About the Matanuska River Watershed
What the Coalition is Working to Preserve
Castle Mountain Fault and Earthquakes
Wishbone Hill Coal Mine- UPDATE!
The Mental Health Trust Land Office owns over 30,000 acres of subsurface rights to land in the Chickaloon community. On 10,000 of acres of this land, MHTLO also owns the surface rights.
MHTLO has shown interest in one of CMC's economic development alternatives to coal mining in Chickaloon- a coal sequestration/carbon credit program.
We're looking for companies who might be interested in purchasing carbon credits to keep Chickaloon coal in the ground... please contact us immediately if you have ideas to help make this idea a reality.
The Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority put up nearly a quarter of the Matanuska Valley Moose Range for lease in 2006.
Vancouver-based Full Metal Minerals leased over 22,000 acres of prime moose habitat surrounding the quiet community of Chickaloon for coal exploration and development.
The coal was proposed to be exported to Asia, where it would be burned for steel refining. Most of the mercury pollution currently cited in Alaska is from coal being burned in developing countries across the Pacific Ocean.
Full Metal Minerals relinquished the coal leased lands back to the Mental Health Trust in April 2007 due to pressure from concerned citizens.
We are opposed to such a project due the short and long-term degrading effects that such a project would have on the local economy, residents and ecosystem.
Studies have linked coal exploration and development to an increased incidence of earthquakes. Read the article...
And consider the amounts of coal dust that could be spread by our Matanuska winds... one such example of this has been borne out in Seward as a result of Usibelli coal being stockpiled for shipment to Asia. See the photos...