In just two weeks, fewer than a thousand voters in the remote Lake and Peninsula Borough could decide the fate of the gigantic Pebble mine prospect and sidetrack one of the most controversial development projects in Alaska history.

Wealthy interests on both sides are putting money into helping them make up their minds. There are charges of dishonest campaigning and questions about the role the Russian Orthodox Church is playing in the effort to support the initiative. At issue is a ballot initiative that seeks to change borough law to forbid the granting of permits for any big mine that would have a "significant adverse impact" on salmon streams. The initiative sponsors are clear that it's aimed at Pebble.

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