RDC NEWS DIGEST
RDC, Pebble Partnership file complaint
RDC and the Pebble Limited Partnership recently filed an Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC) complaint against some of the proponents of Ballot Measure 4, the so called ‘Clean Water’ ballot initiative which failed by an overwhelming margin last August.
The complaint was filed against the Renewable Resources Coalition, Alaskans for Clean Water, Americans for Job Security, and Robert Gillam for violation of Alaska’s campaign disclosure laws.
RDC would like to emphasize that it is not opposed to organizations taking a position on initiatives and working to convince voters about their position – they have every right to do so. However, as Alaskans, RDC believes all groups working to influence voters on these initiatives must register with APOC and meet the requirements of Alaska law, especially when it comes to disclosing financial resources.
RDC encourages its members to read the complaint and the associated materials located on its website.
The complaint speaks for itself and it is now in the hands of APOC to research and sort out.
Izembek road advances
A proposed one-lane gravel road through a small portion of the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge advanced a step closer to reality when the U.S. House passed a sweeping public lands bill that will allow planning to move forward on the 25-mile road from King Cove to Cold Bay on the Alaska Peninsula.
The road still faces a rigorous environmental impact statement process where the Secretary of the Interior will ultimately decide whether the road will be built.
The Izembek Road is just one of hundreds of projects in the massive lands bill, which designated 2 million acres of new federal Wilderness in nine states. The bill authorized a land exchange that gives the state an easement through the Izembek refuge to build the road from King Cove to an all-weather airport in Cold Bay.
In exchange for the easement, the refuge would add 61,000 additional acres to protective status to aid waterfowl habitat and provides additional land for millions of geese and other birds that live in the area. The road would be narrow and unobtrusive. Traffic would be restricted to private vehicles with no industrial use allowed.
RDC and King Cove has long supported the road for public health and safety reasons. Without the road, local residents must take a short, but often dangerous flight across the bay to the airport in Cold Bay. Residents have been stranded in emergency situations, unable to access the all-weather airport just across the bay due to harsh weather. Several fatalities have occurred as residents struggled to reach the airport.
Cruise lines cut back in Alaska
Major cruise lines, which account for over half of Alaska’s tourism traffic, plan to cut back on their Alaska itineraries in 2010, resulting in as much as a 25 percent reduction in cruise ship visitors to Anchorage and Fairbanks.
Approximately 100,000 fewer cruise passengers will come to Southcentral and Interior Alaska. The lower traffic will have a ripple effect in the economy, impacting airlines, restaurants, hotels, car rental agencies, tour operators and other businesses.
The reduction in Alaska cruises is the result of a “perfect storm” accentuated by the global recession, new cruise industry taxation and stricter regulations enacted by the passage of a citizens ballot initiative several years ago. Industry officials blamed the initiative for flat growth in Alaska’s cruise industry over the past two years and for sending away budget-conscious travelers this year.
Tileston Award nominations are open
The 2009 Tileston Award, a joint effort by the Alaska Conservation Alliance and the Resource Development Council to recognize that economic development and environmental stewardship are not mutually exclusive goals, is now open for nominations. The purpose of the award is to encourage partnerships and solutions that fuse economics and environmentalism, a goal of Peg and Jules Tileston.
The first annual Tileston Award was presented to the Alaska Board of Forestry in 2008. Nominations for this year’s award are due April 30. For more information, visit www.tilestonaward.com.
Alaska exports remain strong
Despite a weak global economy, the value of the state’s exports reached $3.6 billion in 2008, the fourth-best year ever for exports.
“Alaskans benefit from export activity,” said Governor Sarah Palin last month when she released an update on Alaska exports. “Given what is happening in economies around the world, it’s clear that Alaska’s economy remains strong and our resources are still highly valued,” said Palin.
The $3.6 billion in Alaska exports represents an 11 percent decline from the previous year. World commodity prices and demand are beyond any state’s control. The decrease in the value of the Alaska’s 2008 exports comes as prices for key resources fluctuated worldwide.
The rising price of gold brought the value of Alaska’s 2008 export of gold to $143 million from $131 million in 2007. Switzerland is the major market for Alaska’s gold exports.
Zinc prices, which have driven the value of Alaska’s total exports to the highest levels ever in 2006 and 2007, declined during 2008. The total value of zinc, lead and copper ore exports was $691 million, compared to $1.3 billion in 2007.
Japan remains Alaska’s top export market at $1.1 billion, followed by China at $733 million, Canada at $370 million, Korea at $366 million, Germany at $208 million, and Switzerland at $148 million.
In 2008, the value of Alaska’s annual seafood exports was $1.8 billion, the fourth-highest year ever and a 9.1 percent decrease from the previous year. Alaska exported $553 million to Japan, the state’s largest seafood export market, $404 million to China, $226 million to Korea, $168 million to Germany, and $449 million to other markets.
In 1999, Alaska seafood exports to Europe accounted for less than 5 percent of the total seafood exports. In 2008, European markets continued their upward trend in importance, accounting for 24.7 percent of Alaska’s seafood exports.
The state’s 2008 energy exports of $501 million included $322 million of Liquefied Natural Gas to Japan. Refined petroleum product exports from Alaska in 2008 totaled $156 million to China, Canada, and Japan. The value of the state’s coal exports grew in 2008 to $23 million of sales to Pacific Rim countries. The 2008 export value of forest products was $83 million, down 3.23 percent.
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