Following a flood of comments and a report addressing pollution concerns at the proposed Pebble mine, Alaska resource managers have temporarily delayed a decision over whether to approve a new land-use permit for the project and instead extended Pebble's old permits.
Pebble critics hope the delay means the Alaska Department of Natural Resources will use the extra time to implement stricter cleanup guidelines before the 2017-2018 hard-rock exploration and reclamation permit is approved.
"If it means they'll actually take a closer look and address our very real concerns, then we're happy at least that that's happening," said Alannah Hurley, executive director of the United Tribes of Bristol Bay, representing 14 tribal governments in the Southwest Alaska region opposed to the massive gold, copper and molybdenum mine. "We've pushed publicly for this administration to hold Pebble accountable for the mess they left."
