March 30, 2009
Representative Craig Johnson and Representative Mark Neuman, Co-Chairmen
House Resources Committee
Alaska State Legislature
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801
Re: HJR28, Urging the President and U.S. Congress not to restrict energy exploration, development, and production in federal and state waters around Alaska
Dear Representative Johnson and Representative Neuman:
On behalf of the Resource Development Council for Alaska, Inc., (RDC), I am writing in support of HJR28, which urges the President and U.S. Congress not to restrict energy exploration, development, and production in federal and state waters around Alaska.
RDC is a statewide, non-profit, membership-funded organization founded in 1975. The RDC membership is comprised of individuals and companies from Alaska’s oil and gas, mining, timber, tourism, and fisheries industries, as well as Alaska Native corporations, local communities, organized labor, and industry support firms. RDC’s purpose is to link these diverse interests together to encourage a strong, diversified private sector in Alaska and expand the state’s economic base through the responsible development of our natural resources.
Oil and gas resources located in the Outer Continental Shelf out to 200 miles are vital to the economic viability of a gas pipeline to the Lower 48 and the continued operation of the Trans Alaska Pipeline System. Indeed, an additional 15 TCF of natural gas must be discovered for either the Trans-Canada or Denali pipeline projects to be economically viable over the long term. In addition, throughput in TAPS continues its decline from 2.1 million barrels of oil per day in the late 80s to one-third of that today. This trend can be reversed with production from the OCS where we should be encouraging development, not hampering it.
No one has more care for the environment than Alaskans, and OCS development has a strong track record. It has coexisted with other industries including fishing, in Cook Inlet, the North Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico. Energy exploration, development, and production in federal and state waters around Alaska will occur in an environmentally-sensitive and responsible manner overseen by the strongest of regulatory regimes. When necessary, seasonal operating restrictions and mitigation measures to avoid conflicts with other resource users will be employed.
Given the nation will remain heavily reliant on oil and gas development for decades, America must harness the significant energy resources beneath its most promising onshore and offshore oil and gas basins. It is important to take into consideration, when formulating public policy, that for every barrel of oil America refuses to develop domestically, it will have little choice but to import an equal amount from overseas – where weaker environmental regulations often apply.
With the impact high-energy prices have on Americans and their economy, the U.S. has a moral obligation to develop domestic energy sources, and the OCS is the ideal location. The resources located in the OCS will buy us the time we need to develop the alternative and renewable energy resources that will someday break our reliance on foreign oil. We encourage the Committee to vote in favor of this resolution. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Resource Development Council for Alaska, Inc.
