Mining major Anglo American should not build the proposed 
copper/gold Pebble mine if it could not be built in a way that avoided 
damage to Alaska’s fisheries, wildlife and livelihoods, Anglo chairperson Sir Mark Moody-Stuart said last week.

Moody-Stuart’s comments to the groups’s annual general meeting (AGM) followed the arrival of an Alaskan delegation in London to protest the Bristol Bay Pebble project, which had the potential 
to become a large openpit 
operation.

Openpit Operation
Moody-Stuart last month 
visited Alaska to meet the team responsible for the Pebble project, planned in joint venture with the TSX-listed Northern Dynasty Minerals, of Canada, which has a five-year, $5-million commitment to the local community.

“The project has been controversial,” Moody-Stuart told the AGM.

Salmon Fishery

He found the project close to three streams located in the headwaters of the extensive Bristol Bay watershed, which was well known for its rich salmon fishery.

“I understand the fears and passions which have been stirred and recognise the cultural and commercial importance of the salmon, but I believe that many of these fears are based on the false 
assumption that this is a choice between mining and fishing.

“I am confident that the two can coexist. 
“We have made it clear that the project will work on the basis of world-class scientific and engineering skills and that we will use inclusive and innovative stakeholder engagement.

“Our bottom line is that, if the project cannot be built in a way that avoids damage to Alaska’s fisheries and wildlife or to the livelihoods of Alaskan communities, it should not be built.

“It is on that basis that we will continue to evaluate the project in compliance with the prescribed regulatory processes in Alaska. But we will do so with a mindset that goes well beyond compliance,” he promised.

Resource Media reported that the Bristol Bay watershed supported the world’s most productive wild sockeye salmon fishery, which was critical to the State’s economy and to the livelihoods of many Alaskan native communities.

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