Northern Dynasty: The EPA Action is Unlawful, Unprecedented and Hurts Alaska

"The Pebble Deposit is an asset belonging to the people of Alaska. The land around Pebble was selected by the state for its mineral potential as part of the process in which Alaskans were granted statehood. EPA continues to blatantly ignore the state's interest in this case. EPA's actions preclude any development on over 300 square miles of Alaska land. This violates Alaska's Statehood Compact and the ‘no-more' clause of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, which requires congressional approval of any additional park land in Alaska. The EPA is violating the U.S. Constitution by taking away the State and the project's legally protected property interests in the mineral rights underlying the land, without any just compensation. "The state, as the landowner, has repeatedly demanded the federal agency follow the prescribed permitting process for Pebble. It is worth noting that the state permitting process was never initiated for Pebble nor was the state's role in federal permitting allowed to conclude. In addition, no environmental harm will occur if EPA allows the federal permitting process to be completed. Work on the project cannot begin until both the Federal and state permitting processes are completed.