EPA issues final decision halting controversial Pebble mine

Plus: Mat-Su school bus drivers strike after failing to reach contract deal Email not displaying correctly? [View the web version]( [Anchorage Daily News]( Support independent reporting on what Alaskans care about most. [Subscribe today.]( Good afternoon. It’s Tuesday, January 31. In today's newsletter: - The Biden administration wielded a rarely-used tool to stop the controversial proposed Pebble mine in Southwest Alaska, issuing a final determination under the Clean Water Act. - School bus drivers in Mat-Su voted to strike and walked off the job today after failing to come to a contract agreement with Durham School Services, the school district’s new transportation contractor. - The Peabody Museum at Harvard University has transferred ownership of a rare mid-19th-century Alutiiq kayak to a Kodiak museum. The Alaska blackfish is an evolutionary loner. It's different because it can pull oxygen from free air, allowing it to occupy stagnant northern pools that kill other fish. But just how tough is this fish? [Science writer Ned Rozell unravels]( whether the Alaska blackfish can really survive being frozen and consumed by a dog, as legend claims. ☁️ Anchorage weather It's cloudy and foggy today with a high near 32 degrees. There's a dense fog advisory in place for Anchorage until early evening. Wednesday calls for a chance of snow, which will last through the week. High temperatures will hover between the high 20s and low 30s. Here’s what else is making headlines in Alaska today. — Megan Pacer, mpacer@adn.com [EPA issues long-awaited final determination halting Pebble mine]( [EPA issues long-awaited final determination halting Pebble mine]( The EPA employed a rarely used clause of the Clean Water Act that allows it to “veto” projects before they’ve completed the federal permitting process. The agency says the mine would cause “unacceptable, adverse” harm to the valuable Bristol Bay salmon fishery. The mine’s developer and the state of Alaska have threatened legal action to reverse a veto. [Read More]( [Mat-Su school bus drivers strike after failing to reach contract deal]( [Mat-Su school bus drivers strike after failing to reach contract deal]( The decision throws student transportation across the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District into turmoil. Schools told families they will need to pick up students after classes this afternoon. • Related: [Mat-Su school bus operator docked over $1.5M in contract revenues]( [Read More]( [Harvard museum transfers ownership of rare, culturally significant kayak to Kodiak museum]( [Harvard museum transfers ownership of rare, culturally significant kayak to Kodiak museum]( The Peabody Museum at Harvard University announced it permanently transferred the rare, one-person kayak to Kodiak’s Alutiiq Museum. The mid-19th-century boat had been on loan in Kodiak in recent years after being discovered in storage at the Peabody nearly two decades ago. [Read More]( ADVERTISEMENT [After a 2-week stand-down, Kodiak’s Tanner crab strike is over]( [After a 2-week stand-down, Kodiak’s Tanner crab strike is over]( After two weeks of staying at the dock, Kodiak’s Tanner crab fleet is finally going fishing. Crabbers agreed to a price with the island’s processors on Saturday. (Via KMXT Radio) [Read More]( [Alaska tuberculosis surge prompts debate over training and treatment strategies]( [Alaska tuberculosis surge prompts debate over training and treatment strategies]( At a health summit in Anchorage last week, experts said that effective prevention and treatment of tuberculosis in modern times requires an understanding of past tuberculosis-related trauma, especially among Alaska's Indigenous population. (Via Alaska Beacon) [Read More]( ADVERTISEMENT More from the ADN [2 found dead in Northwest Alaska home destroyed by fire, troopers say]( [2 found dead in Northwest Alaska home destroyed by fire, troopers say]( [Read More]( [Oil companies post record-smashing profits as gas prices creep up]( [Oil companies post record-smashing profits as gas prices creep up]( [Read More]( [No charges filed yet in downtown Anchorage shooting that left 21-year-old man dead]( [No charges filed yet in downtown Anchorage shooting that left 21-year-old man dead]( [Read More]( [School librarians vilified as the ‘arm of Satan’ in book-banning wars]( [School librarians vilified as the ‘arm of Satan’ in book-banning wars]( [Read More]( [The Rewind: Chugiak hockey heads to regions undefeated, Dimond hands West Valley basketball first loss]( [The Rewind: Chugiak hockey heads to regions undefeated, Dimond hands West Valley basketball first loss]( [Read More]( [Rep. George Santos steps down from committees amid investigation of fabrications in his biography and campaign finance reports]( [Rep. George Santos steps down from committees amid investigation of fabrications in his biography and campaign finance reports]( [Read More]( [You don’t want to return to the office full time? Prepare to negotiate.]( [You don’t want to return to the office full time? Prepare to negotiate.]( [Read More]( [Get digital access to the ADN for as low as $1.99 for the first month]( and help us cover the news that matters most here in Alaska. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [Click here to unsubscribe and manage your email subscriptions.]( Anchorage Daily News 300 W 31st Avenue, Anchorage, AK 99503