AN OPEN LETTER TO THE PEOPLE OF
THE YUKON KUSKOKWIM REGION

The Donlin Creek LLC, which is wholly owned and fully supported by NovaGold Resources and Barrick Gold Corporation, proposes to build a project that will enrich life in the Yukon Kuskokwim (YK) region. This is achievable with your active participation. Now is a critical point in our planning process. We hope this is just the beginning of a more in-depth conversation with the villages of the YK about the Donlin project.

Careful Planning

We want to share our project proposal concepts with you in this website and in more detail in meetings in your area later this winter. Most importantly, we want to listen to any questions or concerns you may have - now, while there is still time to adjust our plans and our draft permit applications to address your concerns, before submitting them to the regulatory agencies that will begin their NEPA (National Environmental Policy Act) process.

The NEPA Process

The NEPA process is time and resource intensive. Our resources must be dedicated to this process, not to continued exploration - the task that has made Donlin camp a vital employment center in the region maintaining 90% Native hire for more than 10 years now. We look forward to a day when we may learn that permits have been granted for the Donlin project and a decision can be made to construct a large mine project that will provide employment and economic opportunity for residents of the region for many years to come.

Our Proposal

Based on exploration results, and subject to final Board approval and receipt of necessary permits, we hope to build an environmentally sound, large open pit gold mine 13 miles north of the village of Crooked Creek and the Kuskokwim River. The project we propose would employ 600 to 800 people for at least 20 years, leaving YK residents with job skills that could serve them even longer into the future.

An Invitation to YK residents

Please take some time out of your busy lives to read this proposed project summary and attend the Donlin Creek Project Roll Out meeting in your area this winter. Do you have questions? Do you have concerns? Please call or write or email and let us know.

We look forward to hearing from you,


Doug Nicholson
President and General Manager
Donlin Creek LLC