Put these salmon first

ALASKA Governor Sarah Palin's vice presidential candidacy has drawn increased national attention to a high-stakes conflict in her state - the battle between mining and petroleum interests on one side and the fishing and tourism industries on the other. This attention is all to the good, because in many cases the land in question belongs not to Alaska but to the nation as a whole.

One such clash could come to a head in the next few weeks. The federal Bureau of Land Management is weighing whether to open up more than 1 million acres of its land to oil, gas, and mining companies, even though the land holds the headwaters of Bristol Bay, the world's most valuable wild salmon fishery. At a time when the world is learning all too quickly the environmental drawbacks of fish farming, the bureau should do nothing to imperil Bristol Bay - a prime example of a well-managed wild fishery. In 2006, Bristol Bay produced salmon worth $216 million, 30 percent of the state's wild salmon catch.

In line with the governor's pro-development stance, the state of Alaska has stood aside as the bureau considers a green light for petroleum and mining projects near the bay. Meanwhile, Alaska Natives, commercial and sports fishermen, and conservationists are seeking to protect the watersheds of the Nushagak and Kvichak rivers.

The bay is also under threat from proposals for offshore oil and gas drilling and a planned mining project inland on state land. Congress recently let expire the moratorium on offshore drilling that protected the bay and other fish breeding grounds on both coasts.

The proposed Pebble mine would be the largest open-pit gold and copper mine in North America. Although the site is near a seismic fault, planners are envisioning a pond of toxic mining waste, held back by a 4.3-mile-long dam that would be just slightly shorter than Boston's Hancock Tower.

Lindsey Bloom, a Bristol Bay fishing boat captain, worries that the BLM will open its land to mineral development even though the "overwhelming majority" of comments the bureau received during the public comment period on the proposal were against development. She said in an interview that even if actual mines or drilling derricks are still far in the future, just the building of roads, staking of claims, and establishing of camps could affect the quality of the water. "Let's put fish first," she said.

Whatever minerals exist onshore or offshore of Bristol Bay can be found elsewhere. Its salmon fishery is one of a kind and deserves a higher priority than either the state or the federal government is giving it.