Republicans vow EPA scrutiny in Pebble veto’s wake
A top Senate Republican is promising to ramp up oversight of EPA’s Clean Water Act veto power after the agency used its authority to block a contentious gold and copper mine in Alaska’s Bristol Bay, home to a world premier salmon fishery.
Senate Environment and Public Works ranking member Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) blasted EPA’s final determination that barred waters within the Bristol Bay watershed from receiving dredge and fill. The federal action essentially killed the proposed mine.
Capito accused the agency of circumventing the agency review process and said upcoming talks on permitting reform legislation may address the issue. Capito and 38 other Republicans last year floated a bill called the “Simplify Timelines and Assure Regulatory Transparency (START) Act.”
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Congressional Democrats came out in force Tuesday to endorse EPA’s decision, including Rep. Jared Huffman of California and Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington, who have spent years pushing the agency to veto Bristol Bay mining.
“No company will ever be able to stick a mine on top of some of the best salmon habitat in the world,” Cantwell said during a Senate floor speech.
Rep. Rick Larsen of Washington, the new top Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said “the administration did the right thing by protecting this pristine area that is an important economic driver for Alaska and the entire Pacific Northwest, where salmon is both a historic part of our culture and supports tens of thousands of jobs.”
Transportation and Infrastructure Republicans were silent on EPA’s latest action but will likely take it up once the new Congress gets going.
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By: Hannah Northey
Source: E&E News
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