00CS FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 46(RES)                                                                               
01 Endorsing development of the Fall Creek hydroelectric project near Gustavus.                                            
02 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
03  WHEREAS electricity used in Glacier Bay National Park and Gustavus is provided                                         
04 by diesel generation; and                                                                                               
05  WHEREAS power consumption in this area is projected to increase; and                                                   
06  WHEREAS a small hydroelectric project at Fall Creek could satisfy the needs of                                         
07 Glacier Bay National Park and the community of Gustavus well into the 21st century; and                                 
08  WHEREAS  hydroelectric generation at Fall Creek would result in fuel savings,                                          
09 reduced operating and maintenance costs, and provide the necessary improvements and                                     
10 upgrades to the existing power system to meet demand, and thereby reduce power costs to                                 
11 consumers; and                                                                                                          
12  WHEREAS the Fall Creek hydroelectric project is intended to be financed solely by                                      
13 private capital; and                                                                                                    
14  WHEREAS issues related to Glacier Bay National Park are frequently contentious, but                                    

01 the community of Gustavus and the National Park Service agree that the Fall Creek                                       
02 hydroelectric project could be environmentally sound and economically advantageous; and                                 
03  WHEREAS the community of Gustavus recently reaffirmed support of the Fall Creek                                        
04 hydroelectric project in a unanimous vote; and                                                                          
05  WHEREAS, because the site of the proposed hydroelectric project is within the                                          
06 boundaries of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, an Act of Congress will be needed to                              
07 change designation of the land status;                                                                                  
08  BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature endorses private development                                          
09 of the Fall Creek hydroelectric project and encourages the Congress to enact appropriate                                
10 measures to redesignate the land status; and be it                                                                      
11  FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the National Park                                             
12 Service and other federal agencies to cooperate with the project developer and state agencies                           
13 for expeditious permitting for the Fall Creek hydroelectric project.                                                    
14      COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Bruce Babbitt, Secretary of                               
15 the U.S. Department of the Interior; Roger G. Kennedy, Director, National Park Service, U.S.                            
16 Department of the Interior; Robert Barbee, Alaska Regional Director, National Park Service,                             
17 U.S. Department of the Interior; and to the Honorable Ted Stevens and the Honorable Frank                               
18 Murkowski, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of                                  
19 the Alaska delegation in Congress.