Trump officials concluded Friday that a proposed gold and copper mine in Alaska — which would be the largest in North America — would not pose serious environmental risks, a sharp reversal from a finding by the Obama administration that it would permanently harm the region’s prized sockeye salmon.
The official about-face regarding the bitterly contested project epitomizes the whiplash that has come to define environmental policy under President Trump, who has methodically dismantledmany of his predecessor’s actions on climate change, conservation and pollution.
A final environmental analysis issued Friday by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers found that Pebble Mine, which targets a deposit of gold, copper and other minerals worth up to $500 billion, “would not be expected to have a measurable effect on fish numbers” in the Bristol Bay watershed that supports the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery. Continue reading.