Sportsman’s Alliance for Alaska

July 2, 2014 Newsletter

Welcome to the latest edition of the SAA News. I hope your summer is going well, and that you’re looking forward to a fun long Independence Day weekend. I will be headed to Orlando for the ICAST/IFTD fishing industry trade show later this month, and look forward to connecting with many of SAA’s fine supporters. Here are some updates on issues of interest to anglers and hunters and the Last Frontier, as well as some opportunities to help the Bristol Bay campaign by eating salmon, buying a slick new t-shirt, or making a donation. We’ll start with an important reminder that our final opportunity to officially comment on the EPA’s work in Bristol Bay may be coming up soon.

Bristol Bay: Advance Alert – Be Ready to Stand Up One Last Time!

Naknek River Sunset, credit Scott Hed

Should the EPA Clean Water Act process move ahead this summer, there is expected to be a public comment period – likely the final one – and we will need every single one of our allies to weigh in and recruit your friends, family, colleagues, and even complete strangers if you’re the outgoing type, to join our effort to protect one of the planet’s premier wild fishery resources. Stand by; you’ll be alerted if the time comes to take action. Until then, thanks for your perseverance.

Bristol Bay: Poll Shows Continued Strong Opposition to Pebble Mine

A new poll released by Bristol Bay United shows 62% of Alaskans oppose the proposed Pebble Mine project. The same poll showed 67% of respondents favored development of oil resources in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, showing how Alaskans view Bristol Bay differently than any other big resource development project in the state.

Supporting the message, the president of the United Tribes of Bristol Bay wrote an opinion editorial in the Anchorage Daily News stating that residents of the region remain firmly opposed to the proposed Pebble Mine, and laid out how the developer and the State of Alaska are working against the interests of Bristol Bay.

More Bristol Bay Notes

• In a sign that Northern Dynasty Minerals is not ready to give up its quest to develop a massive mine in the Bristol Bay region, NDM recently acquired 199 additional state mining claims from the struggling mining exploration company Liberty Star, per the Bristol Bay Times.
• The State of Alaska has joined the Pebble Limited Partnership in its lawsuit against the EPA over the proposed Pebble Mine in Bristol Bay, per the Alaska Dispatch.
• Congressmen Bob Gibbs (R-OH) and Nick Rahall (D-WV) introduced the House version of the Regulatory Certainty Act of 2014 which would have a harmful impact on EPA”s ability to use the Clean Water Act to protect Bristol Bay. The legislation drew quick criticism from commercial, sport, and subsistence fishermen due to its impact on EPA’s ability to use the Clean Water Act to protect Bristol Bay from the proposed Pebble Mine, per the Cordova Times.
• The Bristol Bay Native Corporation Education Foundation sold its shares of Northern Dynasty Minerals that it had received as a gift from Rio Tinto (when Rio divested from the proposed Pebble Mine project recently), and received roughly $6.5 million to fund its educational and cultural heritage mission, per KTUU and the Associated Press. The Alaska Community Foundation also sold its shares per the Alaska Dispatch.

Forests: Protect Transboundary Rivers along Alaska – British Columbia Border

The proposed Kerr-Sulphurets-Mitchell (KSM) mine project continues to move at a rapid pace through the B.C. provincial and Canadian federal environmental review processes. Of the many development proposals slated for the Transboundary region, KSM may be the riskiest due to its unprecedented size, the acid-generating type of ore body, and its location at the headwaters of the Unuk River. The project could receive its environmental certificate as early as August or September unless swift action is taken. Tell the U.S. State Dept. that AK/BC Transboundary watersheds need protection!

Bristol Bay: New No Pebble Mine Sockeye Design T-Shirt Benefits SAA!

Savor Bristol Bay Dinner Series featuring Acclaimed Author Paul Greenberg

If you’re in San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, or Boston this month, make plans to attend the Savor Bristol Bay Dinner Series with New York Times bestselling author of Four Fish, Paul Greenberg. Paul will lead a guided salmon dinner, transporting guests to Bristol Bay, Alaska, where fishermen are fighting to save the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery. While Paul shares stories and excerpts from his newest book, American Catch, guests will enjoy a specially-prepared dinner featuring fresh Bristol Bay sockeye salmon. July 7 – San Francisco July 10 – Seattle July 21 – Chicago July 23 - Boston

Miscellany: Other Interesting News & Notes around Alaska

• The Bristol Bay River Academy is featured in the Bristol Bay Times as it readies for another year of teaching sport fishing guide skills to youth in the region.
• The new Bass Pro Shops store will open in Anchorage next week on July 9.

Other Ways to Support SAA and the Fight for Fishing and Hunting in Alaska

SAA is grateful for the generous support of individuals, businesses, and foundations. Your donations allow SAA to continue to work on efforts to protect prime fishing and hunting habitats in the Last Frontier for the benefit of current and future sportsmen and women. Make your donations online at the secure online donation page; all amounts are accepted and appreciated – SAA is a lean, mean, one-man operation but it takes funding to do this work. For donations of the following amounts, please include “SAA” and indicate what item you’d like to receive in the “comment” box on the donation page.

BONUS: All donations of $50 or more will receive a copy of Equilibrium on DVD by Castaway Films!

• $25 Waypoints DVD from Confluence Films ($30 value) or No Pebble Mine trucker hat (NEW)
• $125 4-in-1 Alaska or Fab Four - Alaskan September giclee print by Derek DeYoung (13” x 19”) ($120 value)
• $150 Abel "No Pebble Mine" nippers with lanyard ($125 value)
  Note: Abel will produce a run based on how many we need, so time lag involved.

$25 – DVD	$25 – Trucker Hat	$150 – Abel Nippers

$125 - “4-in-1 Alaska” by Derek DeYoung

$125 - “Fab Four – Alaskan September” by Derek DeYoung

(If you have any questions on how to donate, e-mail scott@sportsmansalliance4ak.org.)

Do You Shop on Amazon.com? Help Alaska Conservation – Easy and Free!!!

SAA’s parent organization – the Alaska Conservation Foundation – is now an official recipient organization of Amazon Donations. It’s super easy to make a donation and doesn’t cost you a thing! Amazon will automatically donate 0.5% of your total purchases to ACF.

Thanks for caring about Alaska conservation. Your support and actions will ensure a future for Alaska’s fish and game and for coming generations of sportsmen and women to enjoy them.

Sincerely,

Scott Hed
Director – Sportsman’s Alliance for Alaska

SAA Director Scott Hed (middle) with Kate Taylor (l)
and Nanci Morris-Lyon of Bear Trail Lodge on the
Naknek River in Bristol Bay.

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