National Geographic’s December issue delves into the controversy surrounding the proposed Pebble mine in Alaska’s Bristol Bay,  home to the world’s largest sockeye salmon run. The magazine’s feature story, “Alaska’s Choice: Salmon or Gold,” is available at newsstands and online. The 25-page article, written by Edwin Dobb and photographed by Michael Melford, takes readers on a journey across Bristol Bay, one of the world’s most biologically productive habitats, where Alaska Native have lived off the region’s salmon and other fish and wildlife resources for centuries. The article explores the debate over plans by foreign mining companies want to build one of the world’s largest copper and gold mines in the heart of this salmon capital of the world.

Featured in the article is Rick Halford, former Alaska Senate president, bush pilot and Trout Unlimited contractor. It’s well worth a read and the photography is quite stunning. Here’s a link.