The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers today denied the Clean Water Act 404 permit for the Pebble Mine, a massive open pit mine proposed for the headwaters of Bristol Bay, the greatest sockeye salmon resource on the planet. Following is a statement from SalmonState executive director Tim Bristol on the decision:

Anchorage, AK—Northern Dynasty Minerals, the parent company of the Pebble Limited Partnership, announced today that it has submitted to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers the mitigation plan it hopes will allow its proposed open pit mine and toxic dump at the headwaters of Bristol Bay, Alaska to move forward. Bristol Bay is the planet’s greatest sockeye salmon run and has provided more than half the world’s sockeye salmon catch in recent years. Despite that, the area remains unprotected from destructive mining impacts.

ANCHORAGE, AK—Two videos released by the Environmental Investigation Agency today as additions to “The Pebble Tapes” feature a top Pebble executive’s intention to use a $1.5 billion construction subsidy from the State of Alaska’s depleted coffers to ship Alaska’s resources to Asia; Pebble’s ties to Alaska’s elected officials at a state and federal level; and its expectations for what those elected officials will and won’t do in the months to come. In the two tapes, Canadian Ron Thiessen, the head of Northern Dynasty Minerals, Pebble’s Canadian parent company, also told the investors that elected officials lie about their positions during election season, saying “you (elected officials) aren’t held to your promises.” He also reiterated the State of Alaska’s support for the proposed Pebble Mine — support underlined by Governor Mike Dunleavy’s recent letters, which double down on his support for the project in spite of the lies the first set of tapes exposed.

“Tom Collier is only leaving the Pebble Partnership because he got caught. Deception, dishonesty, greed and hubris are in the DNA of this company and at the heart of its existence. Pebble lies. We have always known this and now, thanks to these tapes, the rest of the world knows it as well. Tom Collier was not the source of this corruption — he is indicative of it. In the wake of this week’s events, it’s imperative our leaders call for a halt to the Army Corps planning process, which was exposed as broken almost beyond belief.”

ANCHORAGE—SalmonState today expressed shock and anger at the revelations contained in a series of undercover Environmental Investigation Agency videos exposing the Pebble Partnerships’ true plans for a mine at the headwaters of Bristol Bay — and executives’ relationships with Alaska’s elected officials and with political appointees at all levels

ANCHORAGE—Prominent Republicans Donald Trump Jr. and Nick Ayers, former chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence, today tweeted in support of Bristol Bay and against the proposed Pebble Mine.

ANCHORAGE—The U.S. House of Representatives today voted to block funding for the corrupt process hurtling the underfunded, scientifically lacking Pebble Mine toward “yes” over Tribal, scientific, fisheries and Alaskan objections. The block came in the form of an amendment to the minibus spending package — H.R. 7617 — that defunds a Record of Decision for the proposed Pebble Mine.

ANCHORAGE—Via U.S. Postal Service, SalmonState today received from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for the proposed Pebble Mine: a massive gold and copper mine and toxic waste dump proposed for the headwaters of the largest sockeye salmon run on the planet. The Corps’ conclusions in the FEIS are largely the same as the Draft EIS, which was blasted as woefully inadequate by scores of scientists, mining experts, Tribes, and federal agencies, not to mention thousands of Alaskans.

ANCHORAGE— Today, in a stunning change of direction that calls into question the validity and legality of the ongoing Pebble Mine permitting process and Environmental Analysis, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced a new preferred road and infrastructure access route to the proposed megamine in Bristol Bay’s headwaters.