The Tulsequah River, formerly the Talsekwe River, is a tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of the Taku River

Taku River

The Taku River is a river running from British Columbia, Canada, to the northwestern coast of North America, at Juneau, Alaska. Its mouth coincides with the Alaska-British Columbia border...

 in northwestern British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, located south of the Atlin District

Atlin District

The Atlin District, also known as the Atlin Country, is a historical region located in the far northwestern corner of the Canadian province of British Columbia, centred on Atlin Lake and the gold-rush capital of the region, the town of Atlin...

 and inland from Juneau, Alaska

Juneau, Alaska

The City and Borough of Juneau is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel in the panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It has been the capital of Alaska since 1906, when the government of the then-District of Alaska was moved from Sitka as dictated by the U.S. Congress in 1900...

. The unincorporated settlement of Tulsequah

Tulsequah, British Columbia

Tulsequah is an unincorporated locality in northwestern, British Columbia, Canada, located at the confluence of the Taku and Tulsequah Rivers. The Tulsequah Chief Mine is located nearby, about ten miles up the Tulsequah River....

 is located at the confluence.

Protection Efforts

Canadian environmental officials have known for decades the closed Tulsequah Chief Mine leaks acids into the Tulsequah River and ultimately into the Taku River and have monitored the site and issued several orders for cleanup since 1989. In July 2009, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin wrote a letter to B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell urging him to collaborate with Alaska in an effort to mediate the mine leakage.
An Alaska organization, Rivers Without Borders

Rivers Without Borders

Rivers Without Borders, a nonprofit organization fiscally sponsored by the Tides Center and Tides Canada Initiatives, promotes a watershed-based conservation vision for the Transboundary Watershed Region of Southeast Alaska and northwest British Columbia. Rivers Without Borders' mission is to...

, has been working to gain legislative protection for the Taku River on the Alaska side, an effort driven in part by the mine's waste flowing into the Tulsequah River.