The Alaska Supreme Court June 6 granted a joint motion to dismiss all appeals related to 07WATR, the first water/mining initiative, also known as the “Clean Water 1” initiative.
The action means that the first water/mining initiative will not appear on the ballot, in accordance with a lower court ruling. Another water/mining initiative known as “Clean Water 3” still may appear on the August Primary ballot, but that determination will be made by the Alaska Supreme Court following oral argument June 16.
All parties to multiple lawsuits over the initiatives (sponsors, opponents, state) agreed that 07WATR should not appear on the upcoming ballot because having two related initiatives on the same ballot would foster confusion. Additionally, the sponsors of the initiative said 07WTR3 accomplishes the principal goals of 07WATR, while the State of Alaska and the initiative’s opponents said 07WATR should not appear on the ballot because it is an unconstitutional appropriation of state resources.
One vocal group that is opposed to both initiatives criticized 07WATR as being “overly broad” and said it would have imposed drastic restrictions that would have shut down Alaska’s large metal mining industry.
“Regrettably, over the last six months, Alaska voters and the state’s large metal mines have been subject to a barrage of negative ads and false claims about mining in Alaska from mining industry critics,” said Alaskans Against the Mining Shutdown in a June 6 statement. “Ballot Measure 4, their other initiative, is likely headed for the primary ballot, pending a Supreme Court review expected within the next month. We see this measure as a deceptive and poorly-worded initiative and serious questions remain as to what the true effects of the measure will be. At worst, Ballot Measure 4 would cause a mining shutdown that would be felt in homes, businesses and communities across the state. In the alternative, it will generate years of expensive lawsuits, unnecessary red tape, and costly bureaucracy that will threaten a growing industry, and create a cloud of uncertainty over new regulations that will discourage investment in Alaska.”
The group also said a top legal advisor to the Alaska Legislature called Ballot Measure 4 “highly ambiguous; its affect on existing mines is unknown, and it could 'prohibit prospective large scale mining operations in Alaska.”
The state has asked the Alaska Supreme Court to decide what will appear on the ballot by July 10, so that ballots can be printed on time.
