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Giant Mining Dam Would Endanger Alaskan Salmon Fishery

Giant Mining Dam Would Endanger Alaskan Salmon Fishery

The company that wants to mine copper and gold in southwest Alaska at the site of the world’s largest sockeye salmon fishery, hired a firm to design mine waste pond dams that was behind one of the worst mining disasters in Canadian history.

The Knight Piésold firm designed a dam that failed in 2014 in Mount Polley, British Columbia, releasing about 24 million cubic meters of a toxic slurry of mine waste and water into a creek and a once-pristine glacial lake. That’s as much water as all four million residents of Los Angeles use at home in 19 days.

At least 50 mine dams have failed worldwide in the last decade, including a dam that collapsed in Brazil in January, killing at least 186 people; 122 people are still missing.

Alaskan fisherman Mike Fricerro told the Alaska Dispatch News that “modern history has shown us that (catastrophic dam failures) are more likely than they want us to think.”

Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd.of Vancouver has been proposing the mine for more than decade. Tom Collier, the CEO of the subsidiary that would build the mine, would receive a bonus of up to $12.5 million if the Army Corps of Engineers approves the mine quickly.

AECOM, the engineering firm that did a  preliminary environmental review for federal regulators, looked at the possibility of a dam failure The experts AECOM assembled included employees of Pebble Limited Partnership, a subsidiary of the company that plans to build the mine, and Les Galbraith, an engineer for Knight Piésold who inspected the Canada dam before it failed.

Those experts appear to have minimized the risk of a dam collapse by focusing on just 20 years even though the dam may be needed to hold back toxic waste for centuries and despite the actual recent mining dam failures like those at Mount Polley and Brazil. Considering these actual dam failures “does not benefit from evaluation of spill scenarios that are so remotely improbable that the risk presented is negligible,” according to the AECOM engineering report.

After an October 2018 workshop on  “Failure Modes and Effects Analysis,” the prospect of a dam collapse in the next two decades was  “ruled out as remote during the 20-year operational life due to likelihood of successful detection and intervention.”

Fishermen in Bristol Bay downstream of where the mine could be built hired another firm, Lynker Technologies, to look at what could happen if a dam failed.

That report found toxic mine waste could contaminate 50 miles of the Koktuli River system and about 155 miles of streams where salmon are harvested. The mine waste could flow into Bristol Bay. A clean-up would be nearly impossible.

Under former President Barack Obama, the EPA said the mine would result in a “complete loss of fish habitat” in the region.

The sockeye catch in Bristol Bay, near the proposed dams, accounts for a third of the value of all the fish caught in the 49th state. Its value is greater than all the commercial fishing in 41 other states. The local fisherman put the total value of the sockeye catch, measuring retail sales and multiplier effects from harvest to plate, at $1.5 billion in 2010.

The proposed Pebble Mine dam would be higher than the Washington monument. Mining companies favor dams because they are cheaper than the safer alternative of drying the mine waste and stacking it. These dams could hold mine waste for hundreds to thousands of years, long after the mine would be depleted and closed.

In Mount Polley, a section of the dam that had been built on glacial clay failed. Imperials Metals Corp.,  the company that operates that mine, said it is suspending operations at the mine because of falling copper prices.

Heart-Healthy Food In Ten Easy Steps

Heart-Healthy Food In Ten Easy Steps

By Howard Cohen, Miami Herald (TNS)

MIAMI — “You can’t fix your health until you fix your diet.”

So says Sheah Rarback, a registered dietitian on the faculty of the Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami and a Miami Herald columnist.

The fuel you put into your body, like that in your car, will determine how well you run. The heart is critically essential to the body’s function as it controls the circulation of blood. When you clog its pathways with poor food choices you gum up the works and this can lead to a host of health problems, including death by heart attack.

So what is there to do?

“There is not one single food that will help you lower or raise your cholesterol. Variety is the key. The less processed the food, the better,” said Sonia Angel, registered dietitian and coordinator of the Diabetes and Nutrition Center at Memorial Regional Hospital.

“Choosing foods in their most natural form is one way to avoid eating added sugars hidden in packaged foods and beverages,” said Lucette Talamas, registered dietitian with Baptist Health South Florida. “The American Heart Association recommends daily limits of six teaspoons (24 grams) for women and nine teaspoons (36 grams) for men of added sugar from both food and beverages.”

And don’t forget the healthful benefits of exercise, Talamas said. “A daily serving of moderate intensity physical activity can decrease LDL (bad) cholesterol, triglycerides and blood pressure while also increase HDL (good) cholesterol.”

We asked Angel, Rarback and Talamas for a list of ten heart healthy foods. Here are their suggestions:

1. Salmon. Wild salmon, not farm raised, is rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, which help boost the immune system. The good fats in salmon reduce inflammation, keep blood flowing and lower triglycerides. Other heart healthy fish are sardines, barramundi and tuna. Two servings a week is a good start.

2. Ground flax seeds. Rich in fiber and vegetarian Omega-3 that is easily added to a variety of foods like soups and salads. Try them in cereal, yogurt and protein smoothies. Helps reduce blood cholesterol.

3. Nuts. Walnuts are loaded with vitamin E and Omega-3 fatty acids and are a delicious source for magnesium. These nuts help reduce cholesterol. The American Heart Association recommends eating four servings of unsalted, oil-free nuts a week as part of a balanced diet. Note: These are high in calories. Moderation is key.

4. Beans and legumes. Include red kidney beans and black beans, chickpeas and lentils. These are all rich in magnesium, vitamin B complex and are a good source of soluble fiber, which reduces cholesterol. These also add folate and magnesium to the diet. Soy is a lean vegetarian protein that may lower cholesterol. Edamame is loaded with fiber that keeps cholesterol down.

5. Berries. Berries in general are good, but especially blueberries, which are a good source of ellagic acid, an antioxidant that protects blood vessels, lowers blood pressure and reduces LDL. Oranges are rich in flavonoids, vitamin C, potassium, folic and fiber. Oranges also help lower blood pressure and protect blood vessels. (Eat the whole fruit, don’t just drink the juice or you miss out on the heart-healthy fiber.) Other good sources are cantaloupe and papaya.

6. Red wine. The antioxidants like catechins and resveratrol in red wine appear to increase HDL and reduce LDL. Limit to one four-ounce glass of wine a day. (If you’re a teetotaler, you can get these benefits in fruits and vegetables.)

7. Oatmeal. Oatmeal has Omega-3 fatty acids and is also rich in soluble fiber, magnesium, potassium and niacin. Oatmeal helps to lower LDL. Try steel cut oats for the highest fiber.

8. Avocado. Packed with healthy monounsaturated fat, which lowers LDL. They promote the absorption of carotenoids that improve heart health. Replacing saturated fat with unsaturated fat sources may improve LDL numbers. An example would be to use vegetable oil (unsaturated) instead of butter (saturated).

9. Tea. Tea (black or green) is rich in flavonoids, which is an antioxidant that protects cells from damaging free radicals.

10. Dark chocolate. The high flavanol content has a blood thinning effect that the heart loves. A compound in dark chocolate called epicatechin boosts nitric oxide, which dilates blood vessels and lowers blood pressure. Pick carefully at the candy counter. The dark chocolate has to be 70 percent pure cocoa or higher to be beneficial. The recommended portion is two small pieces a day.

Above all, changes in diet must become a lifestyle modification, not just a temporary fix to help you squeeze into your clothes for a 30th high school reunion or a wedding.

“We must consider changing our lifestyles for heart health,” Angel said. “We recommend that people practice moderation in their diets, including a variety of foods such as lean protein, fiber and low saturated food. Foods rich in fiber can help you stay fuller, and therefore may help reduce weight.”

And watch the salt.

“Flavor your food with herbs and spices to prepare delicious sodium-controlled meals that won’t raise your blood pressure,” Talamas said.

Photo: Chef Petey Jimenez, right, sprinkles some flax seeds on a salmon dish that he prepared while dietician Ximena Jimenez and Dr. Dean Heller look on. (Hector Gabino/El Nuevo Herald/TNS)