TUXEDNI BAY, Alaska -- Lake Clark National Park, a one-hour bush-plane flight from Anchorage, is known for its abundance of brown bears, horned puffins and critically endangered beluga whales.
Now, an American mining company, Contango Silver & Gold, is pushing to build a mine for gold and other metals on private land in the middle of the park. While the Native corporation that owns the land supports the venture, many tribal members and business owners oppose it.
"They're not making any more of these places in the world," said Abe Porter, who co-owns a guest lodge on scenic Tuxedni Bay, which borders the park, and whose family has fished the area for four generations. "Seems like a shame to trade that in for some gold."
High gold prices are pushing mining companies to expand production, drawing them into tense conflicts with locals and environmental groups across the American west. Though gold prices have dipped since January, to around $4,500 an ounce, that is more than double from early 2024.
"Because of the really high price of gold we are seeing a lot of new exploration and mining projects that I don't think we would see attempt to go through permitting and move forward otherwise," said Jared Naimark, western mining senior manager at Earthworks, an environmental organization focused on mining.
In California, a mining company is scrapping with environmentalists over an expansion plan meant to quadruple gold output. In Nevada, opponents launched a lawsuit over a gold mine they say will threaten a rare toad and fish.
The plan in Alaska's Lake Clark National Park is particularly contentious. In 1976, the federal government granted the native-owned corporation Cook Inlet Region, Inc., or CIRI, rights to Johnson Tract, an area near Tuxedni Bay known to have rich mineral deposits. As part of the deal, CIRI relinquished other lands to the federal government, paving the way for the creation of the national park, which today surrounds Johnson Tract.
For decades, little work was done to develop the remote Johnson Tract. The project began to move forward in 2019, when CIRI struck a lease agreement with a Canadian mining company, which spun off their gold assets into a company called HighGold.
In 2024, gold prices were rising, and Contango purchased HighGold, gaining rights to Johnson Tract. Instead of processing gold and other metals on site -- which involves heavy chemical use -- Contango plans to dig up the ore, pack it into containers, and ship it to a mill elsewhere. The lighter footprint is intended to make permitting easier.
Environmental groups say opening the national park to development would be a mistake.
Eco-lodges dot the area, a destination for hikers and boaters to view one of Alaska's densest populations of brown bears. It also serves as a winter foraging site for Cook Inlet beluga whales, whose numbers have dropped to around 300. Because the gold won't be processed at the mine, large amounts of ore would need to be brought through the park and shipped out on barges.
Local business owners worry the traffic will scare off brown bears. "Over many, many years, they started bringing their cubs into the yard, and then they started nursing in front of us," said Joanne Edney-Coray, who with her husband runs the popular Silver Salmon Creek Lodge. "It can be ruined in an instant with teams of people on mining trucks."
Project opponents, including a tribal council and environmental groups, sued last year over the venture's Clean Water Act permit, citing the potential effect on belugas, among other environmental concerns.
Supporters say the risks are manageable. "Our tribes are trying to become self-sufficient, and without some type of economic engine we're not going to," says Greg Encelewski, a leader of the Ninilchik, a local tribe. He views the mine as a job creator.
His son Ivan said moving ahead with the mine honors agreements made by their forefathers who fought to secure mineral rights here. "We, as indigenous people, have a long history of being guaranteed things...and then them taking it away," he said. Denying CIRI the right to develop the project would be "the definition of, you know, going back on your word."
As the court case proceeds, Contango is forging ahead. This summer, the company is building a 2.6-mile road in the area and conducting geotechnical drilling. It is also performing baseline wildlife surveys, including acoustic monitoring of the belugas to better understand where they swim. A government permitting dashboard estimates that the project will complete environmental reviews and permitting in 2028.
The National Park Service has mandated guardrails for the work, including the potential presence of "protected species observers" who would call off drilling if marine mammals are nearby. CIRI, the landowner, says that it is committed to strong environmental stewardship and that the project could generate large economic benefits for the community.
Despite this, many local residents, including CIRI shareholders, don't want it to move forward.
"It's a difficult spot to be in and my heart hurts," said Marina Haynes, who grew up in Tuxedni Bay and spends summers working at her family's fishing business.
"I think we're all being overlooked," said her brother, Sonny Haynes, who worries mining would reduce the family catch.
Rick Van Nieuwenhuyse, Contango's chief executive, said the company is designing the project to avoid environmental risks and bypass key tourist areas, such as brown bear viewing sites. "We are not ruining a park," he said. "We're going to do everything in a way that is really minimizing any of the impacts."
In December, Contango announced the project had gained entry into a federal program that streamlines environmental reviews. The federal government considers Johnson Tract a "critical metals" undertaking because, alongside gold, the ore contains important industrial metals like zinc and copper.
Van Nieuwenhuyse says it is important to uphold the federal agreement to allow CIRI to develop the land. "The core of this discussion really should be around CIRI's Aboriginal indigenous rights," he said.
Not all tribal members are convinced. Angie Wade, the tribal historic preservation officer for Chickaloon Village, one of the tribes involved in the lawsuit against the mine, said rampant mining has devastated Chickaloon areas in decades past. "That's why we get defensive," she said, "because we've seen how much it's changed our use of landscape."
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