Legislature(2013 - 2014)BUTROVICH 205
02/05/2014 03:30 PM Senate RESOURCES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Presentation: Heads of Agreement (hoa) Panel Discussion | |
| SB148 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| * | SB 148 | ||
SB 148-KACHEMAK BAY CRITICAL HABITAT AREA
5:19:49 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL announced SB 148 to be up for consideration.
SENATOR MICCICHE, sponsor of SB 148, explained that this bill
amends AS 16.20.590 by exempting the Homer Port and Harbor and a
small area that is planned for future harbor and deep water dock
expansion from the Kachemak Bay Critical Habitat Area (KBCHA).
It cleans up the language of the management plan that says the
plan does not apply to municipal harbors within the critical
boundary area. However, the statutory boundary excluded the
harbor, so they listed the statutory boundary.
Amending the boundary allows normal maintenance work in the
harbor without requiring expensive and potentially time-
consuming permitting from Alaska Department of Fish and Game
(ADF&G). He said that this permitting would not be necessary if
the management plan and the statutory boundary matched, which
they will through this action.
5:21:39 PM
Homer projects impacted by permitting requirements in the past
have been ramp replacement, float replacement, Pioneer Dock
construction, and deep water dock fender replacement.
SENATOR MICCICHE said the primary reason they are asking for
this - because the Homer Harbor provides a secure
environmentally responsible place to store and maintain vessels
that support the oil and gas industry in Cook Inlet.
He said SB 148 is important to his district and to Homer, but
also important to Southcentral Alaska and the Interior in places
like Fairbanks, because it helps provide a safe harbor to
support the natural gas exploration and production in north Cook
Inlet. It certainly gives an increased potential to distribute
natural gas to rural Alaskans outside of that area.
5:22:38 PM
CHAIR GIESSEL noted a zero fiscal note and a copy of the
management plan that said drilling rig storage will not be
allowed in Kachemak Bay Critical Habitat Area, possibly the
section he wanted to correct.
SENATOR MICCICHE said that was correct, and he added that he had
checked with the agencies and local NGO's to make sure they
supported it and he heard that they recognize the harbor as a
safe location for this type of activity and were not opposing
the bill.
5:23:55 PM
CYNTHIA BIRKHIMER, Kachemak Bay Conservation Society (KBCS),
Homer, Alaska, said they understand the reason for this request,
and it appears that including these areas within the critical
habitat area (CHA) could have been a simple oversight. They
support this action on its face, but have some concerns about
details of the wording. Concerns are about the size of area
requested to be removed and she asked that it specifically
exclude any and all oil and gas, mineral exploration, and
development activities from within the confines of the newly
removed land. They ask that this area be specifically designated
within the bill to allow harbor industry-specific operations
such as vessel moorage, storage, and freight transfer.
She believed this could be the first action to remove designated
lands from within a CHA in the state and was concerned that it
will set a precedent for this type of undesignated land actions
especially with regard to resource development interests within
the boundaries of a CHA.
MS. BIRKHIMER said at the present time the Parnell
administration is openly working to undermine the existing
management process of state CHAs, game refuges, and wildlife
sanctuaries through the application of Administrative Order (AO)
266. This action looks suspect and could make the KBCHA
vulnerable to future incursions. Their concerns are for the long
term protection of the local area encompassed by the KBCHA, and
to this end she requested specific sections of the City Homer
resolution 14-005 be incorporated into the wording of SB 148 as
follows:
5:27:10 PM
Lines 62-65:
Whereas, the City of Homer has deep appreciation for
the Critical Habitat Designation and the adopted
Management Plan because it protects the resources
which provide the very foundation of the local
economy, lifestyle and quality of life; and
Line 74-75: Whereas, the City stipulates it does not
propose or support any other amendments to the
Kachemak Bay Critical Habitat Are or Plan as part of
this request.
SENATOR FAIRCLOUGH asked if she was speaking on behalf of the
organization, which means they have taken a formal vote, and how
many members her organization has.
5:28:27 PM
MS. BIRKHIMER said she represents KBCS has 100 members and the
board has seven members.
5:29:11 PM
WALT WREDE, Manager, City of Homer, Homer, Alaska, said he
strongly supported SB 148. He said they have a resolution from
the City Council which was adopted unanimously. This bill is
simple; it just carves the port and harbor area out of the CHA
where it was never intended to be. This has caused a conflict
between the CHA plan and the statutes.
Passing this has a number of benefits: it resolves a conflict
with statute and the CHA plan with respect to municipal lands
and the port and harbor area. It will make permitting easier are
the regulatory environment much better for ADF&G allowing them
to solve some of the ambiguities they are faced with now.
He said this legislation would solve some long standing problems
they have been dealing with for decades including a requirement
in the plan that any vessel that anchors over 14 days needs to
get a permit from the ADF&G. The port of Homer is very busy and
this is a very impractical requirement.
They have also seen a lot of permitting delays and extra costs
as a result of being included in the CHA; sometimes this
includes even routine maintenance like replacing and repairing
floats in the harbor.
5:31:19 PM
Finally, Mr. Wrede said, what really brought this to light was
whether or not the department could permit oil and gas drilling
rigs to be docked at the deep water dock for routine
maintenance, repair. They want to allow that, because Homer is
an ice-free, deep-water port that has many resources that could
be of service to the industry, and oil and gas drilling is
ramping up quite a bit in the Cook Inlet. From an environmental
point of view this is the safest place for those vessels to be
when they need to be tied up and repaired.
5:32:14 PM
RANDY BATES, Director, Division of Habitat, Alaska Department of
Fish and Game (ADF&G), said he would answer questions on SB 148.
CHAIR GIESSEL asked how many permits the department processes
for the vessels that are docked there for over 14 days.
MR. BATES replied that within the last five years they have
processed a total of 150 permits for the KBCHA; 29 of them have
been within the area described in SB 148.
CHAIR GIESSEL, finding no further discussion, closed public
testimony.
5:34:42 PM
SENATOR DYSON moved to report SB 148 from committee to the next
committee of referral with attached fiscal notes and individual
recommendations. There were no objections and it was so ordered.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB 148 vs A.pdf |
HRLS 2/18/2014 5:00:00 PM SRES 2/5/2014 3:30:00 PM |
SB 148 |
| SB 148 Sponsor Statement.PDF |
SRES 2/5/2014 3:30:00 PM |
SB 148 |
| SB 148 Fiscal Note.pdf |
HRLS 2/18/2014 5:00:00 PM SRES 2/5/2014 3:30:00 PM |
SB 148 |
| SB 148 Map Proposed Exclusion to the Kachemak Bay Critical Habitat Area DNR.pdf |
HRLS 2/18/2014 5:00:00 PM SRES 2/5/2014 3:30:00 PM |
SB 148 |
| SB 148 Kachemak Bay and Fox River Flats Critical Habitat Area 199312.pdf |
SRES 2/5/2014 3:30:00 PM |
SB 148 |
| SB 148 Supp Resolution City of Homer 14-005 20140113.pdf |
HRLS 2/18/2014 5:00:00 PM SRES 2/5/2014 3:30:00 PM |
SB 148 |
| SB 148 Written Testimony CynthiaBirkhimer 20140205.pdf |
SRES 2/5/2014 3:30:00 PM |
SB 148 |