The Biden administration has imposed restrictions on gold mining near Alaska’s Bristol Bay to protect salmon fishery in the area.
The decision will block the Pebble Mine project developed by Northern Dynasty Minerals. Over the past several years, the company has lobbied the US government for extending mining operations in southwest Alaska. However, the US authorities took the side of environmental groups, which opposed the project to protect salmon fishery in Bristol Bay. “Two decades of scientific study show us that mining the Pebble Deposit would cause permanent damage to an ecosystem that supports a renewable economic powerhouse and has sustained fishing cultures since time immemorial,” EPA’s regional administrator Casey Sixkiller said in a statement.
The gold mining ban was originally imposed by the Obama administration. The EPA under former President Trump allowed the mining project to go forward. However, the Biden administration indicated it would oppose the Pebble Mine project to shield Bristol Bay’s salmon from pollution.
