00 CS FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 20(ENE)
01 Urging the President of the United States, the United States Congress, and the Secretary
02 of the United States Department of Agriculture not to implement protection of
03 inventoried roadless areas under the "roadless rule" or otherwise restrict the
04 development of necessary hydroelectric projects in the Tongass National Forest and the
05 Chugach National Forest.
06 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:
07 WHEREAS inventoried roadless areas, as defined in 36 C.F.R. 294.11, constitute
08 approximately 57 percent of the acreage in the Tongass National Forest; and
09 WHEREAS the United States Congress has designated an additional 35 percent of the
10 acreage in the Tongass National Forest as wilderness; and
11 WHEREAS there is an extensive system of federally protected areas in the state; and
12 WHEREAS, on May 28, 2010, the Secretary of the United States Department of
13 Agriculture issued Secretary's Memorandum 1042-155 that reserves to the Secretary the
14 authority to approve or disapprove road construction or reconstruction and the cutting, sale, or
15 removal of timber in areas identified in the set of inventoried roadless area maps contained in
01 volume 2 of the Forest Service Roadless Area Conservation Final Environmental Impact
02 Statement, dated November 2000; and
03 WHEREAS the Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture has
04 approved only seven projects under the authority reserved in Secretary's Memorandum 1042-
05 155; and
06 WHEREAS 14 of the 15 hydroelectric projects in the Tongass National Forest and
07 Chugach National Forest are subject to the protection of inventoried roadless areas under 36
08 C.F.R. 294.10 - 294.18 ("roadless rule") and will require approval by the Secretary of the
09 United States Department of Agriculture; and
10 WHEREAS failure of the Secretary of the United States Department of Agriculture to
11 approve the hydroelectric projects in the Tongass National Forest and the Chugach National
12 Forest would jeopardize the approval of necessary preliminary permits by the Federal Energy
13 Regulatory Commission because, without the Secretary of Agriculture's approval, the
14 hydroelectric projects would not be able to proceed with the field studies and planning that are
15 required for a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission preliminary permit; and
16 WHEREAS the inability to develop hydroelectric projects and construct power lines
17 to bring electricity to communities in the state will result in continued diesel power generation
18 that emits pollutants into the environment; and
19 WHEREAS the protection of inventoried roadless areas under the "roadless rule" in
20 36 C.F.R. 294.10 - 294.18 and the inability to produce and distribute hydro-generated
21 electricity will adversely affect communities in the Tongass National Forest and the Chugach
22 National Forest and will thwart the policy of the state, as stated in sec. 1, ch. 82, SLA 2010, to
23 generate 50 percent of the energy in the state from renewable sources; and
24 WHEREAS the President of the United States has pledged to embrace and encourage
25 the development of renewable energy sources and has set a goal of having 25 percent of the
26 energy generated in the United States come from renewable energy resources by 2025;
27 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the President of the
28 United States, the United States Congress, and the Secretary of the United States Department
29 of Agriculture not to implement protection of inventoried roadless areas under 36 C.F.R.
30 294.10 - 294.14 or otherwise restrict the development of necessary hydroelectric projects in
31 the Tongass National Forest and the Chugach National Forest.
01 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Barack Obama, President of
02 the United States; the Honorable Joseph R. Biden, Jr., Vice-President of the United States and
03 President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Tom Vilsack, United States Secretary of
04 Agriculture; the Honorable John Boehner, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; the
05 Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; the
06 Honorable Harry Reid, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Mitch McConnell,
07 Minority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Jeff Bingaman, Chair of the Energy and
08 Natural Resources Committee of the U.S. Senate; and the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the
09 Honorable Mark Begich, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative,
10 members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.