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As long time proponents of responsible resource development inAlaska, we have significant concerns regarding the EPA s approachto the Bristol Bay Watershed Assessment. We believe that the EPAhas rushed its assessment process, and that this is especiallyproblematic in light of the large size of the study area. We havetaken several years and expended considerable resources to studythe ecosystem in a small area around the Pebble deposit, while theEPA has, in only one year and with limited resources, completed adraft assessment in relation to an area of approximately 20,000square miles. We believe that this explains why the EPA s work hasnot yet approached the level of rigor and completeness required fora scientific assessment. Furthermore, we are concerned that the EPA may use this rushedprocess as the basis for an unprecedented regulatory action againstthe Pebble Project. We believe it would be unprecedented andentirely inappropriate for the EPA to take steps to stop ourproject before it has been fully designed, before we have presentedan environmental mitigation strategy designed to protect the fishand water resources of the area, before we have completed aneconomic benefits study and before we have submitted a permitapplication and started the rigorous permitting process. Until wecomplete our work and submit an application under NEPA, the EPA swork as it relates to our project is based entirely on speculation. The Pebble deposit is located on State of Alaska lands that areopen to mineral exploration and development. As such, the State hasexpressed strong objection about the entire process the EPA isundertaking in this area. At statehood, the federal governmentgranted Alaska access to lands in order to develop an economy forthe new state. Federal intrusions such as those facilitated by theEPA s watershed assessment initiative clearly strike at the heartof the agreement between the state and the federal government, andcould have a chilling effect on future resource developmentinvestments in Alaska. Further, this entire process is particularly disappointing becauseit seems to directly conflict with the stated goals of PresidentObama, who has said that U.S. government agencies need to simplifyand streamline permitting and regulatory processes to help theeconomy and create jobs. This is an example of the EnvironmentalProtection Agency doing exactly the opposite by adding new hurdlesto the rigorous and established regulatory process. It is worth noting that Pebble Limited Partnership has spentseveral years and expended significant resources studying asubstantially smaller land area surrounding Pebble, while theEPA s limited time frame allocated to studying natural resourcesin this vast area comes nowhere near providing the science neededto adequately conduct their assessment. We certainly don tquestion the appropriate statutory role of the EPA in evaluatingprojects like the Pebble Project. In fact, we voluntarily providedover 20,000 pages of detailed environmental studies to the EPA toassist their understanding of this complex ecosystem and we areconvinced the agency did not utilize the information in ameaningful way due to the artificial short time frame they haveused to reach a conclusion. We do take strong exception to thismisguided effort that steps outside of the well establishedregulatory process to rush through this watershed assessment topotentially reach pre ordained conclusions. Additionally, the draft watershed assessment is fundamentallyflawed for the following reasons: The EPA has undertaken to study in one year a nearly20,000-square-mile area in Southwest Alaska -- about the size ofthe states of Maryland and New Jersey combined -- that would needseveral years of diligent effort to achieve its stated goals. The EPA has attempted to assess the effects of a project that hasnot yet been finalized or undergone the rigorous permitting processrequired by state and federal law. The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as Swing Stage Scaffolding , Wedge Clamps, and more. For more , please visit Scaffold Props today!
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