03/31/2014 03:30 PM Senate RESOURCES

                  HJR 30-IZEMBEK LAND EXCHANGE                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
4:37:25 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR GIESSEL  announced HJR 30  to be up for  consideration. She                                                               
said the Izembek  land exchange is a public safety  issue that is                                                               
getting blocked by the federal government.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  BOB  HERRON,  sponsor  of HJR  39,  Alaska  State                                                               
Legislature,  described the  current  medical  situation in  King                                                               
Cove  where  many  years  several deaths  have  been  related  to                                                               
medevacs because there  isn't a road. For instance,  King Cove is                                                               
experiencing 60  mph winds today  and there  is a 270  ft. Bering                                                               
Sea  trawler in  port  with  an injured  fisherman  - severe  eye                                                               
injury  - who  requires medevac  to Anchorage  immediately.   The                                                               
Coast Guard will  not go into King Cove and  the trawler will not                                                               
go over to Cold Bay, because of  the rough seas. If the winds die                                                               
down a bit  the Coast Guard will  go from Cold Bay to  the end of                                                               
the  Izembek King  Cove  Road  and maybe  they  can medevac  that                                                               
fisherman back  to Cold Bay  to go to Anchorage.  Situations like                                                               
this have happened many times.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
Everyone is  talking about how the  road will ruin the  Eel grass                                                               
and Black  Brandt, so the  coordinating agencies - the  feds, the                                                               
state, local  and Tribes  - worked  for four  years to  develop a                                                               
corridor on which the closest the  road can get to a single blade                                                               
of Eel grass is one-half mile.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
Of  course, in  the Congressional  Act the  land trade  is 300:1.                                                               
They  are willing  to trade  61,000 acres  for the  value of  206                                                               
acres for  a "public  safety only corridor."  There are  no other                                                               
alternatives, and this will work.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
4:40:52 PM                                                                                                                    
Again, the  coordinating agencies,  including Fish  and Wildlife,                                                               
submitted  an EIS  saying that  a road  makes most  sense. Alaska                                                               
ADF&G  agreed  and  were surprised  that  Secretary  Salazar  and                                                               
Secretary Jewell  made the same decision  to deny it -  no action                                                               
on the proposed swap and no action on the road.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  HERRON related  that Fish  and Wildlife  publicly                                                               
stated  that safety  considerations are  important but  they were                                                               
not  a  factor   in  the  decision,  since   they  only  evaluate                                                               
environmental impacts  (not being a public  safety organization).                                                               
What is  so incredulous about that  is that the courts  have told                                                               
all  federal agencies  that all  federal decisions  must consider                                                               
the human  factor. All these  facts are  stated over and  over in                                                               
the resolution.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
4:44:56 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR  BISHOP said  he concurred  with his  explanation of  the                                                               
resolution.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
4:45:08 PM                                                                                                                    
HENRY MACK, Mayor,  City of King Cove, Alaska,  supported HJR 30.                                                               
Audubon is concerned that this  road will impact the wellbeing of                                                               
migrating birds  in the  Izembek Refuge;  Natives claim  title to                                                               
thousands of years  of stewardship over this refuge  and yet they                                                               
were nowhere  to be  found in  Audubon's concerns.  Twelve people                                                               
have  been killed  flying  in  and out  of  King Cove;  countless                                                               
relatives  and  friends  have  had  their  lives  impacted  being                                                               
medevac'd out. He  couldn't believe they were  still dealing with                                                               
this basic quality of life issue.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
He  said  in  mid-January  they had  asked  Secretary  Jewell  to                                                               
reconsider,  but she  hadn't responded  so far.  He concluded  by                                                               
urging  the committee  to approve  this  resolution that  clearly                                                               
expresses the needs of King Cove and that reaches far beyond.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
4:51:08 PM                                                                                                                    
GARY HENNIGH, City  Administrator since 1989, City  of King Cove,                                                               
Alaska, supported  HJR 30.  He had  been active  for 25  years on                                                               
this road  issue. He summarized  key events  of his 21st  trip to                                                               
D.C. on  the Izembek issue  saying he  met with Kip  Knutson, the                                                               
Governor's point  person in  D.C., who  relayed the  message that                                                               
the  secretary had  encountered  him in  another  meeting a  week                                                               
prior and  told him that he  needed to tell Senator  Murkowski to                                                               
"get beyond this  Izembek Road thing." However,  Mr. Knutson told                                                               
her that she could resolve the  issue on her own by approving the                                                               
land exchange and that the Senator would never get over it.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
4:56:04 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR GIESSEL closed public testimony.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
4:59:04 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR DYSON moved  to report HJR 30  am, version 28-LS1533\A.A,                                                               
from  committee   with  attached  fiscal  notes   and  individual                                                               
recommendations. There  were no objections  and HJR 30  am passed                                                               
from the Senate Resources Standing Committee.