Arctic Policy
1-20-13
Alaska Dispatch by Mia Bennett. The new headquarters for the Northern Sea Route (NSR) will open in Moscow on January 28. The new, state-owned enterprise will have a budget of 35 million rubles (about $1.1 million) and will set forth tariffs and regulations regarding "navigation safety and the prevention, reduction, and control of pollution in the marine environment," according to a July 2012 law passed by the State Duma on the regulation of commercial navigation in the NSR. The law also defines the NSR (translated with Google Translate) as: "The aquatic space adjacent to the northern coast of the Russian Federation, covering internal waters, territorial sea, the contiguous zone and the exclusive economic zone of the Russian Federation and bounded by division lines across maritime areas with the United States and the parallel Cape Dezhnev in the Bering Strait, west meridian of the Cape of Desire to the Novaya Zemlya archipelago, eastern coastline of the Novaya Zemlya archipelago, and the western boundaries of the Matochkin, Kara, and Yugorsky Straits." (Comment: we have warned that while the United States fiddles with Arctic policy ideas, Canada, Russia and other Arctic countries are IMPLEMENTING policies to protect their own jurisdictions, resources and preogatives. To the extent that these policies become well established without challenge, it will be much more difficult in future years for the United States to introduce hard policies defending its own Arctic jurisdiction, preogatives and resources. -dh)
1-18-13
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For ignoring the potential of the Arctic our peaceful nations could one day pay a big price. (We have always noted, however, the more alert role the Harper administration is playing in the North while US officials look for ways of diminishing America's role, zoning the oceans, discouraging development and potentially sacrificing jurisdiction in this resource rich area. ) -dh (BBC News: Russian explorers have planted their country's flag on the seabed 4,200m (14,000ft) below the North Pole to further Moscow's claims to the Arctic.)
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Fairbanks News Miner by Matt Buxton. Today Gov. Sean Parnell followed through on his promise to help fund a natural gas trucking plan to relieve high energy prices in the Interior by introducing key legislation. The bill would authorize up to $275 million in loans for a natural gas liquefaction plant and a natural as distribution system inside the Fairbanks North Star Borough, two pieces of infrastructure critical to bringing gas to Fairbanks. |
We're on the road again, headed to Esmeraldas on the Northern coast of Ecuador for a photo gig with a village assistance agency, then to Cuenca.
