Anchorage, AK—Bristol Bay Native Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer Jason Metrokin released the following statement in response to Northern Dynasty Minerals and the State of Alaska legal challenges to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Final Determination for Bristol Bay:

“Bristol Bay Native Corporation (BBNC) is disappointed that Northern Dynasty Minerals (NDM) and the State of Alaska continue to pursue legal challenges to the Environmental Protection Agency’s Final Determination for Bristol Bay. The agency’s actions are grounded in science and are supported by a majority of Alaskans.

BBNC intends to stand with our regional partners to defend the sensible measures EPA imposed to protect our region’s waters and fisheries. The people of Bristol Bay urge the State of Alaska to take a different tack and work with the region’s stakeholders to secure an economically and culturally vibrant future for Bristol Bay without the divisive Pebble-mine project.

It is simply a mistake for NDM and the State of Alaska to continue to pursue the development of what could be North America’s largest open pit mine near the headwaters of Bristol Bay’s incredible salmon fisheries. These fisheries have sustained our people for thousands of years and today support a commercial fishery that provides more than $2 billion in economic activity annually and supports more than 15,000 jobs. Pebble is and always has been the wrong mine, in the wrong place.”

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About Bristol Bay Native Corporation: Bristol Bay Native Corporation (BBNC) is a diversified Alaska Native investment corporation dedicated to the mission of “Enriching Our Native Way of Life.” Established through the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971, BBNC works to protect the land in Bristol Bay, celebrate the legacy of its people, and enhance the lives of its shareholders. Learn more at bbnc.net.