Senator Murray Applauds EPA Proposal to Protect Salmon Fisheries, Ban Mining Waste Disposal in the Bristol Bay Watershed

Senator Murray: “Washington state relies heavily on the Bristol Bay fisheries, and protecting those waters from the Pebble Mine project is of the utmost importance.”

(Seattle, WA) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) applauded the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal to ban the disposal of mining waste in the Bristol Bay watershed. The Clean Water Act Section 404(c) Proposed Determination would permanently protect Bristol Bay and its wildlife from the proposed Pebble Mine. 

“The waters of Bristol Bay are hugely important to the economy and heritage of the entire Pacific Northwest. That’s why I’ve fought for so long to protect them from polluters,” said Senator Murray. “Washington state relies heavily on Bristol Bay, and protecting those habitats from Pebble Mine project waste is of the utmost importance. I am glad the EPA is bringing us one step closer to protecting such important waters and a foundational piece of the regional economy.”

Senator Murray has long been a proponent of protecting Bristol Bay, understanding its environmental and economic impact across the entire region. She reiterated to EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson the importance of conducting a watershed assessment of Bristol Bay in 2011 and commended President Barack Obama for protecting the Bristol Bay waters from oil and gas leasing at her urging. Throughout President Donald Trump’s tenure, Senator Murray pushed back against President Trump’s decision to pave the way for the construction of Pebble Mine.

The University of Alaska Institute of Social and Economic Research found that the Bristol Bay fishery supports more than 14,000 jobs and adds $674 million of economic activity to the states of Washington, Oregon, and California.

Bristol Bay is the source of half of the world’s sockeye salmon and has sustained Native Alaskan communities for over 4,000 years. The total economic value, including subsistence uses, of the Bristol Bay watershed’s salmon resources was estimated at more than $2.2 billion in 2019. Pebble Mine, an open-pit copper and gold mine that could be two miles across and a half-mile deep, would have been an unmitigated catastrophe for the Bristol Bay watershed and the 40 to 60 million salmon who return to it every year. 

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