The Middle River Group, LLC

fly fishing, conservation and politics.

tenkara, conservation, communications, politics

Key grip and trout wrangler at the Middle River Group, LLC. Playing Doc Holliday to the Wyatt Earps of the fish and wildlife conservation world. Deputy Director, Marine Fish Conservation Network. Guide and instructor, Mossy Creek Fly Fishing. Freelance outdoor writer.

Kathleen Parker’s mea culpa is spot on

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Writing articles that admit you made a mistake is never easy. Kathleen Parker’s I was wrong about Trump. He won, and he broke us, is a well written look back at views that did not stand the march of future events.

For me she got to the heart of the damage done in the last four years with this.

Trump’s call to overthrow the 2020 election, which gained traction through a lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) against four swing states, has exposed the underbelly of the GOP. There’s nothing some Republicans won’t do to hold on to power, even at the expense of the country’s dwindling chances to unite in common cause. Seventeen additional Republican attorneys general joined Paxton’s suit, while 126 Republican House members signed an amicus brief supporting Paxton’s request that the Supreme Court overturn President-elect Joe Biden’s victory. The court dismissed the request Friday night. 

As she says, “what’s wrong with you people?” To which I add, have you no shame?

The Lincoln Project

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From the get go I was a fan of the Lincoln Project. I knew of Reed Galen from his work with the nascent Serve America Movement. In an article I wrote for SAM titled Have a Beer With Me, I riffed on his evoking Jason Isabel’s Hope the High Road. When I saw he was part of this new effort to give voice to displaced conservatives like me I was quick to support them.

As noted in Max Boot’s Never Trumpers played a critical role in beating him. The numbers prove it, the work they did was one of the reasons this four year nightmare of an administration is coming to an end and Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have a chance to lead our country to better days.

Fair Returns for Public Lands Act

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A recent New York Times opinion piece by U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) titled Oil and Gas Companies Keep Taking From Taxpayers. And Taking, got my attention. The piece makes the argument that Congress should enact legislation to raise the royalty rates on federal lands. Senators Grassley and Udall make this key point:

oil and gas companies should pay fair market value for the public resources they extract and sell. They aren’t doing that now — not even close — and the American public is the big loser.

As the environmental, economic and public health malfeasance of the current administration comes to an end, Congress and the Biden administration will have an opportunity to address the inequity Senators Grassley and Udall point out. The extraction industries deserve scrutiny to insure the American people are getting a square deal. As Theodore Roosevelt put it:

When I say that I am for the square deal, I mean not merely that I stand for fair play under the present rules of the game, but that I stand for having those rules changed so as to work for a more substantial equality of opportunity and of reward for equally good service.[2]

Fair Returns for Public Lands Act

Early in 2020, Udall and Grassley introduced S. 3330, the  Fair Returns for Public Lands Act of 2020. The following information from Udall’s office explains the legisation:

The legislation modernizes the public lands leasing system since royalty rates were set a century ago in 1920. The legislation increases both the share of royalties that taxpayers receive from public lands leasing as well as rental rates. The new rate reflects the current fair market value, while the bill also establishes minimum bidding standards to lease public lands. Similar measures implemented in Texas and Colorado did not affect the states’ overall production.

“Public lands and their natural resources belong to the American people, and it’s only fair to ask those who profit from them to return a fair share to taxpayers.” Udall said. “Oil and gas companies are paying significantly higher royalty rates offshore and on many state and private lands, and there is no need to give federal onshore producers a sweetheart deal at a time of record U.S. production along with rising climate change and habitat impacts.  After one hundred years of the Mineral Leasing Act, it is high time for real reform that gives state and federal taxpayers their fair share of royalties that fund important education, infrastructure, public health and environmental needs in communities across the country and particularly in the West. I am proud to introduce this commonsense, bipartisan bill with Senator Grassley to ensure that New Mexicans and the American people get a fair deal when they let for-profit companies operate on their public land.”

“Low royalty rates on oil produced on federal lands has deprived the federal treasury of billions of dollars. Today marks 100 years since Congress passed the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920. Since then, the royalty rate has not been addressed. This is just one example of Big Oil saying it wants a free market, but lobbying for taxpayer-funded corporate welfare. It’s time for my colleagues in Congress to end this oil company loophole, end the corporate welfare and bring oil leasing into the 21st century,” Grassley said. 

According to studies by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and Government Accountability Office (GAO), modernizing public lands royalty rates for oil and gas could increase federal revenues by as much as $200 million over the next decade with little to no impact on overall production. The bill would increase the royalty rate from the 12.5 percent rate established by the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920 to 18.75 percent. Many states have already updated royalty rates for public lands leasing to as much as 25 percent, double the current federal rate. 

The federal royalty adjustment will also benefit taxpayers on the state level. Taxpayers for Common Sense calculated that New Mexico’s state government has lost an estimated $2.5 billion in revenue over the last decade because of outdated federal rental rates, below-market royalty rates, and waste from oil and gas wells, with federal taxpayers losing an equivalent amount as well. 

“Thank you to Senators Udall and Grassley for their leadership addressing century old policies that have cost taxpayers billions of dollars,” said Steve Ellis, president of Taxpayers for Common Sense. “States charge higher rates to drill on state lands and the federal government charges higher rates to drill offshore. It’s time our nation’s archaic policies caught up to the real world and stop short-changing taxpayers.” 

“Oil and gas companies should not be allowed to lease New Mexico’s breathtaking public lands, which provide habitat for critical wildlife, for pennies on the dollar. Senator Udall’s new bipartisan legislation will put an end to this practice by updating the federal onshore oil and gas leasing system to ensure that our state’s long heritage of fishing, hunting, and outdoor recreation will remain for generations to come,” said Jesse Deubel, Executive Director of the New Mexico Wildlife Federation.

The Fair Returns for Public Lands Act of 2020 would modernize public lands leasing policy by:

– Adjusting Royalties—The bill will increase royalty rates on new or reinstated leases to 18.75 percent over the current royalty rate of 12.5 percent established in 1920 under the Mineral Leasing Act. CBO estimates that an increase to 18.75% would generate $200 million in net federal income over the next 10 years, with an equivalent amount being dispersed to the states based on current revenue-sharing laws. An increase to 18.75 percent will put onshore oil and gas royalty rates on par with offshore rates and on par with many state royalty rates—a strategy that the CBO concluded would have negligible impacts on oil and gas development.

– Minimum Bids—The legislation will increase minimum bids for leasing public lands to $10 per acre. Current minimum bids are only $2 per acre. Higher minimum bids will encourage oil and gas developers to more selectively purchase leases and clarify the companies’ intentions of pursuing actual exploration and development. The legislation will also set a $15 per acre minimum fee for an expression of interest to lease a specified location—known as “nominating” a parcel of public land. This fee will reimburse administrative costs for processing nomination requests and deter speculators from nominating wide swaths of public lands at one time.

– Rental Rates: Rental rates will increase to $3 per acre for the first five years and $5 per acre for the next five years. These increases account for inflation since the first rates were established in 1987. Additionally, reinstated leases will be subject to rental rates of $20 per acre and royalty rates at 25 percent. The bill also establishes mandatory adjustments to ensure that rental rates account for inflation and adjust at least every four years.

The full bill text can be found HERE. A background summary can be found HERE. A section-by-section summary can be found HERE and statements of support including a list of supporting organizations can be found HERE.

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As use and consumption of resources of our public lands continues we must be sure everyone is included in the responsibilities of stewardship.

Bristol Bay / Pebble Mine – Permit Application Denied

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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers let science and common sense prevail over politics.

On Nov. 25, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) notified the Pebble Limited Partnership and the public that they had denied the application for the permit for the Pebble Mine project. The Corps said the project would not comply with the Clean Water Act and would be “contrary to the public interest.” The record of decision goes into the details of why they made the decision they did.

This is excellent news and a possible fatal wound to the Pebble project. Given the history of the project, one has to wonder whether any investors would be willing to finance this project.

The Corps also provided a memo for the record summarizing their findings for the compensatory mitigation plan. The memo listed nine elements required to be included in a complete compensatory mitigation plan. The plan submitted by Pebble was found to be noncompliant with all nine elements. You can download and read the Corps memo here.

Following the announcement, U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan issued a joint statement. Murkowski said:

After years of review and analysis, the Army Corps has found that this project is ‘contrary to the public interest,’ ending consideration of its permit application and affirming that this is the wrong mine in the wrong place. I thank the agency and the broader Trump administration for completing a rigorous, impartial, and science-based process to determine the best course of action. This is the right decision, reached the right way. It should validate our trust and faith in the well-established permitting process used to advance resource development projects throughout Alaska. It will help ensure the continued protection of an irreplaceable resource – Bristol Bay’s world-class salmon fishery – and I hope it also marks the start of a more collaborative effort within the state to develop a sustainable vision for the region.

Sullivan said:

I welcome the Army Corps’ Record of Decision to deny the permit. The Pebble Limited Partnership had its opportunity to present a project that could meet the high environmental standards in Alaska that we demand. Today, the Army Corps has made the correct decision, based on an extensive record and the law, that the project cannot and should not be permitted. Resource development is one of the key industries that drives Alaska’s economy and provides thousands of hard-working Alaskans with good-paying jobs and opportunity for the future. I will continue to be a strong advocate for these resource-development jobs and economic opportunities in our state. However, given the special nature of the Bristol Bay watershed and the fisheries and subsistence resources downstream, Pebble had to meet a high bar so that we do not trade one resource for another. As I have been saying since August, Pebble did not meet that bar and, accordingly, the Corps rightly denied the permit. Throughout this process, I’ve emphasized to senior federal officials and Alaskans that this decision needed to be based on science and data, not politics. I want to thank the Army Corps and the Trump administration for acting accordingly, giving this permit a fair hearing through the regular process, and ultimately following the law and the record to deny the permit.

The Pebble Partnership CEO, John Shively, issued the following statement regarding the decision by the Corps, referred to in the statement as USACE, to deny a permit for the Pebble project:

We are obviously dismayed by today’s news given that the USACE had published an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in July that clearly stated the project could successfully co-exist with the fishery and would have provided substantial economic benefit to the communities closest to the deposit. One of the real tragedies of this decision is the loss of economic opportunities for people living in the area. The EIS clearly describes those benefits, and now a politically driven decision has taken away the hope that many had for a better life. This is also a lost opportunity for the state’s future economy – especially at a time when Alaska is seeing record job losses from the impacts associated with Covid.

The Pebble Deposit contains minerals such as copper that are in the national interest as they will be necessary to support the nation’s transition to more renewable sources of energy and a lower carbon future. President-elect Biden has stated that increasing domestic copper production will be an important step in meeting these goals.

Since the beginning of the federal review, our team has worked closely with the USACE staff to understand their requirements for responsibly developing the project including changing the transportation corridor and re-vamping the approach to wetlands mitigation. All of these efforts led to a comprehensive, positive EIS for the project that clearly stated it could be developed responsibly. It is very disconcerting to see political influence in this process at the eleventh hour.

For now, we will focus on sorting out next steps for the project including an appeal of the decision by the USACE.

It’s pretty rich of Shively to cry political influence at this point, given all we know about Pebble’s actions around this project. We will have to wait and see what they do after sorting out the next steps.

In their joint statement, Senators Murkowski and Sullivan made it clear they support the Army Corps’ decision to deny the permit. Should Pebble try and resurrect this project, their statements of opposition will be put to the test.

There is good reason to believe this project will not happen. Still, history has shown that the backers are seemingly relentless in their desire to push forward. We will continue to watch closely and keep you informed.

Note: This article also appeared on the Marine Fish Conservation’s blog.

Bristol Bay / Pebble Mine – Murkowski Appropriations Statement

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There continues to be a fair amount of discussion about the fate of the Pebble mine. One development worth looking at carefully is the statement Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, who chairs the Senate’s Interior Appropriations committee, included with the committee’s bill.

EXPLANATORY STATEMENT FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS BILL, 2021
SUMMARY OF BILL

Protection of Resources in Bristol Bay, Alaska.—The Committee continues to monitor the Federal permitting process for the proposed Pebble mine project in southwest Alaska, including the efforts of the Department of the Interior, EPA, and independent subject matter experts to help protect the world-class ecosystem and salmon fishery in the Bristol Bay region from unavoidable adverse impacts. The Committee concurs with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ [Corps] assessment of August 24, 2020, that ‘‘the project, as proposed, cannot be permitted under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act’’ and appreciates the administration’s commitment to a decision guided by sound science.

The Committee notes that on August 20, 2020, the Corps separately sent a letter to the Pebble Limited Partnership outlining mitigation requirements for the project. The Corps requested a mitigation plan within 90 days that addresses both in-kind and compensatory requirements, which the Committee believes set an appropriately high bar for this unique project. In the absence of a valid mitigation plan that has received all necessary approvals at the Federal and State levels, the Committee urges the agencies to continue to withhold the applicant’s Clean Water Act permit.

If the Pebble Limited Partnership is unable to provide a full and functional compensatory mitigation plan that meets all requirements within the Corps’ requested 90-day timeframe, the Committee encourages the agencies to proceed to a decision denying the permit for the project.

Reaction from the folks who work on this issue day-to- day were not especially laudatory of the action.

I think if we would’ve seen something that essentially recommended no spending be allowed in the next fiscal year to move forward with the Pebble project, that would’ve been a little more reassuring. But this doesn’t do that,” Bristol said. “It just seems to sort of describe the situation as it is right now.”

Tim Bristol, executive director of SalmonState

According to an Associated Press report, Murkowski spokeswoman Karina Borger said the senator wanted the Corps to know it must hold the mitigation plan to a high standard and Pebble should end the process if the requirements cannot be met.

The language is a clear shot across the bow of the EPA. Hopefully, with the election behind us the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will let science rather than politics drive the decision. But if you are following the news you know anything could happen and the administration may decide to flip off the myriad interests who oppose this project.

We will have to wait and see what the Corps decides to do with Pebble’s mitigation plan. The people I talk to say the bar set by Corps is almost impossible to meet. If the Corps accepts it, and it doesn’t “provide a full and functional compensatory mitigation plan that meets all requirements” the ball will be in Senator Murkowski’s court.

Time will tell. In the meantime it can’t hurt to send a message to Senator Murkowski.

Sources:
https://www.murkowski.senate.gov/press/release/murkowski-unveils-interior-environment-bill-
https://apnews.com/article/alaska-bills-lisa-murkowski-appropriations-5199732752e804c15e0c0b8854171e2d
https://www.alaskapublic.org/2020/11/10/murkowskis-latest-pebble-action-disappoints-mine-opponents/

Alaska’s “Salmon Forest” is in Jeopardy

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Removing Roadless Protections for the Tongass National Forest is a Mistake

In late October, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) issued a final rule and record of decision exempting Alaska’s Tongass National Forest from the 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule (2001 Roadless Rule). The 2001 Roadless Rule prohibited timber harvest and road construction in designated inventoried roadless areas within our national forests. The Administration’s action removes protection of approximately 9.4 million acres of the 16.9 million acre Tongass National Forest – thus making more than half of the Tongass available for logging and other resource development. Additionally, it would bring 188,000 acres of old growth forest to the table that was safeguarded by the roadless rule within the 2016 Tongass National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan.

The Tongass National Forest is the largest national forest in the U.S., the world’s largest intact temperate rainforest, and a bulwark against climate change. It holds some of the largest old growth trees in the world, watersheds that provide clean drinking water, essential wildlife habitat, and outstanding outdoor recreation opportunities that should be kept safe for generations to come.

The Tongass is part of the fabric of Alaskan culture and raises more salmon – including all five of North America’s Pacific salmon species – than all other national forests combined. If you are an angler, commercial fisherman, or care about fish, that is a big deal. The fishing and tourism industry that relies on the Tongass accounts for more than 25 percent of local jobs in the region.

By comparison, timber harvesting provides one percent of southeastern Alaska’s jobs, compared with seafood processing’s eight percent and tourism’s 17 percent. A report recently released by Taxpayers for Common Sense documented 40 years of money-losing timber sales in the Tongass National Forest. Its report notes:

Since fiscal year 1980, the USFS has lost approximately $1.7 billion or $44 million per year on average. USFS could end up losing nearly $190 million in the Tongass over the next five years from planned sales, and more if currently roadless areas are opened to logging.

Since this is federal land owned by all Americans, not only will U.S. taxpayers foot the bill, but most of the timber would also go overseas to China. In an opinion piece published in July in the Washington Times, Ed Rollins, longtime Republican campaign consultant and current chairman of the Great America PAC, wrote, “The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is on the verge of determining whether public lands are managed for the benefit of Americans or for Chinese economic interests.” He continues:

When you break it down at the simplest level, American taxpayers are paying for the economic benefits of China — and they aren’t happy about it. And the Forest Service proposal to drop roadless area protections on the Tongass will only exacerbate the problem.

Commercial fishing is also foundational to Alaska’s economy. The Tongass is home to the world’s largest salmon population. Linda Behnken, executive director of the Alaska Longline Fishermen’s Association, said:

The Tongass National Forest is the largest and most extensive temperate rainforest in the world. It is also Southeast Alaska’s SeaBank. That SeaBank supports the southeast economy with annual dividends in seafood, recreation, wildlife, water and forest products. The dividends and values from SeaBank are paid annually, provided we safeguard the natural capital of the forest. The global ecosystem service values annually provided by the Tongass are between $125-145 trillion. That value increases every year as climate change raises the stakes on carbon sequestration and intact, functioning ecosystems. Why would we risk the forest for the trees? The roadless rule is critical to protecting the Tongass SeaBank for future generations.

Austin Williams, director of law and policy for Trout Unlimited in Alaska, writing on Trout Unlimited’s blog, noted the economic importance and the public’s support to roadless protections:

This is the latest effort by politicians catering to a failing old-growth logging industry that refuses to adapt to the changing global economy, fails to recognize the Tongass is much more valuable for its wild salmon than as a source of timber for foreign markets, and that persists only because of massive government subsidy. With any luck, this shortsighted decision won’t be on the books for long.

More than 96% of public comments on this proposed decision favored keeping the roadless rule in place. In some Alaska communities, every single comment submitted to the Forest Service wanted roadless areas protected. Tribes, small-business owners, hunters and anglers, subsistence users, scientists, and people from all walks of life spoke up in favor of fish, wildlife, beautiful scenery, and for putting an end to unsustainable clear-cut logging of our best remaining old-growth forest.

Hunters, anglers and outdoor enthusiasts have been vocal proponents of conserving Alaska’s roadless treasures. With their large populations of game and healthy fisheries, these public lands and waters are essential for Alaska’s outdoor economy. Land Tawney, president and CEO of the Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, calls upon the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees the USFS, to consider other users of the public lands:

The backcountry habitat found in the Tongass is quite simply irreplaceable, a jewel in the crowning achievement that is our national forests system, and we as a nation will be poorer if we suffer its loss and weaken conservation standards for our roadless areas. U.S. roadless areas play a crucial role in the health of our big game populations, our iconic fisheries and our opportunities to find adventure and solace on our public lands. Together, sportsmen and women urge Secretary [of Agriculture] Sonny Perdue to listen to Alaskans, to hunters and anglers, to the business owners and community members who have overwhelmingly spoken up, again and again, for conservation of the Tongass.

While public lands issues may seem far afield from federal fisheries policy, everything in nature is interconnected. In fact, the Tongass and the roadless rule are not new issues for the Network’s leadership. Our executive director, Rob Vandermark, said:

In the years before joining the Network, both deputy director Tom Sadler and I worked to safeguard our national forests and the habitat they provide through the roadless rule. I’ve had the opportunity to spend much time in the Tongass and experienced its majesty – it is a natural treasure. There are a myriad of vital reasons to uphold these protections, not the least of which is the cultural and economic importance to the Network’s members, supporters and constituents. This action is contrary to President Teddy Roosevelt’s vision for the creation of our national forest system. I hope the incoming Biden Administration or Congress will quickly right this wrong.

The Network will continue to follow developments surrounding this issue and share updates as they become available.

Editors note: This article originally appeared on the Marine Fish Conservation Network’s “From the Waterfront” blog.