The Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to withdraw its July 2014 Clean Water Act propose determination that would have implied restrictions on the discharge of dredged or fill material at the Pebble Project in the Bristol Bay watershed.

The agency is beginning a public comment period before making a decision.

The rule in question, Clean Water Act Section 404(c) was proposed in 2014. It would have restricted discharges of dredge or fill material into the Bristol Bay watershed. It required a permit specific to the section.

The mine’s backers saw it as a pre-emptive veto of the mine. The rule came after a study by the EPA’s Region 10 to assess the Bristol Bay watershed, which feeds one of the state’s largest salmon fisheries.

Mike Heatwole, spokesman for the Pebble Partnership, said Tuesday "a lot of Alaskans who work in the resource development community looked at it and said ' if the federal government can do this to Pebble, who's next in the queue to get this unfair treatment'? "

In November of 2014, a judge granted a preliminary injunction in the lawsuit, which kept the EPA from enforcing the rule.

A settlement in the suit earlier this year allowed Pebble to apply for a federal permit.

The Pebble Partnership released a statement Tuesday saying it’s pleased with the step.

“We welcome today’s news and look forward to accessing the regular permitting process for our project later this year,” PLP CEO Tom Collier said.

Collier said the partnership has scaled back its plan after listening to stakeholders in the area. “We have undertaken several initiatives that demonstrate our project has been responsive to stakeholder input. This includes a significantly smaller mine plan that we look forward to sharing as the year progresses.”

Trout Unlimited released statements from lodge owners and area residents, saying it’s “extremely disappointed” by the decision.

In the email release, Nanci Morris Lyon, the owner of Bear Trail Lodge and a resident of King Salmon, said it’s disappointing that Washington leaders are turning their backs on hardworking Alaskans. “Bristol Bay salmon are what make our communities and local economy hum this time of year… The 11 billion tons of waste that Pebble Mine would produce risks salmon and thousands of jobs and businesses,” she said.

Nunamta Aulukesta, a group representing Alaska Native corporations and tribes in the Bristol bay region, denounced the E.P.A. announcement. “This is terrible" wrote board member Robin Samuelsen. "This is a record salmon season. We have our own gold mine already. It’s called the sockeye salmon fishery of Bristol Bay. And, we are currently working hard right now to harvest the record number of salmon coming into our region. For the federal government to throw all of this away for the benefit of a foreign mining company. It’s criminal.”

The Pebble Partnership says it's working on a scaled-back proposal for the mine. "That's kind of a 'stay tuned' right now" said Heatwole. "We're working on fine tuning what's that ultimately going to look like as part of our permitting package, but we've stated very clearly that we want to have a significantly smaller mine and mine footprint."