Hidden Alaska

"Alaska" is a stunning photographic book illustrating one of the last great natural wonders in America: The Bristol Bay Watershed. The book will feature dramatic water systems, spectacular mountains, wild and natural landscapes, indigenous natives and wildlife. Its primary emphasis will be dramatic and breathtaking images of one of the last untouched regions in the United States. All that the American West once was, Alaska's Bristol Bay still is a land of magnificent wilderness and beauty almost untouched by human ambition. A 40,000 square-mile area with eight river systems fed by dozens of tributaries, it is a natural marvel. Katmai National Park lies to the east, Lake Clark, with its 10,000 ft. volcanoes, lies to the north, Wood-Tikchik State Park, the largest state park in the nation, lies to the west, and Togiak National Wildlife Refuge, including Walrus Island, is on its shores. Its pristine watershed is home to the world's largest sockeye salmon runs and North America's largest king salmon runs. It still possesses what has been squandered elsewhere - abundance. And its survival depends on the whole ecosystem remaining intact. Yet right smack dab in the middle of this wonderland is the proposed site for North America's largest open pit copper-gold mine: the Pebble Project. The pit would be close to two miles wide and 2000 feet deep. Some proposals show a footprint of a toxic lagoon spanning 20 square miles, the size of Manhattan. Opponents to the proposal argue that the mine would be devastating to the environment, as its location is right on two major river drainages and salmon spawning grounds. They note that, once groundwater and aquifers are contaminated and heavy metals begin leaching into the system, there is very little that can be done to reverse the damage. Even more daunting, the proposal includes a mining district that could span thousands of square miles. Plans include a 100 mile road, a deep water port on Cook Inlet, and the installation of the same amount of power that is required in Anchorage. These are just the first steps in the creation of new towns and industrial enterprises spanning the entire watershed. And, unlike the wealth that the salmon fishery produces year in and year out, once these geological riches are gone, they will never come back.