The Trump administration reversed an Obama-era determination that a proposed mine in Alaska would harm local salmon harvests, bringing the massive gold mine one step closer to construction, according to The Hill.

• The administration’s new assessment says, “There would be no measurable change in the number of returning salmon,” adding that the project “would not be expected to have a measurable effect on fish numbers and result in long-term changes to the health of the commercial fisheries in Bristol Bay. “
• The Hill noted that the Bristol Bay area “is the world’s largest commercial sockeye salmon-producing region and opponents of the mine fear its discharges could contaminate local waters.”
• Wetlands and streams will be impacted by the mine, according to the assessment, which expects it will “permanently affect between 2,226 and 2,261 acres of wetlands and other waters, including between 104.1 and 105.8 miles of streams.”
• The proposed mine would be the largest of its kind in North America, the report stated.
• Joel Reynolds, a senior attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, said in a statement in response to the assessment: ““The Army Corps is jamming this through without regard for science or what the public wants—and they know it.”
• Reynolds added: “To stick to its accelerated schedule, the agency has ignored major fatal flaws in its proposed review—from data gaps to environmental risks to social impacts,” he added, also vowing to challenge the mine “at every step.”

Read the full report.