“Utilization, Development and Conservation” of Natural Resources for the Maximum Benefit of Alaskans: Scrutinizing Alaska’s Permitting Regime for Large Mines

This Article disputes analyses and conclusions presented in an article about Pebble Mine published in the Alaska Law Review’s June 2008 issue. This Article discusses the history of mining in Alaska and the Pebble Project and describes the permitting regime applicable to mining exploration or development projects as it has been developed by the Alaska Legislature and the United States Congress, implemented by state and federal administrative agencies, and interpreted by federal and state courts. The Authors argue that the mining industry in Alaska has not historically proved detrimental to the fishing industry and that numerous and adequate legal safeguards are provided by the existing permitting regime. They also dispute the previous article’s conclusion that development of the Pebble resource would harm fisheries. This Article concludes that a change in state law by which the owners of the Pebble resource are barred from developing the known deposit would effect a compensable regulatory taking