Chilkat Valley Residents Letter Says No To Palmer Project Mining Operation

A mining project in Southeast Alaska’s Chilkat Valley is, like several other Alaska proposed operations, getting pushback from locals who depend on area rivers and streams for subsistence fishing resources.

Here’s Chilkat Forever with a statement on a letter its sending out questioning the project.

Hundreds of Chilkat Valley residents say “no” to Palmer mining project

Chilkat Forever delivers letter with nearly 300 signatures to Haines Assembly

FEBRUARY 25, 2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

KLUKWAN, AK— Chilkat Forever on Tuesday delivered to the Haines Assembly letters from nearly 300 Chilkat Valley residents opposing the proposed Palmer Project. The letter urges the Assembly to “keep the Chilkat River free of acid-generating mines and full of fish – forever.”

“I have asked Chilkat Valley residents to join Klukwan in our canoe, and to help us paddle — to help us defend the Chilkat River and the way of life and place we all love,” said Jones Hotch Jr., Chilkat Indian Village Vice-President. “It is heartening how many of our neighbors have heard our call and joined us in defending the place we all call home. To those of you that have already joined us: Gunalchéesh. To those who haven’t yet: we will welcome you in our canoe.”

“Last year the Palmer Project was owned by one Canadian mining corporation. This year it’s another. What’s constant is this place, and the way those of us who live here are connected to it,” said Chilkat Forever community organizer Rose Fudge. “We call on the Haines Assembly to ensure our communities, economies, values, and way of life are protected and prioritized.”

“One of the Chilkat Valley values I love most is that we hold each other up and work together,” said Chilkat Indian Village council member Shawna Hotch. “It’s so powerful to see that happening here, with these letters. This is a call to action to everybody who is interested in preserving our way of life as we know it here in the Chilkat Valley to join us.”

In January, Chilkat Forever launched its “No means go” campaign, urging Vizsla Copper Corporation to leave the Chilkat Valley. In response, Vizsla hired a British Columbia public relations firm to the tune of C$100,000 a month for the next six months and extended their lease of Alaska Mental Health Trust Lands in the Chilkat Valley until 2033.

More information about Chilkat Forever and the Palmer Project is available at www.chilkatforever.org.

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Chilkat Indian Village (Klukwan) is the steward of Jil?áat Aani ?a Héeni (Chilkat River Watershed) since time immemorial. “Tlákw Aan” (Klukwan) translates to “Eternal Village” or “The Village That Has Always Been.” Klukwan is located in the upper Inside Passage of Southeast Alaska just 18 miles south of the Canadian border and 22 miles north by road from Haines, AK. The people of Klukwan rely directly on the land, river, and all that the watershed provides to uphold its traditional way of life.

Chilkat Forever is a collaborative group led by the Chilkat Indian Village. It works to keep the Chilkat River pristine and full of fish — forever.