VANCOUVER, Sept. 26, 2014 /PRNewswire/ - Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd. (TSX: NDM; NYSE MKT: NAK) ("Northern Dynasty" or the "Company") reports that U.S. federal court in Alaska today granted a motion to dismiss the case by the Pebble Limited Partnership, State of Alaska and Alaska Peninsula Corporation challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") statutory authority to pre-emptively impose development restrictions on the Pebble Project prior to the submission of a proposed development plan. This ruling did not judge the merits of the statutory authority case, it only deferred that hearing and judgment until after a final determination has been made by the EPA.
"The ruling today relates to timing of our challenge of this pre-emptive authority and in no way decides the underlying issues," said Pebble Partnership CEO Tom Collier. "We remain very confident in the merits of this case. Should EPA finalize its proposed veto restrictions regarding Pebble, we will pursue our claim that EPA lacks statutory authority to do so at that time."
Northern Dynasty's CEO Ron Thiessen stated, "Today's ruling has nothing to do with the merits or legality of our position in this case, and is merely a decision on timing. The court is, in essence, saying until the EPA makes a final decision you haven't been affected. As Tom Collier CEO of Pebble Partnership points out, this decision has simply deferred the case until or if the EPA makes a negative decision on Pebble Project prior to our filing a permit under the Clean Water Act."
The Pebble Partnership has a second case pending in the federal court in Alaska that charges that EPA has not complied with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) in preparing the Bristol Bay Assessment study, upon which the Section 404(c) regulatory process is largely based. The FACA case seeks to enjoin EPA from issuing its final veto. Today's ruling has no bearing on the FACA case.
About the Pebble Project
The Pebble Project is an initiative of the Pebble Limited Partnership to responsibly develop a globally significant copper, gold and molybdenum deposit in southwest Alaska into a modern, long-life mine, which will benefit not only the owner, but the people, culture and industries of the State of Alaska, as well as suppliers, consultants and industries in the Lower 48 United States of America.
A 2013 study authored by IHS Global Insight, entitled The Economic and Employment Contributions of a Conceptual Pebble Mine to the Alaska and United States Economies found the Pebble Project has the potential to support 15,000 American jobs and contribute more than $2.5 billion annually to US GDP over decades of production. The IHS Global Insight study is available at www.northerndynasty.com.