In an important partial win for Chilkat conservation, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation has issued a decision on an appeal that calls upon its Water Quality Division to reconsider the basis on which its permit for waste water discharge was issued. Earthjustice appealed the permitting on behalf of Chilkat Indian Village and several other groups, including Rivers Without Borders. The issue is complicated, calling on the agency to go back and follow its own guidelines for consideration of baseline water quality standards specific to underground exploratory tunneling. But it reinforces and confirms our basic contention that Alaska should be taking a harder look at the Constantine exploration activity and standing up for the Chilkat and its extraordinary ecological and cultural values. The press release is linked here.
An article in the Juneau Empire following up on the press release is available here.
