Borough raises voice in mining development

MARY LOCHNER

October 16, 2008 at 1:11PM AKST

The Lake and Peninsula Borough Assembly could start requiring permit applications from large-scale resource extraction proposals such as Pebble mine, if a proposed ordinance is passed. The ordinance was proposed in the borough Assembly at its Tuesday, Sept. 16, meeting.

If passed, the ordinance would require Pebble Partnership and other developers to address potential fiscal and socioeconomic impacts their project might have on local communities in the permit application. The Assembly would have the power to deny a permit for a developer to go forward with a project. But the more likely scenario would be that the Assembly could set conditions on development, if it determined in review of the permit application that the project could cause negative local impacts, borough manager Lamar Cotton said.

“We’re not trying to be adversarial as much as dealing with any large entity from a position of strength, as opposed to being a passive player,” Cotten said. “This forces us to the table in these discussions, and makes Pebble Partnership, and others in the future, have to pass certain standards with respect to socioeconomic concerns.”

Cotten said the ordinance is concerned with ensuring that potential negative impacts on Lake and Peninsula communities by large-scale developments are lessened, and potential positive impacts are maximized.

Public comments on the ordinance will be heard by the Assembly on Tuesday, Oct. 21, at the community building in Point Alsworth. Workshops on the ordinance, also open to the public, will be held the evening before in the same building.

If adopted, the new permitting process would require applicants to commission an independent study of potential fiscal and socioeconomic impacts a large-scale project might have. In the socioeconomic impact assessment, the report would have to examine potential “direct, indirect and induced impacts,” such as changes in population, employment, income, demand for education and health care services, and price of fuel and housing.

In the fiscal impact assessment portion, the report would have to “provide a schedule of expected costs to the Lake and Peninsula Borough and any local government within the borough resulting from the socioeconomic impacts.” As part of the permitting process, the borough could require compensation for cost incurred by local governments as a result of a large-scale development project.

“Large projects, like the one being considered for the Pebble site, can cause big disruptions in our communities,” borough Mayor Glen Alsworth said in a press release. “While some impacts may be good, others will be unwanted. Should a mine permit be submitted, the state and federal permitting process is largely focused on environmental issues. These permitting processes do not adequately address the social and fiscal impacts on smaller populations like the villages in our borough. This is particularly true in the case of subsistence activities that are a vital lifeline to our residents. This proposed ordinance fills in the gap.”

Cotten said the new permitting process, if adopted, would likely be required at the same stage as state and federal permits for large development projects.

“It’s logical to have some of this review for our concerns done in a parallel fashion,” he said.

Mary Lochner can be reached at (907) 348-2438, or (800) 770-9830, ext. 438.