Meandering Angler: Bristol Bay Day is Aug. 24

Environmentalists, outdoor enthusiasts, and fisher folk have joined many residents near Alaska’s Bristol Bay to stop the construction of what would be the largest open pit mine in the world at the headwaters of two major rivers, the Kvichak and Nushagak, that feed Bristol Bay.

The project also proposes building the world’s largest earthen dam for a containment pond in an area prone to earthquakes.

A powerful consortium of multinational mining corporations is behind the project and exerting massive influence on the present administration in Washington to push their plan through.

One of Sonoma’s representatives in congress, Democrat Jared Huffman, introduced H.R. 2740 an amendment to a funding bill that would prohibit the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from using funds to issue a permit for the proposed Pebble Mine. It passed 233 to 201, along the usual partisan lines.

But the mining industry is doing all it can to influence the Trump administration to allow them to start digging.

Bristol Bay is one of the special places in the United States. It is home to world-class sport-fishing, the largest sockeye salmon run in the world supporting billions of dollars in economic impact, and native communities with generations of history and culture dependent on these lands.

That’s why on Aug. 24 the fly-fishing community is coming together in support of Bristol Bay. Fly shops, manufacturers, guides, outfitters, lodges and more industry professionals nationwide have banded together for “A Day for Bristol Bay” to raise much-needed funding for the Bristol Bay Defense Fund – the front-line group that is going toe-to-toe in D.C. with the foreign mining interests behind the mine. To join the fight and pledge your support, go to: affta.org/fisheries-fund/donations.

Salmon, ling cod and rock cod fishing off our Sonoma Coast continues to be outstanding. Rick Powers of Bodega Bay Sportsfishing says his clients are bringing home limits of fish on almost every trip and he has plenty of room on his party boat, New Sea Angler. Call Rick at 875-3344 to book a trip now.

Fishing for halibut and striped bass inside San Francisco Bay continues to be red hot, with anglers reporting lots of action all over the Bay, including off the piers at McNear Park and Paradise Park on the Marin Shoreline. Call Keith Fraser at Loch Lomond Bait Shop in San Rafael for the latest reports (415) 456-0321.