The state has approved the first segment of a mining road requested by Grand Portage Resources Ltd., a Canadian mining company. Nearly 90% of 196 public comments received earlier this year opposed the road.“Alaska’s public lands and transportation systems exist to serve Alaskans — not to subsidize private industrial expansion at public expense,” wrote Juneau resident Brooks Horan.The private non-exclusive easement includes a 15-foot-wide gravel road and two one-acre helicopter pads on state land off Glacier Highway. The road will stretch for approximately 1.3 miles between the Herbert Glacier and Eagle Glacier trail and does not directly intersect any of the existing recreation trails. For this reason, the state acknowledges that while the road and staging areas will impact recreation in the area, it “does not agree that the wild and scenic nature of the area will be irreversibly damaged by approving this easement.”
“This is a small total footprint within the entire Eagle-Herbert River valley. Due to the non-exclusivity of the easement, public access will not be restricted within the area, therefore even though the experience may change, the public will still be able to recreate within the corridor,” the state’s public notice issued last Tuesday states.In July, local conservation nonprofits gathered community members concerned about the road and proposed mining project. Attendee Riley Moser said even though public access will not be restricted, it would be severely disrupted by safety hazards and noise.
