By Jeremy Yurow
Environmentalists say gold exploration threatens Cook Inlet’s last 331 beluga whales and pristine Alaskan waterways.
(CN) — Environmental groups have sued the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for approving a controversial gold mining project near Lake Clark National Park, aiming to protect the last few hundred beluga whales in Alaska’s Cook Inlet.
Filed in federal court in Anchorage, the lawsuit describes the project as a direct threat to the species’ very existence. The beluga whale is a small, white, toothed whale known for its high-pitched vocalizations — earning it the nickname “canary of the sea.”
“The Army Corps’ failure to assess the risk of acid mine drainage or consider impacts to the critically endangered Cook Inlet beluga whale is a grave lapse in environmental oversight,” Satchel Pondolfino, clean water lead with Cook Inletkeeper, said in a statement.
The permit, issued this past September, allows Contango Ore to build an access road through the upper Johnson River watershed, expand an airstrip and dig an exploratory tunnel. These activities would occur at the headwaters of the Johnson River, which winds through pristine parkland before flowing into Cook Inlet just 13 miles downstream.
The plaintiffs — including Cook Inletkeeper, Chickaloon Village Traditional Council, Center for Biological Diversity and resident Anna-Maria Mueller — say the Corps violated federal law by failing to consult wildlife officials about potential harm to the whales.
They also claim the Corps ignored the impact of airplane noise from an airstrip expansion on Tuxedni Bay, recently identified as the only known winter feeding ground for the critically endangered Cook Inlet beluga. Marlee Goska, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, said it’s not too late to halt the permit.
“It’s outrageous that the Army Corps signed off on this disruptive, destructive project without looking at how it could harm belugas,” Goska said in a statement. “If these plans move forward, the Johnson River, the Cook Inlet and the animals who rely on clean water will be significantly imperiled. With loud aircraft flying overhead, Tuxedni Bay will no longer be the quiet refuge that endangered Cook Inlet belugas need now more than ever.”
Cook Inlet’s belugas are already teetering on the brink of extinction. Once 1,300 strong, the population has crashed to 331, with human-generated noise disrupting their ability to communicate, navigate and find food.
The environmentalists also take aim at the Corps’ cursory review of acid drainage risks. Documents show Contango’s own technical reports identified acid-generating rock at the site, but the Corps accepted the company’s reassurances without examining critical studies, including one that flagged samples with acid-producing potential.
If these toxic substances leach into waterways, they could poison an ecosystem that supports brown bears, wolves, wolverines and salmon runs. The potential domino effect would be devastating, according to Traditional Chief Gary Harrison of Chickaloon Village Traditional Council.
“Developing a gold mine here would be environmentally catastrophic,” Harrison said. “Acid mine drainage, metal leaching and gold mining toxics would devastate these waters, which support humans and the healthy foods necessary for our survival, including salmon, halibut and razor clams.”
“The short-term economic gains of a gold mine are unconscionable and incompatible with Alaskans’ needs into the future,” Harrison added. “You can’t eat gold.”
The Johnson River watershed flows through an area considered among the most ecologically intact in the Cook Inlet region — Tikahtnu, as it’s known in the Dene language. The river itself courses through Lake Clark National Park, where it nourishes wetlands and provides crucial habitat before reaching its mouth, where razor clams draw wildlife and human harvesters alike.
The plaintiffs want a federal judge to vacate the Corps’ permit and underlying analysis, and seek an injunction to prevent further harm. The coalition calls the Corps’ decision “arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, and not in accordance with law.”
According to the lawsuit, Contango Ore’s mining exploration project could begin at any time and is part of the company’s efforts to develop a full-scale gold mine at the Johnson Tract, which is owned by Cook Inlet Region, Inc., an Alaska Native corporation.
The coalition is represented by attorneys from the Center for Biological Diversity and Roger Flynn of the Western Mining Action Project.
“The Army Corps should suspend the permit and look closely at the damage this project could cause,” Goska said.
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