Thank Pebble
Craig Medred, June 20, 2019
Inadvertent though Pebble’s role might be, the hugely controversial, proposed copper mine near Lake Iliamna clearly deserves some credit for inspiring at least a small effort to pick up some of the most common litter in Bristol Bay. Nakek fishermen Nels Ure last week told Alaska Public Media he has collected dozens of styrofoam gillnet floats, or what the story called “corks” in deference to what kept the nets afloat, since seeing a social media post about how other fishermen are using the floats to send anti-Pebble messages to Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, in Washington, D.C. “The corks are everywhere,’ Ure told APM reporter Liz Ruskin. ‘I mean, you can find old corks on the beach, in the grass, and then in these boatyards.’”
Related:
Fishing boat captain fined for polluting Alaska waters
Exploration continues for mine near Haines
Alex McCarthy, Juneau Empire, June 20, 2019
After a recent court decision went in favor of those pursuing a mine in the Chilkat Valley, the company looking to build the mine is continuing to explore the area. For decades, the prospect of a mine in the valley near Haines has been in the works. Constantine Metal Resources, took over the claim in 2006 and has begun exploration in the area. The mine, referred to as the Palmer Project, is expected to produce a copper concentrate, a zinc concentrate, a little bit of gold and silver, and barite, Vice President, Community and External Affairs Liz Cornejo said in a recent interview at the Empire.
Big Oil looks to CCS, but will it really help the climate?
Mike Lee and Jenny Mandel, Energywire, Wednesday, June 19, 2019
Occidental Petroleum Corp.’s latest endeavor is about as far from traditional oil investments as you can get — a high-tech firm founded by a Harvard University professor, backed by a Silicon Valley billionaire and housed in a converted warehouse in a Canadian logging town. Oxy signed a deal earlier this year with Carbon Engineering Ltd., based in Squamish, British Columbia, to design a plant capable of pulling 500,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually from the atmosphere. It’s one of several that Oxy has signed or pursued with high-tech companies that aim to pull CO2 from the air or from industrial emissions. The company is also the first to announce initiatives tied to expanded federal tax credits for carbon storage, including the world’s largest planned air capture plant in the Permian Basin.
Related:
Apples to Apples: Making Valid Cost-Benefit Comparisons in Climate Policy
