Many of you will not have heard of Bristol Bay in Alaska. Well its safe to say that is probably one of the worlds most important wild salmon fisheries. It is a stunningly beautiful yet fragile wilderness. I am sad to report that it's under threat from the spectre of open cast mining. In a nutshell if this mine goes ahead it will probably destroy one of the worlds most special catchments, its fish, wildlife and the communities that depend upon it.
So why should we be concerned? - Alaska is a very long way from the UK. For me it's simply about just knowing that places like Bristol Bay exist. I may never visit Bristol Bay but I just want to be able to offer the opportunity perhaps for my kids and their kids to have the continuing chance to visit these special places. (I just hope they take me along!)
Open Cast mining is hugely damaging and despite what the industry would have us believe, there has never been a mine of the scale proposed that has not caused widespread and irreversible environment damage...period!
You can help this campaign by visiting http://www.savebristolbay.org/about-the-bay
I have taken the step of sending an email to the State Governor of Alaska to voice my concerns. Some may view this a token gesture. However if the Alaskan Government knows the eyes of the world are on this campaign it may just go someway to influence the decision makers. And if the boot was on the other foot we would be glad of support from Alaska!
Someone once said "they ain't making rivers anymore" in the case of Bristol Bay I would expand on this and say "they ain't making ecosystems anymore!"
Posts
