HCR 29: Requesting the commissioner of natural resources to complete a management plan for the area encompassing the Pebble copper deposit and requesting a report to the legislature.
00 HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 29 01 Requesting the commissioner of natural resources to complete a management plan for 02 the area encompassing the Pebble copper deposit and requesting a report to the 03 legislature. 04 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 05 WHEREAS, when Alaska achieved statehood in 1959, it was clear that the state's 06 small population needed to use resource development for economic support; and 07 WHEREAS revenue derived from responsible mineral, fish, timber, and oil extraction 08 has provided employment and dramatically improved the quality of life in Alaska; and 09 WHEREAS continued responsible development of our natural resources is vital to the 10 future economic well-being of the state; and 11 WHEREAS the state's constitution encourages the development of the state's 12 resources by making them available for maximum use consistent with the public interest and 13 for the maximum benefit to the people of the state; and 14 WHEREAS the state continues to be rich in undeveloped natural resources, although 15 some proposed uses may be in conflict with each other; and
01 WHEREAS the resolution of resource development conflicts requires proper 02 management, including the adoption, maintenance, and, when appropriate, revision by the 03 commissioner of natural resources of regional land use plans providing for the use and 04 management of state-owned land; and 05 WHEREAS the Bristol Bay Area Plan is a comprehensive and consistent 06 consideration of the wide diversity of resources and uses within the region of the state that 07 includes the Pebble copper deposit; and 08 WHEREAS the Pebble copper deposit is part of a much larger series of metal-rich, 09 coalescing hydrothermal sulfide systems estimated to contain 42,000,000 ounces of gold, 10 24,600,000,000 pounds of copper, and 1,500,000,000 pounds of molybdenum, the 11 development of which may require an open pit mine two miles long, 1.75 miles wide, and 12 1,600 feet deep, and a 100-mile pipeline and access road to Iniskin Bay; and 13 WHEREAS open pit mining requires careful advance planning and consideration of 14 potential negative environmental consequences, including impacts to fish habitat, acid mine 15 drainage, and other water quality issues resulting from mine tailings and exposed rock that 16 may have to be remedied forever; and 17 WHEREAS the area encompassing the Pebble copper deposit is located in an area of 18 significant seismic activity, adjacent to the Lake Clark National Park and Preserve near Lake 19 Iliamna, and at the headwaters of the Kvichak and Mulchatna River and Talarik Creek 20 drainages; and 21 WHEREAS this sparsely populated Iliamna region is known for world-class trout 22 fishing and is the spawning ground for Bristol Bay's massive salmon runs and a calving area 23 for caribou; and 24 WHEREAS the river corridors draining the area encompassing the Pebble copper 25 deposit are central to commercial, subsistence, and recreational fish and wildlife resource 26 production and have been closed to mining entry for more than 20 years; and 27 WHEREAS, when the Bristol Bay Area Plan was revised in 2005, the plan estimated 28 the area encompassing the Pebble copper deposit had contained mineral deposits of only one- 29 fourth of current estimates, and did not contemplate the scope, magnitude, and potential 30 collateral consequences of the open pit mine that would be required to recover those 31 resources; and
01 WHEREAS the Bristol Bay Area Plan provides that the development of the Pebble 02 copper deposit should occur only after a public process that is as extensive as the Bristol Bay 03 Area Plan itself and requires site-specific data and design for the proposed Pebble 04 development that was not available when the Bristol Bay Area Plan was revised in 2005; 05 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature finds that the commissioner of 06 natural resources should complete a management plan for the area encompassing the Pebble 07 copper deposit within the Bristol Bay Area Plan, including consideration of site-specific data 08 and design for the development, before issuing any final permits for that development; and be 09 it 10 FURTHER RESOLVED the Alaska State Legislature requests the commissioner of 11 natural resources upon receipt of a project plan of sufficient detail to evaluate the scope and 12 range of potential effects of the project, immediately undertake and complete the specific 13 management plan, emphasizing consideration of physical, economic, and social factors 14 affecting the area and providing for meaningful participation in the planning process by 15 affected local governments, state and federal agencies, adjacent landowners, and the general 16 public; and be it 17 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature requests that the 18 commissioner of natural resources consider all information and testimony accumulated in the 19 management plan process and, before issuing any final permits for the development of the 20 Pebble copper deposit, prepare a report to the legislature documenting any public issues or 21 conflicts identified in that process, the commissioner's evaluation of those issues or conflicts, 22 and the commissioner's conclusion regarding the appropriateness of classifying the area 23 encompassing the Pebble copper deposit for mineral development.