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Alaska Mining

B.C., Alaska sign agreement boosting protection for shared waters on mine projects – by Rob Shaw (Vancouver Sun – October 6, 2016)

http://vancouversun.com/

VICTORIA — B.C. and Alaska have formalized a deal to work together on cross-border mining projects and help protect waterways straddling both jurisdictions.

B.C. mines minister Bill Bennett said the “Statement of Cooperation on the Protection of Transboundary Waters” puts in writing requirements for the province to notify Alaska if there is any unplanned accidental discharge by a mine that could impact streams or waterways in the U.S. state. It establishes a bilateral working group and includes the Americans in the planning, design, environmental assessment and permitting processes for mines.

“So it’s not that this agreement changes how B.C. does this from a scientific or environmental or mining point of view. It’s that we are sharing a lot more information and we are agreeing that the things that we were not doing, which is making sure we had good baseline information on the rivers, we will in fact get that done in the near future,” Bennett said.

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Immediate Review of B.C. Mining Safety Demanded by Alaska Native Leaders – by Richard Walker (Indian Country Today – September 15, 2016)

http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/

An organization of Alaska Native leaders wants the U.S./Canada International Joint Commission, formed by a 1909 treaty, to ensure British Columbia mines use best practices to prevent contamination of rivers that cross from Canada into Southeast Alaska.

They also want Alaska Native governments to be consulted because their territories, economies and environmental health are at stake. The United Tribal Transboundary Mining Work Group, a union of 15 federally recognized Alaska Native governments in the state’s southeast, takes issue with a September 8 letter to Secretary of State John Kerry from Alaska’s congressional delegation.

The congressional delegation asked that the federal government “partner with Alaska to press Canada on policy answers” regarding mining, “encourage British Columbia officials to consider the cumulative impacts of mining and their potential impacts on transboundary waters,” and determine whether the International Joint Commission “is a suitable venue to determine whether Canadian mines are following ‘best practices’ in treatment of wastewaters and acid-producing mine tailings.”

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Transboundary mine developer shutting down – by Ed Schoenfeld (Alaska Public Radio Network – September 14, 2016)

The company trying to reopen the controversial Tulsequah Chief Mine, upstream from Juneau, is being taken over by an investor that’s owed millions of dollars. It means polluted water could continue to drain from mine tunnels into a Taku River tributary. But there are disagreements over what, if any, damage is being done.

Toronto-based Chieftain Metals has been trying to reopen the historic Tulsequah Chief Mine for about six years. The zinc, copper and gold mine is in northwest British Columbia, about 20 miles from the Alaska border. It’s next to a waterway that drains into the Taku River, near the capital city.

Biologists call it one of Southeast Alaska’s largest salmon-producing watersheds. But a major investor wants its debt repaid. Chieftain Metals doesn’t have enough money to do it. So, it’s going into receivership, which can lead to bankruptcy.

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[Alaska] Southeast tribes voice mining concerns to State Department – by Kevin Gullufsen (Juneau Empire – August 17, 2016)

http://juneauempire.com/

Southeast tribal groups met with officials from the Department of State and the Environmental Protection Agency last week in Juneau and Ketchikan to discuss ongoing issues with Canadian mining projects on Southeast Alaska watersheds.

The Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska called for the meetings to address concerns over Canadian mines diverting potentially-toxic water to Southeast Alaska rivers. So-called “transboundary” mines are proposed on the Stikine, Taku, Alsek and Unuk River watersheds.

“What we’re trying to do is elevate our concerns and make sure they’re heard at the appropriate levels,” Central Council president Robert Peterson said in a Tuesday phone interview with the Empire. “We’re not against mining, what we’re concerned about are the mining practices that are proposed. … We’re concerned that all measures are taken and we want to ensure that our voices are heard.”

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Federal judge rules against Wishbone Hill mine prospect – by Alex DeMarban (Alaska Dispatch News – July 9, 2016)

http://www.adn.com/

A federal judge has dealt a blow to an Alaska mining operator hoping to extract coal from the Wishbone Hill prospect near Palmer, ordering a federal agency to revisit a 2014 decision that allowed Usibelli to hold onto its 25-year-old permit though development had not occurred in a timely manner.

State officials said the next step is an administrative process by the Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation and Enforcement that could determine the validity of the permit. Conservation groups involved in the lawsuit said the next logical step will be a cessation order stopping the project because the company has no valid permit.

“The Office of Surface Mining will have to issue a cessation unless the state finds new evidence that mining happened within the proper time frame,” said Katie Strong, staff attorney at Trustees for Alaska, which represented conservation groups in the case. “But the state and Usibelli said no mining started until June 2010, so there aren’t circumstances here that will cause the permits to still be valid.”

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Alaska Natives, environmentalists add to push for action on nearby Canadian mining – by Erica Martinson (Alaska Dispatch News – June 28, 2016)

http://www.adn.com/

WASHINGTON — Alaska Native and environmental groups on Monday petitioned the Interior Secretary to launch a formal investigation into whether pollution from mines in British Columbia is causing problems for wildlife across the border in Southeast Alaska.

The groups pointed to a 1971 amendment and several international agreements to argue that Interior Secretary Sally Jewell has a duty to launch an investigation into the potential Alaska environmental impacts from six hard-rock mines in British Columbia. And they want the agency to support a joint United States-Canada commission to hash out the issue.

Earthjustice attorney Kenta Tsuda charged the U.S. government with “waiting on the sidelines” as Canadian mine companies barrelled ahead, and Frederick Olsen Jr., chairman of the United Tribal Transboundary Mining Work Group, called the state of affairs “federal under-reach.”

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Alaska group raises international concerns in Ottawa over B.C. mine operations – by Bruce Cheadle (Vancouver Sun – June 16, 2016)

http://vancouversun.com/

Ottawa — A delegation from Alaska says it is time to enforce the century-old Boundary Waters Treaty between Canada and the United States when it comes to northern British Columbia mining activity. The group is in Ottawa this week seeking to enlist federal help in stopping B.C. copper and gold mines from polluting the headwaters of key salmon rivers that flow from Canada into Alaska.

They’re also pushing the U.S. State Department to refer the matter to the International Joint Commission, which was created under the 1909 Boundary Waters Treaty to help resolve disputes along internationally shared waters.

Frederick Otilius Olsen, an indigenous tribal vice-president from Kassan, Alaska, says the catastrophic failure of the Mount Polley mine tailings dam in 2014 was a “huge wake up call” that galvanized concerns over what he sees as British Columbia’s lax mining regulations.

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Opinion: B.C. mines threaten Alaska fisheries – by Cynthia Wallesz (Vancouver Sun – May 25, 2016)

http://vancouversun.com/

Cynthia Wallesz is executive director of the United Southeast Alaska Gillnetters.

For two years, I’ve been learning about B.C.’s mining industry and how it is threatening water, ecosystems, salmon and jobs downstream in Southeast Alaska.

It’s been shocking to realize the significant inadequacies of B.C.’s mining regulatory processes. For example, mining companies are not required to use best available technologies or practices to reduce risks, nor do they provide compensation to those affected by pollution from large-scale open-pit projects at the headwaters of world-class river systems.

These inadequacies were confirmed recently in an email I received from B.C. Mines Minister Bill Bennett in response to my question, “How would our fishing fleet be financially compensated if we suffered financial losses from real or perceived water quality contamination from B.C.’s projects?”

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Alaska asks John Kerry to raise B.C. mine pollution concerns with Canada – by Mark Hume (Globe and Mail – May 15, 2016)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/

VANCOUVER — British Columbia’s downstream neighbours in Alaska have long been concerned about mining pollution flowing across the border. Now that B.C.’s Auditor-General has confirmed that those fears are well founded, issuing an audit recently that found the province is doing a poor job of regulating its mines, three Alaskan politicians have elevated the issue in Washington.

In a letter sent on Thursday, Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, and Congressman Don Young, urged U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to talk about it with the Canadian government.

“We write to express our continuing concerns about the development of several hardrock mines in British Columbia and their potential effects on water quality in the transboundary rivers that flow from Canada into southeast Alaska,” the letter states.

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[Alaska/British Columbia Mining Dispute] Delegation asks Kerry for transboundary review – by Elwood Brehmer (Alaska Journal of Commerce – May 12, 2016)

http://www.alaskajournal.com/

Alaska’s congressional delegation responded Thursday to continued concerns from Southeast Alaskans about Canadian mine plans by asking Secretary of State John Kerry to look into whether environmental practices across the border are worthy of attention under a bilateral treaty.

Rep. Don Young and Sens. Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan sent a letter to Kerry May 12 requesting the State Department to question Canadian officials about the impact active and proposed hard rock mines in British Columbia and the Yukon could have on salmon in several large “transboundary” rivers.

“Like most Alaskans, we strongly support responsible mining, including mines in Southeast Alaska, but Alaskans need to have every confidence that mining activity in Canada is carried out just as safely as it is in our state,” the delegation wrote. “Yet, today, that confidence does not exist.

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Alaska raises concerns with B.C.’s mining oversight after audit – by Justine Hunter (Globe and Mail – May 5, 2016)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/

VICTORIA — Six months after signing a pact to co-operate on mine development across the B.C.-Alaska border, the Alaskan government is questioning British Columbia’s ability to protect the environment due to weak enforcement of its mining industry.

Alaska Lieutenant-Governor Byron Mallott says his government will demand assurances that British Columbia is taking action in the wake of a new report from the province’s Auditor-General that calls for the creation of an independent agency to take over regulation of the mining industry because of lax enforcement and compliance.

“The Office of the Auditor-General’s report is troubling and a wake-up call to the B.C. government that important changes must occur,” Mr. Mallott, who has led the state government’s negotiations with British Columbia on the issue of mining, said in a statement.

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My Turn: Doing mining differently up north – by Lewis Rifkind (The Juneau Empire – April 29, 2016)

http://juneauempire.com/

Lewis Rifkind is a mining analyst for Yukon Conservation Society.

British Columbia Minister of Energy and Mines Bill Bennett’s response to Alaskans’ growing concerns about the downstream effects of mining in BC has usually been to defend the BC mine permitting process, invite more Alaskan participation in the process and then accuse Alaskans of having an inadequate understanding of the BC mine review and regulatory regime.

Alaskans have rightly bristled at these statements, noting that the BC process has resulted in more than 50 years of acid mine drainage from the Tulsequah Chief and the Mount Polley tailings dam disaster. Alaskans formally asked for a federal Panel Review of the KSM mine proposal, but these requests were ignored. So, it makes sense that Alaskans do not trust the BC process.

And, despite Bennett’s defense of the BC process, there are clear examples of ways to do it better.

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Emily Riedel of ‘Bering Sea Gold’ is one of the best Alaska reality stars working. Here’s why. – by Emily Fehrenbacher (Alaska Dispatch News – April 19, 2016)

 

http://www.adn.com/

If there’s anything I’ve learned from watching thousands of hours of lowbrow TV, it’s what makes something continuously watchable. Though by way of context, I’m a 30-year-old who’s pretty basic. I still watch “The Real World” even though every person on it is the worst. I almost cried when “The People vs. OJ Simpson: American Crime Story” ended, because it made my Tuesdays. And I think 30-minute sitcoms (“You’re the Worst,” “Master of None,” “Veep,” “Catastrophe,” “Togetherness,” etc.) are the best thing happening in the television world. Sorry, “Game of Thrones.”

There is a Discovery Channel program that I believe deserves more mainstream love than it’s getting: “Bering Sea Gold.” For whatever reason, I missed the boat (pun!) on “Deadliest Catch,” which, based on its staying power, is a legitimately good show. Even in its early seasons, when I caught several episodes, it never was able to reel me in (pun again!).

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Miner gets year in prison for criminal violation of Clean Water Act – by Alex DeMarban (Alaska Dispatch News – March 31, 2016)

https://www.adn.com/

A federal judge on Thursday sentenced the operator of a platinum mine that discharged pollutants into a salmon-spawning river in Southwest Alaska to a year in prison and, following that, a year of supervised release.

The sentencing is part of the first federal case in Alaska charging a mining company and its key operators with criminal violations of the Clean Water Act.

James Slade, a Canadian resident who in 2010 and 2011 was chief operating officer of XS Platinum Inc., an Australian-led company, can spend the second year of his punishment — the supervised release — in Canada, said U.S. District Judge Sharon Gleason.

Gleason’s decision came after a sentencing hearing lasting almost four hours, and capped months of dispute between federal prosecutors and defendants in a major pollution case that has ensnared two other participants in the operation.

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A Canadian mine threatens the ‘heart and soul’ of an Alaskan community – by Charles Mandel (National Observer – March 30, 2016)

http://www.nationalobserver.com/

Awestruck by the glacier-streaked mountains jutting from the ground and the powerful flowing Chilkat River slicing through the deep valley, Joe Ordonez moved to Haines, Alaska in 1987.

Now, 29 years later, Ordonez is fighting to preserve that same natural grandeur – which includes a world-renowned bald eagle preserve – from a proposed copper, zinc, silver and gold mine upstream.

“It’s a terrible location for a mine,” says Ordonez, who previously worked as a naturalist on cruise ships, work which took him from the Amazon to Antarctica, and who today operates a tour guide company in the region. “I’ve worked in all seven continents. I’ve seen the most amazing places in the world and here’s one of them right where I live in Haines, Alaska. It’s just not worth the risk. “

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