Alaska Native group protects land coveted by Pebble Mine developers By The road to Pebble Mine is getting rougher. Pedro Bay Corp., a Native organization in Alaska’s Bristol Bay region, announced late last month that nearly 90 percent of its shareholders voted in favor of conservation easements for more than 44,000 of the corporation’s 92,100 acres of land in southwest Alaska. The agreement would make the land off-limits to development, including Pebble Corp.’s proposed mining road. “This transaction supports the values of our community members by protecting their land, their subsistence, and their traditional way of life,” Pedro Bay Corp. CEO Matt McDaniel said in a statement. “This is an opportunity that will provide our community benefits and economic value in perpetuity. After years of consideration, the shareholders have now made an informed decision on how to manage and protect their privately held ancestral lands.”