Pebble is U.S. mining’s biggest spender in Washington D.C.

Who are Joel Jankowsky, Richard Pombo, Peter Robertson, and Alan L Mintz? They are just a few of the 25 lobbyists who represented the Pebble Limited Partnership (PLP) in Washington D.C. last year. Their firms collected $1.59 million to promote the proposed Pebble mine, making PLP the mining industry’s biggest spender in D.C.

Agencies lobbied included the Army Corps of Engineers, Council on Environmental Quality, Dept of Commerce, Dept of Defense, Dept of the Interior, Environmental Protection Agency, Executive Office of the President, National Economic Council, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Admin, and the White House.

Influencing decision-makers in D.C. has been a big part of the Pebble Limited Partnership’s strategy, with more than $11 million spent on lobbying since 2007.

The amount has increased each year since President Trump was elected. There were 11 lobbyists promoting the project in 2017 and 25 in 2019.

Groups that oppose the Pebble mine also hire lobbyists in D.C. to explain their positions. These include advocacy groups such as Trout Unlimited, which spent $230,000 in 2019 on several natural resource issues to include the Pebble permit, and Bristol Bay Native Corporation, which spent $245,000 in 2019 lobbying on the Pebble issue.