that environmental permits are hardly ever just rubber stamped. We are talking about a major rainforest here folks.....an ecological treasure that many people in and out of VZ feel should be left untouched. Now I don't think that's going to happen because money talks, even in socialist VZ, but enviro permits can take a long time. If you don't believe that then I suggest you do some research on the Alaskan oil and gas industry. Check out how long it took to get permits to explore, drill wells, arrange for transport, use tankers, construct pipelines, etc. etc. I won't bother with dates or other details. Suffice it to say that it took and continues to take a very long time because of the environmental sensitivity of both the land and the water. So lets all relax, stop denigrating VZ officials and let the process unfold.