The Trump administration defended a Biden-era decision to block a massive mine in Alaska before a federal judge Thursday, arguing the move was justified even in light of recent blockbuster rulings that have weakened the Clean Water Act and agency authority.
In a notable departure for an administration that has vowed to unleash “energy dominance” in Alaska, EPA attorney Laura Brown argued that the proposed Pebble mine would devastate the world’s largest salmon fishery and destroy thousands of acres of fish streams and wetlands.
Brown rejected claims made by developer Pebble Partnership that the mine should be reevaluated in light of a 2023 Supreme Court ruling shrinking federal jurisdiction over wetlands and streams. And she invoked another major recent case that ended a longstanding practice of courts deferring to agencies to interpret regulations, saying that courts still “must respect” agencies’ authority to make expert determinations.
“The record fully supports EPA determination that [the project’s] proposed discharges into waters of the United States will have an unacceptable adverse effect on spawning fishery areas,” Brown said during oral arguments. “Congress authorized EPA to use both its discretion and expertise in making that determination.”
