Speaker 0: Let's move to our last agenda item. Please read it into the record.
Speaker 2: Agenda item four. Oh, excuse me. Resolution 318 51. Addressing the proposed Pebble Mine in Alaska's Bristol Bay and urging the Trump administration to undergo the appropriate environmental review economic assessment in consultation with the public to protect the wide ranging interests in the region, including that of Seattle.
Speaker 0: Business Community Councilmember Words The floor is yours.
Speaker 3: Thank you. Council President. First, I will move to adopt resolution 31851 second. And so I'm going to I'm going to read some things into the record that may sound a bit wonky, but I do want them on the record because we did put a lot of work and worked with the advocates and thank them. Who gave us public comment here today? Because this is important. A lot of what I was going to share, the advocate shared. But I wanted to focus on one thing and then I will go into my prepared notes. I think it's important that the people here today in the city of Seattle recognize why protection of Bristol Bay is so important and relevant, not just to the Puget Sound or the Salish Sea, but the city of Seattle. We are looking at a 3.3 billion in seafood income alone in the Puget Sound. It provides, as you've heard from one of the advocates, well over 3000 jobs. And also this industry generates 580 million economic impact to the state of Washington. Also, I want to thank the mayor's office who will be signing on as I will move on later when I do the amendment to support this resolution. The Clean Water Act requires the Army Corps of Engineers to identify the least environmentally damaging, practical alternative before issuing a dredge infill permit. Pebble Limited Partnership, a mining company, intends to mine Bristol Bay, Alaska for copper and gold. It's also known as Pebble Mine. This partnership is part of Northern Dynasty Minerals, which is a Canadian based company in Vancouver. As you heard, Bristol Bay is home to the largest salmon fishery in the world. Native communities and environmental advocates in particular have a well-founded concern regarding the significant impact on the habitat and therefore the wildlife in the fishing industry that depends on a thriving habitat. The Corps contracted out to a company called AECOM, a California based engineering company, to assess an environmental impact statement. AECOM has regularly performed EIA services to and for the core Pebble Mine included in their recent mine plan investments to protect Bristol Bay to reduce environmental impacts. However, ACORN has stated they need financial information to fully determine if the company is financially capable of carrying out this massive project. On this proposed mitigation actions. The request for financial information has been denied by Dynasty Minerals. Again, Dynasty Minerals is Pebble Mine's partner in this project and the Corps have decided to continue with the permitting process anyway without getting the financial information requested by AECOM. The permit is on track for completion by January 2019. As you heard me share this morning, and you heard one of the advocates state. This project and this issue has been going on since 2008 and has also spent time in the federal courts. I take seriously the huge risk posed on the Bristol Bay Habitat, native communities, the fishing industry and consequently Seattle's economy. I'm introducing this resolution calling for a suspension on the federal permitting process to allow stakeholders an opportunity to fully evaluate the environmental and economic impact of the Pebble Mine plan. The resolution request the Office of Intergovernmental Relations Air to communicate the resolution to the federal government, including the White House, EPA, Army Corps of Engineers, the U.S. Department of Interior, and, of course, Senator Patty Murray. And Senator Maria Cantwell. So with that, I'm done. And then I will I will go ahead and do it, and then I will go ahead and do another adopt.
Speaker 0: Very good. So.
Speaker 3: So anybody.
Speaker 0: I didn't.
Speaker 3: If there's any if there any more discussion.
Speaker 0: A vote on the amendment. The resolution, but is there an amendment? Okay.
Speaker 3: So I have to do that too. I just want to have one of my colleagues had anything they want to say.
Speaker 0: Any other comments on the base legislation before we specifically move to the amendment?
Speaker 2: Mr. Chair.
Speaker 0: Yes, because we're a mosquito.
Speaker 2: I'm sorry. Thank you. I just wanted to echo my support for this resolution. And thank Councilmember was for bringing it forward and thank all the individuals who came forward to testify. My support for this is rooted in wanting to make sure that we protect both the environment and good living wage jobs. My family is in Homer, Alaska. My uncle and his family have been able to have a good living wage job fishing in Bristol Bay and fishing salmon every year and every year the salmon stock, it's smaller and smaller and every year the fish get smaller and smaller. We have to both protect the environment and protect the industry so that we can have good living wage jobs and we can have the ability to feed our community around the world, as you mentioned. I want to also acknowledge that this is about making sure that we think creatively about how we protect that fishing stock going forward and do everything that we can to stop this mine. When you are in Alaska, you see stickers. You see bumper stickers on almost every car saying, Stop, Pebble Mine. My Uncle Fish for many years on his fish. His boat was called the breaker because his sons were Brady and Corey, if you combine their name and now both my cousins Brady and Corey Fish in Bristol Bay every summer, this is how they now raise their two children each. And this is how they hopefully will have a good living wage job. But we have to make sure that this industry is sustainable, that we protect the environment, and that we prevent the Pebble Mine from coming in place. I believe we can do both. We can protect the environment as we protect this good living wage job industry. And hopefully future generations will have the ability to fish in this bay like my cousins currently do. Thank you, Manager.
Speaker 0: Thank you. Customer. I'm a skater. Okay, so let's just walk through the amendment first. That's an easy one, so. And I'll, I'll move. It comes from work to lighten the load a little bit. Okay, I'll move to amend the resolution 31851 by simply adding the mayor's concurrence on the be it resolved and signature lines so moved and second it to amend it as I stated all those in favor of the amendment please. What I. I oppose the ayes have it councilmember words. We want to see some closing remarks on this resolution. And I just want to say before you say that, thank you, thank you for working with the communities. There's some pretty strong language in here about conflicts of interest and what this industry means to the great state of Washington, etc.. So thank you for putting forth a I think a real significant piece of legislation comes from our worst of clause years.
Speaker 3: Thank you. Following up on what you said, council president, I very seldom do this, but I will say this on the record and looking at the legal ramifications that this has gone through, I'm very disappointed in EPA and Scott Pruitt. And of course, this isn't this decision by EPA to withdraw this respective permit when they're on track to look at these these impacts stopped in 2006 with this current administration. And I think there's something really wrong when the lobbyist for Pebble becomes the acting EPA person and that those are all political issues. This project wasn't stopped because there is scientific data or concerns or more opportunity for consultation. It was stopped for purely political purposes and sometimes things like that happened and we can sometimes work our way through them. But the damage is here to this to this area of the world we'll never get back. And so that's what I struggle with. I'm sure that's what the advocates are saying, and that is certainly what we heard from the Native American community as well. So with that, President Harrell, I moved to adopt resolution 31851 as amended.
Speaker 0: It's been moved in second. And I mean, before we vote, I want to thank members of the community for your strong testimony to advocacy as well, those in favor of adopting the resolution as amended. Please vote i. I. Those oppose vote no. The motion carries. The resolution is adopted as a minute and the chair will sign it.
Speaker 3: Thank you. Yay!
Speaker 0: Yay! Other business. Councilman Gonzalez.
Speaker 1: Thank you. I mentioned this morning during council briefing that I need to move to be excused from for council on November 5th, 2018, so that I can attend the court hearing on the consent decree.
Speaker 0: Second to move in. Second, and the Council Planning Czar be excused for the November 5th, 2018 meeting. All those in favor say I am. I oppose. The ayes have it. She is excused. Any other business coming for the council? If not, we stand adjourned. Everyone have a great rest of the day.
A RESOLUTION addressing the proposed Pebble Mine in Alaska’s Bristol Bay, and urging the Trump administration to undergo the appropriate environmental review, economic assessment, and consultation with the public to protect the wide-ranging interests in the region, including that of Seattle’s business community.