www.AKRDC.org 27 This Edition Sponsored By Alaska Railroad Corporation Usibelli Coal Mine, Inc. MAY2004 R E V I E W RESOURCE A PERIODIC PUBLICATION OF THE RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT COUNCIL FOR ALASKA, INC. www.akrdc.org Editor’s Note: This is a condensed version of a feature story published in Northwest Education Magazine. The original version can be read at www.nwrel.org/nw edu/ In September 1969, U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson announced from Seattle that the first Earth Day would be celebrated come springtime. That same month, a thousand miles away in Anchorage, the State of Alaska took historic bids from the world’s oil companies for the right to drill in Prudhoe Bay. These two events radiated from their Northwest epicenter into a national furor that continues, 34 years later, between environmental activists and those who push for development of the nation’s natural resources. But a decade into the debate, during the litigious 1970s, many began to refine their approaches to the issue. On the part of industry — timber, mining, and oil companies — this meant investing considerably in creating educational programs to teach the public about natural resources and their beneficial uses. While it’s unlikely that the person on the street would single out BP, ExxonMobil, Boise-Cascade, or Weyerhaeuser as major contributors to education today, that is precisely the case. Natural resource industries are laying out philanthropic dollars to develop and disseminate environmental education materials, student learning activities, and teacher training. Skeptics might assume that the materials they create are merely propaganda aimed at influencing future voters and consumers. However, the materials are used enthusiastically by many teachers, and workshop participants surveyed are overwhelmingly positive, saying that the materials are objective, engaging, relevant, and tightly connected to state academic learning requirements. Moreover, supporters of the curricula point to the close partnerships that industry associations have formed with state and district education leaders, collaborating on the development of curricula to ensure that materials meet the learning needs of students. While detractors say such industrysponsored curricula must be inherently biased, written with the intent to sway young minds in favor of development, others say that school materials and textbooks, in general, overwhelmingly favor an environmentalist point of view. Paul T. Hill, director of the Center on Reinventing Public Education at the University of Washington, observed that “value-laden areas” of the school curriculum, such as environmental education, reproductive health, and civics, are inevitably going to be tugged this way and that by politics. (Continued to page 4) I N S I D E AMEREF Program 1, 4-5 Gas Pipeline Perspective3 State Fiscal Solution 3, 7 Fisheries Policy 6 South Denali Project 7 TAPS Reconfiguration 8 Yellow-Billed Loon 9 Pogo Permit Appeal 10 RDC News Digest 11 NATURAL RESOURCES KIDS ARE A PRECIOUS RESOURCE TO INDUSTRY, WHICH INVESTS IN PROGRAMS TO TEACH THEM ABOUT NATURAL RESOURCES AND THE ENVIRONMENT BY JIM LEMONDS A student in Minto “mines” a cookie, an activity that is part of a resources kit produced by AMEREF. RESOURCEreview This edition sponsored by: ConocoPhillips & Dowland-Bach 20 years after the oil spill 1, 6-7 Where does AK find $3 billion? 3 Point Thomson 4 State to sue over beluga listing 5 RDC federal policy positions 5 Alaska at 50 8 South Denali project 9 From the President 10 RDC News Digest 11 In This Issue A periodic publication of the Resource Development Council for Alaska, Inc. akrdc.org February-March 2009 Safer Sound 20 years after the Alaska oil spill: Then and Now A Crowley tug turns a tanker in a response drill in Prince William Sound. Nearly 20 years have passed since the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill in Prince William Sound. The anniversary will no doubt resurrect images of oiled beaches and wildlife, and bring back painful memories for many Alaskans directly impacted by the spill. The oil spill was clearly one of the darkest events to occur in Alaska since statehood. But the oil spill experience is not only one of harm and recovery, it is also of lessons learned and actions taken. Alaska today has the best marine transportation system in the world, thanks to extensive industry investment, strengthened state and federal laws, and dedicated efforts by local communities. • A series of state and federal laws now give the Sound the strictest spill prevention and preparedness regulations in the world. Detailed spill prevention and contingency plans are in place, developed by individual shippers and Alyeska Pipeline Service Company and approved by the state. Extensive spill drills are held each year by major shippers. • Special double-hull tankers have been built especially for the Alaska trade and are now in operation. The new ships have (Continued to page 6) ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Resource Review April 2001 A periodic publication of the Resource Development Council, Inc. This edition sponsored by Arctic Slope Regional Corp. Alaskans overwhelmingly support opening fraction of ANWR for oil INSIDE • ANWR on its own merits: A case for oil development • Myths of ANWR •The truth about Arctic caribou Murkowski’s new energy package The area within ANWR proposed for oil and gas development is the flat and treeless Coastal Plain which represents eight percent of the 19.6-million acre refuge. Congress specifically excluded this area from ANWR’s Wilderness designation in 1980. A new poll of Alaska residents shows overwhelming support across the state for oil and gas development in the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Dittman Research Corporation conducted a statewide telephone poll in January to ask the same question posed over the past eleven years. “Do you support oil and gas exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, also known as ANWR?” “Public support has consistently exceeded opposition by wide margins over ten years,” states the Dittman Research report. With 75 percent favoring development, the 2001 results show the highest approval since the polling question was first posed to Alaskans. “Oddly enough, our fellow Alaskans don’t believe that Alaskans support development in ANWR,” said Jerome Selby, Co-Chair of Arctic Power. “The long-term, consistent polling data presented today should end that belief.” (Continued to page 7) Question: Do you support or oppose oil and gas exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, also known as ANWR? Support 75% Oppose 23% Unsure 2% THIS EDITION SPONSORED BY AT&T AND THE NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH Alaska Industry Outlook for 2021 By Kari Nore Despite the many challenges that all resource development industries faced this year, industry panelists speaking at the Alaska Resources Conference in November found plenty of common ground in looking forward to 2021, in addition to identifying positive aspects of 2020. One important highlight for 2020 was the full exemption of the Tongass National Forest from the Roadless Rule, which John Sturgeon, President of Koncor Forest Products, noted would open up more lands to timber sales, however he cautioned that the exemption could be reversed with the incoming federal administration. Stephanie Madsen, Executive Director, At-Sea Processors Association, echoed similar concerns with the new incoming federal administration and how drastic changes to the fishing industry could be executed through executive orders. For example, implementing the 30 by 30 plan, which could severely hamper the ability to operate fisheries in Alaska, and would largely hinge on who is in the regulatory seat for fisheries. There was plenty of good news in 2020 for the mining sector as Karen Matthias, Executive Director of the Council of Alaska Producers, reported that mining started off very strong in 2020 with great prices and high demand for minerals. She also noted that despite the challenges and costs with managing COVID-19 at mining sites across the state, there has been a surprising amount of goods news – the strong commodity prices helped to encourage additional investment and exploration. It is often darkest right before the dawn. As COVID-19 continues and Alaskans hunker down for the holidays, light is appearing at the end of the tunnel. A sustainable economic recovery in a state heavily dependent on the development of its natural resources to fund public services may be right around the corner. Rising oil prices and more certainty around Alaska’s oil tax system has already improved the outlook on North Slope production. The mining industry is moving forward and the tourism and fishing sectors are looking at improving markets in 2021. ConocoPhillips announced at RDC’s Alaska Resources Conference in November that it will begin gearing up four rigs at North Slope drilling projects this month. Going from zero to four active rigs will boost production by thousands of barrels per day and put up to 1,000 Alaskans back to work. Major development prospects, like Willow and Pikka, are back on track to get positive final investment decisions in 2021. Continued to page 2 As 2020 ends, things may not be as bad as they seem North Slope drilling is expected to resume this winter after the defeat of Ballot Measure One. Speaking at RDC’s virtual conference, ConocoPhillips Alaska president Joe Marushack cited the defeat of Ballot Measure One as a primary factor for resumption of drilling, providing some hope that the North Slope renaissance will continue. 2020 was supposed to be the company’s largest exploration and winter construction season ever. However, as the pandemic spread across the world, the demand for oil crashed, followed by a collapse of oil prices. The company was forced to suspend development and cut production. Thousands of workers were flown off the North Slope. A third of all industry jobs were lost. Another glimmer of light is the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is moving forward with the first lease sale in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge on January 6th. The BLM is currently taking nominations for which leases to offer in the sale. However, forward movement in ANWR could face Continued to page 4
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