Read RDC and member comments

Good Evening.

My name is Lindsay Williams. I am staff to Alaska State Senator, Cathy Giessel. Senator Giessel could not be present tonight as she is out of state at an Energy Council meeting. She asked that I read the following remarks into the record:

Members of the BOEM,

The United States is rapidly losing ground in resource development to other Arctic neighbors such as Russia and Norway. As we sit here, Russia is aggressively developing their Arctic hydrocarbon resources and exporting them via the Bering Straits. Norway has been developing and exporting their deep water OCS Arctic resources for decades.

While Alaska holds the eighth largest reserves, worldwide (more than Russia and Norway), we are unable to access those resources. Ironically a Russian icebreaking tanker is slated to deliver fuels to Nome, Alaska in the coming weeks. It is simply appalling that Alaskans cannot utilize our own resources because of constant federal barriers to development!

The same, experienced, responsible and reputable companies that work in the OCS of Russia and Norway are prepared to work in Alaska’s shallow water, low pressure OCS environment. The 35 off-shore wells that were drilled in the Beaufort and Chukchi, during the 1980s, were accomplished without incident. There has never been a blowout in the Alaska OCS or the Canadian Arctic.

The Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement for the Proposed OCS Oil and Gas Leasing Program for 2012-17 is responsible and sound. Safeguards for the environment, subsistence use and buffer areas have all been recognized and provided for.

I urge adoption of the Draft Programmatic EIS as written for the OCS Leasing Program, 2012-17. Further, I urge the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to expedite the leasing process.

Thank you.