HJR 19: Commending the Arctic Waterways Safety Committee; supporting the adoption of prevention measures into international agreements to ensure clear, universal, and enforceable marine safety measures in the Arctic; and urging the state's delegation in the United States Congress and the governor to promote the adoption of spill prevention measures into international agreements; urging the President of the United States and the United States Department of State to initiate negotiations to enter into international agreements to ensure safe and environmentally responsible marine operations in the Arctic.
00 HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 19 01 Commending the Arctic Waterways Safety Committee; supporting the adoption of 02 prevention measures into international agreements to ensure clear, universal, and 03 enforceable marine safety measures in the Arctic; and urging the state's delegation in 04 the United States Congress and the governor to promote the adoption of spill prevention 05 measures into international agreements; urging the President of the United States and 06 the United States Department of State to initiate negotiations to enter into international 07 agreements to ensure safe and environmentally responsible marine operations in the 08 Arctic. 09 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 10 WHEREAS the Arctic Waterways Safety Committee has been formed by marine 11 mammal hunting groups, Arctic municipalities, and Arctic marine ship operators to identify 12 and promote safe and environmentally responsible shipping operations in the Arctic; and 13 WHEREAS, because of the lack of spill response capacity in the Arctic, the United 14 States Coast Guard has authorized vessels to adopt spill prevention measures in lieu of
01 meeting the response standard; and 02 WHEREAS, even under the best circumstances, only 20 percent of spilled oil is 03 recovered, indicating the importance of spill prevention measures; and 04 WHEREAS prevention measures include active vessel tracking and monitoring, 05 prescribed routing measures, immediate notification of a loss of vessel power or steering, 06 identification of vessels nearby with an opportunity to respond, identification of ports of 07 refuge, prepositioning towing packages and ship arrestors, and dynamic protection of local 08 marine mammal resources; and 09 WHEREAS prevention measures only apply to vessels calling on a port in the United 10 States; and 11 WHEREAS vessels not calling on a port in the United States are considered in 12 innocent passage and not subject to prevention measures; and 13 WHEREAS the United States has not ratified the Law of the Sea Treaty and 14 accordingly may not use Article 234, which authorizes coastal states with "ice-covered areas" 15 to require special protection measures; and 16 WHEREAS universal adherence to marine protection measures in the Arctic may also 17 occur through international bilateral agreements or by the adoption of measures in the Polar 18 Code of the International Maritime Organization; 19 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature commends the formation of the 20 Arctic Waterways Safety Committee and appreciates its leadership in establishing safe 21 shipping practices in state water; and be it 22 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature supports the adoption of 23 prevention measures into international agreements to ensure clear, universal, and enforceable 24 marine safety measures in the Arctic; and be it 25 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the governor and the 26 state's congressional delegation to promote the adoption of spill prevention measures into 27 international agreements with member organizations, including the Northern Forum; and be it 28 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the President of the 29 United States and the United States Department of State to initiate negotiations with the state's 30 coastal neighbors to enter into international agreements to ensure safe and environmentally 31 responsible marine operations in the Arctic.
01 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Donald J. Trump, President 02 of the United States; the Honorable Michael R. Pence, Vice President of the United States and 03 President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Paul D. Ryan, Speaker of the U.S. House of 04 Representatives; the Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader of the U.S. House of 05 Representatives; the Honorable Mitch McConnell, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the 06 Honorable Charles E. Schumer, Minority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Lisa 07 Murkowski, Chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources; the 08 Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senator, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, 09 members of the Alaska delegation in Congress; and all other members of the 115th United 10 States Congress.