Today, Tiffany & Co. placed a full-page Ad in the Washington Post thanking the EPA for its recent decision to retain the proposed restrictions to protect Bristol Bay. In its Ad, it states:
“Tiffany & Co. has long been a vocal opponent of the proposed Pebble Mine, believing it poses a dire threat to the remarkable Bristol Bay ecosystem, and the world’s most productive wild salmon fishery it sustains.”
The Ad follows on the EPA’s announcement on January 26, 2018 that it would keep in place proposed restrictions, initiated under the previous Administration, that limit the amount of mine waste disposal in Bristol Bay waters.
In the announcement, the EPA Administrator states:
“…It is my judgement at this time that any mining projects in the region likely pose a risk to the abundant natural resources that exist there. Until we nkow the full extent of that risk, those natural resources and world-class fisheries deserve the utmost protection. Today’s action allows EPA to get the information needed to determine what specific impacts the proposed mining project will have on those critical resources.”
The EPA’s decision is welcome news, but make no mistake, the threat isn’t over. Pebble can continue to move through the permitting process. A decision on whether to finalize the restrictions will occur at the end of the permitting process.
In the meantime, public opposition to the Pebble Project has accelerated. The EPA received more than 1 million comments in support of retaining Bristol Bay protections.
The Governor of Alaska, Bristol Bay Native Tribes and corporations, commercial fishing companies, restaurants, supermarkets, churches, outfitters, conservation groups and jewelers all agree.
Bristol Bay, and the world’s greatest wild salmon fishery it supports, must be protected.
