The House Republicans took a major step in February toward allowing oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), by passing a bill that would create jobs, increase domestic energy production and fund highway projects.

The Natural Resources Committee voted 29-13 for a bill sponsored by Chairman Doc Hastings (R-WA) that would require the Obama administration to lease up to three percent of the refuge’s oil-rich coastal plain.

The vote is the first time in the 112th Congress that a committee has advanced a bill to allow drilling in ANWR, which is estimated to contain 10 billion barrels of oil. It brings House Republicans a step closer to approving a package of energy and infrastructure bills that will raise billions of dollars for the federal treasury.

“At a time when the economy desperately needs growth and millions of Americans are out of work, opening less than three percent of ANWR for energy production -- as it was originally intended -- will create tens of thousands of jobs and billions of barrels of American oil,” Hastings said.

“ANWR represents one of the single greatest opportunities for new energy production on federal land that will help insulate America against unstable foreign energy supplies and help boost the national economy as well as the local, Alaska Native economies.”

The bill would allow exploration on roughly 400,000 acres of the coastal plain’s 1.5 million acres, which itself is only eight percent of the huge refuge.

The ANWR bill is likely to die in the Senate as part of a package or as a stand-alone bill. If it survives, it would almost certainly be vetoed by President Obama, whose administration is leaning toward recommending to Congress a Wilderness designation of the coastal plain.

 

Central Park Wilderness resolution gets national media attention

Representative Kyle Johansen’s resolution to designate Manhattan’s Central Park as Wilderness has attracted national media attention, an objective of the Ketchikan representative.

The New York Times, the Associated Press and other national media outlets have covered the issue and interviewed Johansen, who expressed the frustrations of many Alaskans regarding the efforts of non-development interests and their allies in Congress to block resource development on federal lands in Alaska.

Johansen said he targeted Manhattan because it is the epicenter for wealth and for social and environmental movements. It is the heart of where there is a lot of opposition to development, Johansen said.

HJR 31 draws a striking comparison between Central Park and potential resource development opportunities on federal lands in Alaska. For example, Central Park comprises about six percent of heavily developed Manhattan, which is less than 23 square miles in size. The coastal plain of ANWR makes up about eight percent of the 30,000 square mile refuge.

The resolution is not intended to be taken literally, Johansen explained. It is a piece of political satire pointing out the hypocrisy of East Coast interests that heavily fund efforts to block oil and gas development in a small portion of ANWR while their economy is supported by multiple use activities throughout the eastern United States, Johansen said.

 

Resolution urges feds to plug legacy wells

Representative Charisse Millett has introduced a resolution in Juneau urging the federal government to plug legacy wells properly and reclaim the well sites in order to protect the Arctic.

Millett pointed out that the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Geological Survey drilled approximately 137 wells on federal lands in northern Alaska between 1944 and 1981, all of which are now abandoned. Only seven of the legacy wells were properly plugged and reclaimed, the resolution stated.

Millett said the remaining wells are out of compliance with regulations adopted by the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (AOGCC), posing a risk to surface vegetation, groundwater, and wildlife.

The AOGCC has repeatedly reminded the federal government of the obligation to plug legacy wells and properly reclaim well sites. The state cannot impose fines on the federal government, but if it could do so, the fines would exceed $8 billion, and much more if the statute of limitations were disregarded.

“HJR 29 points out the double standard and hypocrisy that exists in the federal government’s regulation and permitting of resource development activities in Alaska,” said RDC Executive Director Rick Rogers. “Clearly, the Department of the Interior has not held itself to the same standards it demands industry to meet in the responsible development of Alaska’s resources.”

 

RDC supports Susitna State Forest proposal

RDC is supporting Senate Bill 159, which would create the Susitna State Forest over 763,200 acres of state land west of the Parks Highway.

The Alaska Department of Natural Resources currently manages 9.5 million acres of forest land in the Matanuska and Susitna Valleys. Of this land, timber management is allowed on approximately 2.1 million acres. Remaining land is designated for other uses, including land sales, recreation, water resources, and fish and wildlife habitat. Over 3.1 million acres is protected in legislatively-designated state parks, refuges, and public use areas.

The establishment of the Susitna State Forest would ensure that some land would remain available for long-term forest management. It would allow the Division of Forestry to more actively manage lands and vegetation to promote a variety of forest ages, which in turn would maximize the sustainable supply of timber from the state timber base and provide for more diverse and healthy habitats for wildlife. In addition, active management would also help reduce wildfire risk.

The Division of Forestry would manage the state forest for a long-term supply of timber to local processors and retain land in state ownership for other multiple uses. An enhanced long-term timber supply would help support the forest products industry, provide fuel for sustainable biomass energy projects, and create new jobs. It would also benefit the recreational sector as the state intends to develop access to the new state forest and encourage a broad range of multiple uses. These multiple uses, including annual timber harvests, would provide important economic opportunities to local communities, businesses, and residents.

If established, the Susitna State Forest would be the fourth state forest in Alaska. SB 159 is sponsored by Senator Linda Menard of Wasilla.

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