September 23, 2020
The Honorable Donald J. Trump
President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20500
Dear President Trump,
In a speech on July 16 before an enthusiastic audience on the South Lawn, you proudly marked the progress that your administration has made in its “historic campaign to rescue American workers from job-killing regulations.” Conservatives applaud the progress made so far on your broad regulatory reform agenda and strongly support your continuing efforts to remove obstacles to environmental permitting of natural resource and infrastructure projects.
That is why many of us were disturbed by reports of White House meddling in the permitting process for the Pebble Mine in Alaska. It recalls the bad old days when the Obama administration misused its Clean Water Act authority and used bogus science to veto the project before an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) had even been submitted.
Political interference in the EIS process was inappropriate then, and it is inappropriate now. In preparing its EIS, the company developing the Pebble Mine spent over $150 million on scientific studies considering every possible environmental impact of building and operating the mine. The U. S. Army Corps of Engineers then conducted the EIS process in a professional and thorough way as required by the National Environmental Policy Act. After this exhaustive review lasting more than a year, the Corps issued its final EIS in July, which concluded that the mine would not negatively impact the environment and in particular would not harm Bristol Bay’s extensive salmon fisheries.
Before the Corps made its final record of decision, old claims were again raised that the mine would threaten the salmon and destroy hunting and fishing opportunities for wealthy sportsmen. Regardless of the source of these claims—whether from White House insiders, campaign donors, media personalities, or environmental pressure groups—it is critical to consider that these claims were fully considered by the Army Corps in the EIS process and dismissed on the basis of overwhelming scientific evidence.
Nonetheless, and apparently because of political intervention, the Corps has since required further environmental mitigation before issuing its record of decision. While the company
prepares to submit its mitigation plan, we urge you to order that the regulatory process now move forward in strict accordance with the law and without further delays based on groundless claims.
There are at least three important reasons why derailing the permitting process for the Pebble Mine would be disastrous. First, killing the first major project to be permitted since your July speech would undermine the credibility of your deregulatory efforts. In particular, it would discourage the mining industry, which is at a low ebb in the United States as the result of decades of regulatory suffocation, from making other multi-billion dollar investments to take advantage of America’s vast mineral potential.
Second, the mine is vital to the economic future for the people living in the Bristol Bay watershed (an area the size of Ohio) and for the State of Alaska. It is located in a remote area where there are few jobs for native villagers and where endemic poverty has fostered serious social dislocations. The recent collapse in oil prices is a painful reminder that Alaska’s economy is overly dependent on oil production and must diversify if it is to flourish in the future.
Third, the mine’s economic benefits go far beyond the jobs in Alaska. The Pebble ore body contains colossal quantities of copper, gold, and molybdenum, as well other strategic minerals such as rare earths. The mine will provide minerals that are critical to high-tech industries in America and the world. It will also create tens of billions of dollars of economic activity across the country. In this regard, reports that China opposes the mine, presumably because it would lessen U. S. dependence on China for strategic minerals, come as no surprise.
The Pebble Mine, although a mere pinprick on the vast Alaska landscape, would create enormous wealth and provide immense economic benefits to America. We urge you to prohibit any further political meddling and let the Corps proceed to issue the permits necessary for this important project to move forward. Thank you for your attention to our concerns.
Sincerely,
| Alfred S. Regnery Chairman, Conservative Action Project President, Republic Book Publishers |
Myron Ebell Director, Center for Energy and Environment Competitive Enterprise Institute |
| The Honorable Becky Norton Dunlop Assistant Secretary, DOI (1988-89) Secretary of Natural Resources, Virginia (1994-98) |
The Honorable Morton C. Blackwell President The Leadership Institute |
| The Honorable Colin A. Hanna President Let Freedom Ring, Inc. |
The Honorable T. Kenneth Cribb, Jr. Chief Domestic Advisor President Ronald Reagan (1987-1988) |
| Jenny Beth Martin Chairman Tea Party Patriots Citizen Fund |
The Honorable David McIntosh President Club for Growth |
| Scott T. Parkinson VP for Government Affairs Club for Growth |
The Honorable J. Kenneth Blackwell Chairman Constitutional Congress, Inc. |
| The Honorable Donald Paul Hodel U.S. Secretary of Energy (1982-1985) U.S. Secretary of Interior (1985-1989) |
Kelly J. Shackelford, Esq. Chairman, CNP Action, Inc. President and CEO, First Liberty Institute |
| Lt. Gen. William G. Boykin (Ret.) Executive Vice President Family Research Council |
Richard Manning President Americans for Limited Government |
| Grover Norquist President Americans for Tax Reform |
The Honorable Gail Griffin State Representative (AZ) Chairman Natural Resources Committee |
| Dr. Donald van der Vaart Former Secretary, N. C. Department of Environmental Quality Environmental Science and Law Institute |
Paavo Ensio Chairman Universal Minerals Group |
| Thomas Pyle President American Energy Alliance |
The Honorable Tom DeLay Former Majority Leader U.S. House of Representatives |
| Jennifer Fielder CEO American Lands Council |
Lee Beaman CEO Beaman Automotive Group |
| Sal Russo Co-Founder and Chief Strategist Tea Party Express |
Kay R. Daly President Coalition for a Fair Judiciary |
| Joseph A. Morris Partner, Morris & De La Rosa U.S. Assistant Attorney General (President Reagan) |
C. Preston Noell III President Tradition, Family, Property, Inc. |
| Dr. Rick Scarborough President Recover America Now |
Bette Grande CEO, President Roughrider Policy Center |
| Justin Danhof General Counsel National Center for Public Policy Research |
Daniel Perrin Founder HSA Coalition |
| Amapola Hansberger President Legal Immigrants for America |
Kent Glesener, P.E. President Paradigm Construction & Engineering, Inc. |
| Paula Easley Board Member Alaska Policy Forum |
Brigitte Gabriel Chairman ACT For America |
| Kielle C. Horton President The Lindsey Foundation |
Dr. Jerome R. Corsi, Ph.D. Founder and CEO CorsiNation.com |
| Ron Robinson President Young America’s Foundation |
The Honorable Peter Thomas Chairman The Conservative Caucus |
| Elaine Donnelly President Center for Military Readiness |
Randy M. Long Founder Long Business Advisors, LLC |
| Mario Navarro da Costa Director, Washington Bureau Tradition, Family, Property |
Sean Noble President American Encore |
| Andresen Blom President Hawaiian Values |
The Honorable Mike Hill Representative Florida State House |
| Roxanne Phillips Executive Committee Member Council for National Policy |
Dr. Richard Rounsavelle Trustee Media Research Center |
| Lewis K. Uhler Founder and President National Tax Limitation Committee |
Ambassador Henry F. Cooper Resident Reagan’s Chief Defense and Space Negotiator Former SDI Director |
| Dr. E. Calvin Beisner President, Founder, and National Spokesman Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation |
James L. Martin Founder/Chairman 60 Plus Association |
| Saulius “Saul” Anuzis President 60 Plus Association |
Rob Gluskin Managing Partner Gluskin Investment Partners |
| Matthew Tyrmand Principal Matthew Tyrmand LLC |
Danny Tarkanian Douglas County Commissioner Douglas County Nevada |
| Richard D. Hayes Partner Hayes, Berry, White & Vanzant, LLP |
Steve Milloy Publisher JunkScience.com |
| Chuck Muth President Citizen Outreach |
Paul Gessing President The Rio Grande Foundation |
| Robert Alt President and CEO The Buckeye Institute |
The Honorable Gary L. Bauer President American Values |
| Mike Palicz Senior Fellow Center for Worker Freedom |
Katie McAuliffe Executive Director Digital Liberty |
| Ryan McKee State Director Americans for Prosperity |
Dave Duquette CEO Duquette Strategies |
| Brent Wm. Gardner Chief Government Affairs Officer Americans for Prosperity |
All organizations listed for IDENITIFICATION purposes only.
