Submitted by
hawkinsf
on Thu, 02/01/2018 - 09:38
General Information
Resolution
46471
Period covered
I. IUCN Constituencies implementing this Resolution
IUCN Members
The WILD Foundation ( United States of America )
World Wildlife Fund - US ( United States of America )
Natural Resources Defense Council ( United States of America )
IUCN Commissions
FB17E09E-5094-E611-97F4-005056BA6623
IUCN Secretariat
Yes
II. Implementation
Activities carried out to implement this Resolution
Policy influencing/advocacy
Describe the results/achievements of the activities
Due, amongst other efforts, to pressure exercised on would-be investors in the Pebble Mine Project, on January 26, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt announced that EPA is withdrawing plans to suspend proposed Obama-era environmental protections for an area in watershed of Alaska’s Bristol Bay.
This a stark reversal of previous policy of Administrator Pruitt, who previously removed the application of Clean Water Act Section 404a to the mine application, potentially reducing the environmental impact assessment timeframe from 7 years to 2 and considerably increasing investor interest in the mine. A massive campaign, led amongst others by the Natural Resources Defense Council and using Resolution 54 to mobilise public support, led to over 1 million public comments on the review, of which 99.9% were negative.
This a stark reversal of previous policy of Administrator Pruitt, who previously removed the application of Clean Water Act Section 404a to the mine application, potentially reducing the environmental impact assessment timeframe from 7 years to 2 and considerably increasing investor interest in the mine. A massive campaign, led amongst others by the Natural Resources Defense Council and using Resolution 54 to mobilise public support, led to over 1 million public comments on the review, of which 99.9% were negative.
Challenges/obstacles encountered in the implementation of this Resolution and measures taken
As the technical comments submitted by the public made clear, EPA’s decision to settle the lawsuit and start the process of taking away the proposed restrictions to protect the Bay was uninformed and highly arbitrary. EPA Administrator Pruitt’s legal settlement with Pebble was also the subject of highly negative media
Future actions / activities needed for the implementation of this Resolution
It appears that the Administration may be working to undermine environmental protections and laws even in the face of the recent EPA decision. For example, in an article about a leaked memo detailing the administration’s plans to gut environmental laws as part of its upcoming infrastructure proposal, the Washington Post reports that provisions within that proposal include repeal EPA’s 404(c) authority. The infrastructure bill is a looming battle in Congress.
Are these actions/activities planned?
Yes
III. Status of implementation
Implementation status of this Resolution
Underway: implementation well-advanced
Report status
Published