04/27/2007 03:30 PM Senate RESOURCES

         SB  57-MARINE PARKS ADDITIONS/HUNTING ALLOWED                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
5:12:48 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR HUGGINS announced SB 57 to be up for consideration.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR KIM  ELTON, sponsor  of SB  57, said  it adds  some small                                                               
Juneau islands  that stretch from the  edge of Auke Bay  north to                                                               
the  base  of  Lynn  Canal  to  marine  parks.  The  islands  are                                                               
frequented  by locals  and visitors  and most  of them  have deer                                                               
hunting   and   fishing,    gathering   of   subsistence   foods,                                                               
recreational  activities like  picnicking  and  camping and  have                                                               
commercial fishing in the adjacent waters.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
5:14:13 PM                                                                                                                    
He  has  heard  of  no  opposition to  this  measure  and  it  is                                                               
supported  by the  Territorial  Sportsmen, which  is  one of  the                                                               
groups that work with the state  to add enhancements to the state                                                               
park  lands. The  Southeast Alaska  Land Trust,  the State  Parks                                                               
Advisory Board  and Goldbelt Corporation  support it and  the CBJ                                                               
Assembly has also  passed a resolution in support of  it. The one                                                               
in-holder supports it.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
5:16:05 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR ELTON  pointed out  that language on  page 2,  section 2,                                                               
provides  that  the DNR  commissioner  may  not prohibit  hunting                                                               
within a  marine park unit  of the  Alaska State Park  System and                                                               
adds  that to  existing language  "fishing, hunting,  or trapping                                                               
rights permitted under law or regulation."                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
He  said  the  House  companion   bill  added  another  layer  of                                                               
protection  to  commercial  fishing  in waters  adjacent  to  the                                                               
islands that are being added, but  he didn't think it was needed.                                                               
However,  he would  leave that  up to  the committee  and had  no                                                               
problem with that additional language.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
5:17:16 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR HUGGINS asked what restrictions the state parks have now.                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
5:18:01 PM                                                                                                                    
MIKE  EBERHARDT,  Superintendent,  Southeast  Area,  Division  of                                                               
Parks  and Recreation,  Department  of  Natural Resources  (DNR),                                                               
answered  that  state  marine  parks  are  open  to  hunting  and                                                               
fishing. They don't allow commercial  use of the park or resource                                                               
extraction and fire pits are limited.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
5:20:19 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR HUGGINS asked if aircraft was restricted.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
MR.  EBERHARDT  replied  no;  parks   are  specifically  open  to                                                               
aircraft.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR STEDMAN  said asked why  20 fathoms was selected  on page                                                               
2,  line 13,  instead of  10  fathoms, which  is usually  clearly                                                               
delineated on most charts just by color.                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MR. EBERHARDT  replied that the impetus  was to not garner  a lot                                                               
of  water  under  the  jurisdiction  of  State  Parks,  which  is                                                               
entirely focused  on the uplands.  A park unit is  designated via                                                               
aliquot parts  of land. In  this situation just to  encompass all                                                               
of the uplands,  there were huge blocks of  water that commercial                                                               
fishers might  want to use  that don't really meet  the statutory                                                               
reasons for  making the park.  So, the  acreage has been  kept as                                                               
small as possible.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
5:22:10 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR STEDMAN said 10 fathoms  is shallower than 20 fathoms and                                                               
is clearly  delineated on the charts  and it would be  easier for                                                               
people to  know when they  are in the park  and out of  the park.                                                               
Also,  most people  try  to anchor  at  8 or  9  fathoms, not  20                                                               
fathoms.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MR. EBERHARDT replied that the  division was trying to exclude as                                                               
much water as possible.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
5:23:17 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR  WAGONER said  he  has experience  with  state parks  and                                                               
asked why he  didn't just make the boundaries at  mean low water.                                                               
He  has  unhappy  people  now  because there  is  more  water  in                                                               
Kachemak Bay State Park than land.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR ELTON  attempted to  explain that  using 10  fathoms made                                                               
sense to him for two reasons  - it's clearly delineated on marine                                                               
charts and most people anchor in  10 fathoms of water or less. It                                                               
also makes sense  to include adjacent waters  when you're talking                                                               
about  a marine  park, because  one  of the  issues is  anchoring                                                               
buoys and other  things that may or  may not need to  be added to                                                               
enhance the  park and  make it  easier for  people to  use. Using                                                               
mean low tide  might make park enhancement more  difficult in the                                                               
future.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
5:26:14 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR STEDMAN asked  if "fishing" should be  added to "hunting"                                                               
on line 6 so if a person is trolling, he can troll by the beach.                                                                
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR ELTON said he had no problem with that either.                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR HUGGINS asked what he has to  do to camp with a troop of 20                                                               
boy scouts.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
MR. EBERHARDT  replied that  he would need  a permit  to assemble                                                               
within  the  park with  more  than  20  people. It  doesn't  cost                                                               
anything; they just  want to know where people  are assembling so                                                               
they don't interfere with the normal use of the park units.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR ELTON  added that interference  with other park  users is                                                               
often not an issue on these small islands.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
5:27:52 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR HUGGINS asked if they would have a wolverine trapping                                                                     
problem in this area or some other critter that somebody wants                                                                  
to trap.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MR. EBERHARDT replied that marine parks don't have a trapping                                                                   
issue.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR HUGGINS said SB 57 would be held and he adjourned the                                                                     
meeting at 5:28:48 PM.