The Palmer Mine Project
is a proposed mine in the Chilkat Valley owned by foreign corporations.
The proposed Palmer mine project would produce acid waste in pursuit of gold, copper, silver, zinc, and barite as the sulfide in the mined ore is exposed to air and water. It is in the advanced exploration stage, moving towards full-scale permitting and development near Klukwan and Haines, Alaska. This mine project is located along a tributary of the Klehini River, which flows into the Chilkat River.
The Palmer mine project is situated along an active earthquake fault line, surrounded by steep cliffs on flood-prone land, increasing the risk of the proposed and ongoing hardrock mining activity.
Proposed Palmer mine project
Advanced Exploration stage
Three foreign mining corporations currently own the Palmer mine project.
32% ownership: American Pacific, a Canadian mining corporation, is the minority owner of the Palmer project and also owns Constantine Mining, the current operator of the proposed mine.
68% ownership: DOWA Metals, a Japanese metals manufacturer with a copper and zinc smelter in Japan, is the majority owner of the Palmer mine project.
As of 2024, over $100 million has been spent to date to develop the Palmer mine project. Constantine Mining, American Pacific, and DOWA have invested in the proposed Palmer Project since 2006, making it even more clear that the goal is to develop a mine eventually.
Even trace amounts of heavy metals in mining wastewater, such as copper, zinc, gold, and silver, are toxic to salmon and could have significant negative impacts on fisheries and surrounding wildlife.
Constantine and American Pacific are actively developing the infrastructure necessary for a full-scale mine, such as building roads and bridges and installing culverts along the Klehini River, the largest tributary of the Chilkat River. Constantine is already drilling hundreds of boreholes in the acid-generating rock near sensitive salmon spawning habitat.
These foreign corporations are beholden to their shareholders and the bottom line, not the people who call the Chilkat Valley home. Constantine cannot guarantee that the mine will operate without harming the river, the surrounding environment, or the way of life for people in the Chilkat Valley. Learn more about the risks associated with acid-generating mines. >>>