fourteen times, and none had been overturned. The move was celebrated by Alaska Native and environmental groups, while being decried by Alaska governor Mike Dunleavy, and characterized as "unlawful and unprecedented" in a statement from Pebble's CEO. The veto effectively ends any possibility of the mine going forward as it bans certain mining activities in the area where the project would have been. Nondalton Tribal Council et al. v. State of Alaska DNR Six federally recognized tribes filed Nondalton Tribal Council et al. v. State of Alaska DNR with the Alaska Superior Court (Third Judicial District) on May 5, 2009. The suit challenged the validity of the 2005 Bristol Bay Area Plan, one of many Area Plans created and administered by the State of Alaska that, along with other State and Federal rules, define land status and the appropriate and legal uses of State land within the plan boundaries. The Bristol Bay Area Plan (BBAP) applies to about of state-owned uplands and lands beneath rivers and lakes in the Bristol Bay drainages, including lands at and in the vicinity of the proposed mine. The plan also covers about of state-owned tide and submerged lands. The suit alleged that the 2005 BBAP, which replaced the original 1984 version, drastically altered, without legal justification, the land-use designations, classifications and acreages defined in the 1984 plan; and that the 2005 plan failed to provide adequate protection for subsistence resources, sport hunting and fishing, wildlife habitat and other renewable resources. If successful, the suit will require ADNR to write a new area plan, a many months-long process involving much public input and review of draft versions, although ultimately, approval of an area plan is decided by the Commissioner of Natural Resources, an appointee of the Governor. As of August 7, 2009, DNR had not filed an answer to the complaint. Nunamta Aulukestai et al. v. State of Alaska DNR Nunamta Aulukestai et al. v. State of Alaska DNR, was filed in Alaska Superior Court (Third Judicial District) on July 29, 2009, by Trustees for Alaska on behalf of the Bristol Bay Native organization Nunamta Aulukestai, former Alaska First Lady Bella Hammond, original Alaska Constitutional Convention delegate Victor Fischer and other individuals. The suit seeks "Declaratory and Injunctive Relief," asserting that the Alaska Department of Natural Resources repeatedly violated Section VIII of the Alaska Constitution, which specifically provides that there shall be, "...no disposals or