News of the Day: Northern Dynasty gets US nod for Alaska mine plan
Cecilia Jamasmie, Mining.Com, July 24, 2020
Northern Dynasty Minerals (TSX: NDM) has cleared the last environmental hurdle for its proposed Pebble copper-gold-molybdenum mine in Alaska, almost two decades after developers first started considering the project. The US Army Corps of Engineers issued on Friday a final environmental impact statement (EIS), backing the controversial mine in the salmon-rich Bristol Bay. The decision opens the door for Northern Dynasty to obtain the federal go-ahead as soon as late August. “There is more work to be done, but the publication of the Final EIS today is a clear validation that Pebble can be developed in an environmentally sound and socially responsible way, creating benefits and opportunities for the people of Bristol Bay and all Alaskans,” President and chief executive, Ron Thiessen, said in the statement.
OIL
World’s Largest Economies Are Still Spending Big On Oil & Gas
Irina Slav, OILPRICE.COM, July 23, 2020
Spending on oil and gas, and coal is still higher among members of G20 than spending on renewable energy, a data update from the Energy Policy Tracker has revealed. Across the group, since the start of the pandemic, governments had pledged at least $160.95 billion in fossil fuel investments, versus $123.75 billion in renewable energy investment, the tracker, which updates government spending data on energy every week, said. This translates into $35.10 per capita in oil and gas spending, and $26.99 per capita for cleaner energy spending.
GAS
Environmentalists threaten suit over rule allowing LNG transport by rail
Rachel Frazin, The Hill, July 24, 2020
Two environmental groups on Friday threatened to sue the Trump administration over a newly published rule allowing the transport of liquified natural gas (LNG) by rail. The rule, which allows for the transport of LNG in rail tank cars, was finalized last month but published in the federal register on Friday. Previously, a special permit was needed to transport LNG in this way. The administration determined that this method of transporting gas is a “safe alternative” after comparing a specific type of tank car to other modes of transport.
MINING
Feds approve critical Alaska mining road
Shane Lasley, North of 60 Mining News, July 24, 2020
The U.S. Department of Interior issued two decisions that mark a major milestone along the path of permitting a road to the incredibly rich and strategically important Ambler Mining District in Northwest Alaska. On July 23, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and the National Park Service (NPS) with the U.S. Federal Highway Administration, issued a record of decision that authorizes a right-of-way for the proposed 211-mile-long road connecting the Ambler Mining District to the Dalton Highway.
POLITICS
Voices of the Peninsula: The neighborly thing to do
Owen Phillips, The Peninsula Clarion, July 23, 2020
Eight years ago, a company named Hilcorp moved to the Kenai Peninsula. I knew little about them, as my family had little interaction (aside from friends) with the oil patch. Graduating high school at SoHi, I received a scholarship from Hilcorp. I was not the only one to receive such a scholarship. Hilcorp branched out nationally in the early 2010s and distributed scholarships to each of the communities that they grew into — because that’s what neighbors do.
Maybe I’m radical for believing that a decision about what’s fair shouldn’t take place at a ballot.