ALASKA-In a recent poll conducted by Strategies 360 Polling and Market Research, that was commissioned by the Bristol Bay Native Corporation, the results showed that a clear majority of the respondents opposed the development of the Pebble mine.

Those polled, viewed industry and development projects spanning from fisheries, oil development to an Alaskan gas pipeline, very favorably, with over two thirds of the respondents saying they were for development. Development of the Pebble mine did not fair nearly as well. Only 32 percent supported the mining project, while a majority, 54% opposed it.

Of those that opposed the Pebble mine, the survey showed that 37% had a “very unfavorable opinion of the Pebble mine. Of those that favored the mine, only 14% had a favorable opinion. The survey showed that those strongly opposed outnumbered those strongly for the mine at two and a half to one.

“Although voters and BBNC support responsible development, our poll clearly shows that the proposed Pebble Mine project is unacceptable for a clear majority of Alaskans in virtually every demographic, across all regions of the state,” said BBNC President and CEO Jason Metrokin.
The poll was taken during the period between October 14th and October 16th and 802 Alaskan voters took part. Of the individuals taking part in the survey 15% identified themselves as Democrat, 28% identified themselves as Republican and 59% said no party or other.

The polled persons were split evenly with 50% male and 50% female. 40% of the people polled were from Anchorage, 13% were from Fairbanks, 25% were from the Kenai Peninsula or the Mat-Su valley, 13% from Southeast Alaska and 9% were rural.

Individuals 18-24 made up 27% of the poll, the second largest category was the 45-54 age group with 25%.

54% of voters polled thought that Alaska was on the right track, while 34% felt we were not. 27%, the largest portion, thought that jobs was the most important issue facing Alaskans. Energy and cost of living polled at 22% and 15% respectively.

Additionally, 48% of the Alaskans polled feel that economically, the worse is yet to come, while 42% felt that things had stablized. Only 5% felt that the econmy had turned the corner.

Of all the state politicians, Lisa Murkowski polled the best with a 61% approval rating, Sean Parnell had a 52% approval rating with Don Young slightly behind with 51%. Mark Begich received a 48% approval rating.

The margin of error for this poll was +/-3.5%