Just north of Iliamna Lake in southwestern Alaska is an empty expanse of marsh and shrub that conceals one of the world’s great buried fortunes: A mile-thick layer of virgin ore said to contain at least 6.7 million pounds — or $120 billion worth — of gold.

Nondalton’s tribal council is protesting the move of its village corporation, Kijik Corp., to form a joint venture with Anchorage-based Alaska Earth Sciences to explore a copper/gold deposit near the village and adjacent to the Pebble project.
 

The Nondalton Tribal Council came out in direct opposition to the Groundhog Gold/Copper Project on Groundhog Mountain on Tuesday.  But, instead of coming out against an outside corporation, the tribal council of the small community came out against their own Native Corporation, Kijik Corp.

Last week, Northern Dynasty announced it had raised $13 million selling shares to spend on its legal battles surrounding its claims at the proposed Pebble mine and restrictions proposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.