Governor Sean Parnell Plays Offense With Federal Government - Secretary Ken Salazar Completes Surprise Trip to Alaska With Morning Press Conference

CALL TO ACTION: LIFT THE OCS MORATORIUM!!!

 CBC.  Mackenzie Pipeline dissention over 'transparency'.

Governor Sean Parnell Challenges Overreaching Federal Government

Yesterday, reporters gathered in Governor Sean Parnell’s (NGP Photo) Anchorage office to hear him describe an Alaska petition to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to remove (“delist”) Steller sea lions from Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections in Southeast Alaska.   In response to questioning, he invited likeminded stakeholders to support the State’s petition. He noted that the action was taken in coordination with Washington and Oregon, also petitioning for a “delisting” of Steller sea lions.

 

Parnell, accompanied by Attorney General Dan Sullivan (NGP Photo-l) and ESA Coordinator Douglas Vincent-Lang (NGP Photo-r), said there is insufficient science to support continued protections and that the State’s petition seeks to “balance protection of the species with protection for Alaska’s citizens.”  He added that,  “We’re working on multiple fronts to ensure that commercial fishing and other important economic activities are not blocked by unwarranted ESA regulations. Removing a recovered species from the list reduces needless bureaucracy and litigation risks.” 

 

Sullivan pointed out that ESA protection for a species that is growing in population and whose survival is not threatened puts into motion a “thicket of regulations” that has negative effects on commercial fishing and other human activities.   “The general point I’d like to make,” Sullivan said, “is to underscore that you have a case of the Federal government addressing an Alaska issue with a sledge hammer, without taking into consideration the interests of the people of Alaska. The agency’s conclusion that additional fishing restrictions are necessary is not supported by the best available scientific information,” he said. “The drastic measures proposed by NMFS are simply not necessary....”

 

Both Parnell and Sullivan pointed out that the State had a duty to defend the public interest and that the ESA petition was a first step the State was taking to go on the ‘offense’ with the Federal government. They noted that this contrasted with the usual practice of attempting to ‘defend’ Alaska’s interest against “over reaching” federal actions affecting the state.

 

Vincent-Lang was assigned to be the State’s ESA Coordinator following the Legislature’s appropriation of $1 million to support such legal effort. He pointed out that even with removal of the sea lion endangerment listing, sufficient protections for the species will remain in place. “Washington and Oregon agree with us and have filed similar petitions”, he said. As an example, he cited the Marine Mammals Protection Act which had not been in place decades ago when fishermen hunted sea lions. These 500-600 pound animals can live to 20 or 30 and thrive – depending on Southern or Western Alaska locations – on commercial fish stock like Pollock, Atka mackerel, flounder, herring, salmon, cod and rockfish. He said Alaska populations west of Cape Suckling are stable and the Southeastern populations are growing at an average 3% annual rate. “There is no evidence they are experiencing a lack of prey availability,” he said.

 

Parnell said the State was exploring similar alliances with other states to confront Federal application of the Endangered Species Act. “We’ve seen a lot of angst about the way the ESA has been used and abused,” he said.

 

We asked the Governor if his Administration considered the many detrimental actions of the federal government to be violations of the Statehood compact (i.e. the Constitution and the plebiscite and Statehood Act which enabled it).  “You have to consider the economic impact of the ESA on our citizens and it is a constitutional duty to do so,” he said. “Our state was founded on the principle that natural resources should be developed for the maximum benefit of the people.”  

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar's Surprise Trip (See 9-1 Press Release) 

1.  Yesterday, as reported by KTUU.  Interior Secretary Ken Salazar (NGP Photo) will be in Anchorage Friday for a press conference. He held a town hall meeting Thursday afternoon in Barrow, which the Interior Department says is meant to gather information on issues important to the North Slope.  The meeting was open to the public, but the Interior Department denied requests for a teleconference.  Salazar’s press secretary says he will be available for questions during Friday’s press conference.  Contact Ted Land at tland@ktuu.com

2.  ANCHORAGE, AK - At the conclusion of his trip to Alaska, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar will hold a press conference to discuss issues in the North Slope and summarize his trip through Alaska. Secretary Salazar will be joined by Deputy Secretary David J. Hayes.

On April 11, 2009, your author wrote the following letter to the editor of the Anchorage Daily News.  It described the benefits to America and Alaska of maintaining a reasonable OCS oil and gas exploration and development program.  In light of Secretary Salazar's surprise visit this week, it seems appropriate to review.  What say you?  -dh