Alaska Supreme Court Ruling Boosts Gold Mine, Impacts Future Projects

The Alaska Supreme Courts unanimous ruling upholds permits for a large gold mine in Southwest Alaska, moving the Donlin project closer to construction. The court decided that the state department didnt need to consider the full environmental impact of the entire mine when approving water use and a right-of-way permit for a natural gas pipeline. This ruling has significant implications for many major development projects on private and federal land, including large oil projects on Alaskas North Slope. The natural gas pipeline will cross state land, but the mine itself will be on land owned by Calista Corporation, a regional Alaska Native corporation. The ruling limits previous precedent, especially for the North Slope oil and gas industry, and clarifies that cumulative impact assessments only apply to projects on state lands. Despite this ruling, Alaska Native tribes opposing the mine continue their challenges, pursuing federal lawsuits and raising issues with a federal assessment of part of the project. DNN | The Daily News Now! The world’s first global local news network. Every city. Every story. AI powered. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.