Public meetings on DEIS to begin Monday

On Monday, March 25, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) begins a series of 9 public hearings on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) developed as part of the Pebble permitting process. The meetings will be held in the same communities where the Corps held its scoping meetings: Naknek, Kokhanok, Newhalen, Igiugig, New Stuyahok, Nondalton, Dillingham, Homer and Anchorage.

According to the Corps, there will be live microphones to provide testimony. This will be “first come, first served,” so members of the public wanting to speak are advised to show up at the beginning of the hearing window. The Corps will set a time limit for each speaker – likely 2-3 minutes – dependent on how many individuals sign up to speak. Testimony will also be taken by court reporters. Translators will be available.

The Corps published its Draft Environmental Impact Statement on February 20. It is available for review at https://web.archive.org/web/20201223052133/https://pebbleprojecteis.com/. It follows a prescribed format that includes “purpose and need of the proposed project, the proposed alternatives, the assessment of the environmental impacts of those alternatives, and mitigation to further avoid or minimize impacts.”
The Corps is seeking “substantive” comments that add to its analysis in those four areas.

Public Meeting dates and times

For additional details, see the Corps’ DEIS Info Package.

Read the Corps’ Tips for Commenting.

You can also submit written comments at the Corps’ website.