol Bay was very appropriate, and that keeping the lands productive and undamaged is something he “wished for and worked for since territorial days.” The surviving members of the Hammond family include widow Bella Hammond, daughter Heidi Hammond and nephew David McRae. 

This bare bones legislation would make the Department of Fish and Game the lead agency in crafting a management plan that prioritizes the needs and wishes of all affected communities and other users. “The Fish and Game mandate emphasizes maintaining fish and wildlife habitat and populations, and the social, cultural and economic benefits of traditional harvests,” the letter reads. Former state biologist Lance Trasky authored this particular legislation, as well as prior legislation protecting the Anchor River, the Fox River Flats and others.

In the aim to restore protection for the natural habitats of Alaska, Trasky, the former Alaska Department of Fish and Game Habitat Division Regional Supervisor for Bristol Bay, testified that former Gov. Frank Murkowski eliminated the guidelines and habitat standards which required that federal and state permits be consistent with a high level of protection to fish and wildlife habitat and resources. Trasky lost his job in the Habitat Division as a result of Murkowski’s changeups.

Scott Brennan Chief Operating Officer for the Renewable Resources Coalition said he would support the act if it reverses actions done during Murkowski’s state leadership.

“I’d favor anything that would restore the balance stripped by the Murkowski Administration, which did enormous damage to what was once world-class protection for salmon in the bay,” Brennan said. Gov. Sarah Palin has spent her first weeks in office rolling back many of Murkowski’s changes.
If the senate sees the bill, there will almost certainly be discussions of whether the bill was intended to trip the Pebble prospect development — still they are undeniably linked. 

Trade groups mostly representing the fishing industry have aligned since the proposal of the mine, and according to public statements, the sentiment is that a refuge will have the effect of upping the standards for mining approval as another layer for protecting various fisheries. One affect of the bill's passage would be the emphasis could shift from looking at the interests of mining to protecting the interest of other resources.
Dave Boone, a commercial gill net fisherman, relies on the area in question for the majority of his income, as he follows all five species of salmon that run there.

“Those areas are pretty pristine. You get more inland and it’s some of the most beautiful country, especially in the Kvichak systems — the rainbow fishing is incredible,” he said. 
Though the idea for creating a refuge in the headwaters of Bristol Bay has been around long before mining investors’ ears were piqued to same locations, it stands that the refuge could create another hurdle for developing the Pebble prospect.

Until that happens, Boone is not convinced the mine would be safe for the region’s other natural resources.
“Maybe there is a chance they could do the right thing where both mining and the fishing could coexist. But man, if there was ever a situation that ever went wrong? That's a risk we should never take — especially if it’s something unforeseen. And there's definitely a fair number of people feeling the risk is too big,” Boone said. As for a refuge in the area, Boone said he’d favor it as another check to the balance. 

Date: 2/7/2007