How can Alaska ensure that offshore drilling and marine traffic don’t harm arctic communities? That subsistence resources are safeguarded and the impacts of climate change understood?
Reps. Reggie Joule of Kotzebue and Bob Herron of Bethel have one idea — pull together a wide range of experts over the next three years to develop a comprehensive, Alaska-centric arctic policy.
Both lawmakers served on the Alaska Northern Waters Task Force, a legislatively created group that held hearings around the state and issued its final report in January.
Joule, who chaired the group, says continuing that work is critical. Through the House Finance Committee, he is sponsoring a resolution to establish a 17-member Alaska Arctic Policy Commission (HCR 23). The resolution passed the House in March and has the support of Gov. Sean Parnell.
Rep. Herron this year sponsored a resolution urging Congress to fund new icebreakers and a Coast Guard base in the Arctic (HJR 34), which passed the House and Senate without opposition.
Petroleum News spoke with the two lawmakers on April 9 about arctic planning, offshore drilling, and coastal management.
Petroleum News: Let’s start with the big picture. What’s going on the Arctic now that wasn’t going on a few years ago?
Joule: The big thing obviously is offshore development. That’s now, that’s present.
I guess I’ll even back up a little before that. Probably the biggest thing that’s causing all this consideration is the pace of climate change, with the acceleration of the melting of the ice cap. It used to be something we talked about that was 20, 30, or 40 years out. Now this summer we’re looking at drilling and increased marine transportation. Those are the two immediate things.
Folks who live in the areas close by are somewhat concerned about food security, with subsistence resources.
Petroleum News: One recommendation of the Northern Waters Task Force is to create an Alaska Arctic Policy Commission. Why do we need a group like that?
Joule: Well, do you want the feds to do it all? We pride ourselves on trying to control our own destiny. In the absence of planning, we’re reacting. And we don’t often react very well.
This gives us an opportunity to take a look forward with stakeholders from around the state and determine how we’re going to move forward with all this activity going on in the foreseeable future.
Herron: When the Northern Waters Task Force had its first meeting (in October 2010) in Anchorage, what surprised everyone was how many people outside the state of Alaska knew what they were doing. Sure, someone (from state government) knew what someone was doing in a related agency. But it was report after report of mostly other people, federal government and otherwise, doing research on Alaska.
That was the first realization that we’re just going along here without a comprehensive Alaska arctic policy.
There are so many things that Alaskans have to decide. We could let others decide, and be unsatisfied at the end that they didn’t think about this, didn’t think about that.
The proposed Alaska Arctic Policy Commission gives us three years with a good group of people, whoever they might be, to decide how we relate to our own national government and other arctic nations. At the same time, how do we provide for the people of Alaska and make the economy not only sustainable but also thriving?
Joule: Alaska is what makes the United States part of the Arctic Council. Other arctic nations have their policies in place. The United States started out with a policy, but no plan of implementation. This allows Alaska an opportunity to develop an arctic policy during a time when Canada and the United States will chair the Arctic Council, Canada taking the chair in 2013 and the United States taking it in 2015.
Petroleum News: Are there specific things in the federal policy that don’t work for Alaska?
Herron: Well, everybody has an opinion on that national policy, which was implemented days before President Bush left office and essentially endorsed by President Obama, much to the concern and consternation of some.
As someone living in Bethel, and the people I represent — I don’t know if we know yet what makes sense for Alaskans. All these other entities, other organizations, that have an interest in Alaska don’t necessarily have an interest in Alaskans. That’s the problem.
Petroleum News: In a March op-ed you co-authored, you described the task force as identifying the questions and the policy commission coming up with the answers. Can you explain how the two entities differ?
Joule: We laid on the table what we saw as the issues, (drawing from) the climate change commission that was done a few years ago and things going on with marine transportation and other things. We knew we had a sunset date and that there were conversations that needed to continue, so we set the table for that dialogue to continue.
Herron: We use the analogy that the Northern Waters Task Force was a feasibility study. This is going to be action, with 17 people making recommendations on policy.
We found so much that needs to be addressed. Hopefully the commission can create a list that will say, This is the stuff that needs to be looked at, and another list that says, This is the stuff that’s coming.
Joule: If we don’t have a strategy to implement, it’s going to be, I don’t know if chaos is the right word — highly political maybe. But it’s going to be confusion.
We need to have some structure to bring people together so we can figure out what our policy is going to be.
Petroleum News: So the commission would develop policy recommendations and then disband?
Joule: Correct.
Herron: A preliminary report is due to the Legislature January 30, 2014, with the final report and legislative proposals one year later.
We’re asking the governor to put somebody from the executive branch on the commission. There are many Alaskans serving Alaska that are good at arctic policy. This is an effort to bring them together and not have silos of information, opinions, and results.
Joule: America has kind of screwed up how they’ve worked natural resources. They’ve dumped and dug and done things in a way that as a country we’re not proud out. Alaska is this country’s last opportunity to have a conscience, and we need to lead that discussion.
Herron: When Canada takes the chairmanship (of the Arctic Council) in 2013, we should be its wingman. What’s good for Canada probably is good for Alaska, so the United States should be Canada’s wingman. Then in 2015, Canada would become our wingman.
Petroleum News: Rep. Joule, you mentioned the climate change commission that was put together a few years ago (the Alaska Climate Impact Assessment Commission). The commission issued its final report in 2008, and then the whole issue dropped off the radar, at least in the capital. Was that a successful process?
Joule: For the time we met, it was very, very useful. And we learned from that experience. One of the reasons we’re having this discussion today is because the Northern Waters Task Force is working the recommendations we made. We’re trying to follow through on those recommendations so it isn’t a report that’s simply put on a shelf and forgotten, because in my opinion, (arctic policy) is one of the most important issues we have to deal with.
Petroleum News: HCR 23, the resolution that would set up the Alaska Arctic Policy Commission, was scheduled for a hearing in Senate Finance this morning but wasn’t heard. What happened, and are you hopeful it will pass this year?
Joule: I’m not sure what happened, but we’re six days out from end of session. They’re working on capital budgets and oil tax legislation, and anything else comes after that.
Herron: I would never challenge the wisdom of the co-chair that schedules the bills. I’m very hopeful that we’ll see that bill very soon.
Petroleum News: The task force also recommended new infrastructure for the Arctic, including new icebreakers and a Coast Guard forward operating base. Why are those important?
Joule: It’s common sense. The Coast Guard could be in Kodiak. We could send up Shell. We could do a whole bunch of things and just leave it be. But is that the right thing to do? Is that how we want to be responsive immediately to these big activities?
As for ice breakers, we’re the only country that isn’t ordering them. The only thing we’re ordering is a study of how much one might cost. If we don’t lead, we’re going to follow. Is that where we want to be?
Herron: A few weeks ago, we had a presentation by Coast Guard Captain Buddy Custard. It was a packed house, and everybody was amazed at the immense responsibility and the ramp up the Coast Guard is going to have for summer 2012 in the Arctic. The assets of the United States government and the skill set of the Coast Guard will blow you away.
Petroleum News: I understand the Coast Guard is planning to station two helicopters and a cutter up north this summer. Are they planning enough to be prepared?
Herron: That operation has already begun. Soon as all that Shell stuff hit American waters, the Coast Guard had to take responsibility for the security of it.
(It’s hard) to remember off the top of our heads all the Coast Guard is doing. It’s far more than just two helicopters and a cutter.
Petroleum News: I was just wondering if, based on what you know, you’re confident that they’re adequately prepared.
Joule: One of the unfortunate things is that Congress hasn’t given them a lot of resources to work with. But I bet you donuts to dollars there’s been hundreds if not thousands of hours in planning for this summer.
Herron: This effort of exploring the arctic seas is huge. I think the Coast Guard has embraced the challenge, and I believe they’re prepared.
Petroleum News: How would you describe your level of support for drilling in the OCS?
Joule: People need to remember that drilling has occurred in the OCS before. I believe there’s something on the order of 70 holes out there.
What’s going to be monumental is once they determine the level of the resource, the decisions about how they’ll get that resource to market, whether it’s coming onshore with a pipeline or whatever.
The people of my district off the North Slope and along the northwest coast are split on the issue. There are some that are supportive as long as we have a sense that it’s done responsibly and we can react adequately. And there are many that are concerned because of the potential interruption of food security.
I think there’s a way forward. But the one thing we learned in the task force is that communication with these coastal communities is extremely important, so that people have a sense they’re being heard, that the issues they’ve brought up are responded to in some fashion, and that information is gotten to them.
We heard over and over the importance of continued communication and meetings with communities.
Herron: The people I represent are most dependent on the Bering Sea and then the Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers that drain into the Bering Sea. Food security is an issue for them.
It’s not that the people of western Alaska don’t want responsible resource development. They do. But they want us to do it right.
Petroleum News: You both advocated for a state coastal management program that gave more power to coastal communities. Why is a program necessary, and what impact has the sunset of the program had?
(Joule leaves for another commitment.)
Herron: Just briefly, because we do have a ballot measure that people will have to consider later in the summer. Whether you supported a reauthorization of coastal zone or not, it doesn’t matter what your position is on the ballot measure — you’ll do that inside the voting booth.
If in a couple years there’s buyer’s remorse if the ballot measure doesn’t go forward, because there was not a reauthorization, so be it.
Or maybe the process we have now will be sufficient.
Petroleum News: Does the language of the ballot measure refer to a specific bill?
Herron: There is a bill (HB 325), introduced by several of us so there was a vehicle in place that was essentially the same as the ballot measure.
I have drafted a committee substitute. I’ve provided it to the sponsor, Rep. Alan Austerman, and the two co-chairs of Resources, and I’ve asked for a hearing, but a hearing has not been scheduled yet.
Petroleum News: Does it concern you to have such complicated and nuanced legislation on a ballot measure, where it has to be summarized in a few paragraphs for voters who might not know the details?
Herron: Well, it’s the process we have. Whether it’s this or a different subject, yeah, it is difficult to educate a majority of Alaskans on any issue. This one isn’t going to be any easier than any other one.
