03/10/1997 03:40 PM Senate RES

                                                                               
        SJR 20 MODIFY FED WETLANDS PROGRAM FOR AK NEEDS                       
                                                                              
  CHAIRMAN LEMAN  announced  SJR 20  to be up for consideration.               
                                                                               
 MS. ANNETTE KREITZER, staff to Senator Leman, sponsor, said SJR 20            
 encourages Congress to amend the Federal Clean Water Act to                   
 continue existing activities by listing as non-prohibited                     
 discharges relating to airports, safety, logging, mining, ice pads,           
 roads, and snow removal without those activities being determined             
 to add to the cumulative loss of wetland nationally.                          
                                                                               
 It asks Congress to provide flexibility in Alaska wetlands                    
 permitting by allowing establishment of general permits for                   
 discharge of dredged or fill material into disposal cites.                    
                                                                               
 It would eliminate requests to Congress to eliminate existing                 
 requirements to mitigate unavoidable impacts or to prove                      
 alternative cites do not exist.  It also would require the U.S.               
 Army Corps of Engineers to customize the permitting process for               
 lands conveyed under the Alaska Statehood Act and the Alaska Native           
 Claims Settlement Act, that does not include burdensome mitigation            
 or avoidance requirements.                                                    
                                                                               
 SENATOR TAYLOR said he was curious about including the native                 
 lands, because he hears they want federal control.                            
                                                                               
  SENATOR GREEN  said she was at a conference years ago when the               
 discussion was about agricultural lands after they had been                   
 irrigated and then been classified as wetlands which, then, had               
 been contributed to their acreage and been subject to lack of                 
 development and certain restrictions.  She suggested inserting                
 "agricultural parcels."                                                       
                                                                               
 MS. KREITZER said that she believed what has happened with those              
 lands is the modification of the term "navigable waters."                     
                                                                               
  CHAIRMAN HALFORD  said it looks like they are requesting the Corps           
 of Engineers to customize the permiting process for lands conveyed            
 to the State or for lands conveyed to native corporations, but what           
 about all the other private lands in Alaska.  He thought they would           
 like that process to apply to all State land, all native land or              
 all private land together (which includes native lands).  He said             
 for some reason it's drafted to apply to only Statehood Act                   
 selections and Native Claims selections which he supports, but all            
 three are needed.                                                             
                                                                               
 MS. KREITZER explained that SJR 20 is drafted in accordance with              
 the way SB 49 is drafted.                                                     
                                                                               
  SENATOR TAYLOR  moved to amend page 2, line 2 to read, "(4) require          
 the United States Army Corps of Engineers to customize a permitting           
 process for all lands in Alaska that does not include burdensome              
 mitigation, avoidance, and other requirements;"                               
                                                                               
  SENATOR LINCOLN  asked if it was the Corps of Engineers that decides         
 whether there is burdensome mitigation avoidance or other                     
 requirements.  SENATOR TAYLOR answered yes.  SENATOR LINCOLN asked            
 if this resolution was not in the same language as Senator Stevens,           
 how would that affect his legislation.  CHAIRMAN HALFORD said it              
 wouldn't be contrary and he thought they would have to look at it             
 like a letter of support that isn't worded the same way as a bill             
 they introduced affects them.                                                 
                                                                               
 SENATOR GREEN pointed out that they had created an awkward sentence           
 and suggested this wording, "(4) require the United States Army               
 Corps of Engineers to customize a permitting process that does not            
 include burdensome mitigation, avoidance  , and other requirements            
 for all lands in Alaska."  SENATOR TAYLOR approved that wording.              
 There were no further objections and the amendment was adopted.               
                                                                               
  SENATOR TAYLOR  moved the CSSJR 20(RES) with individual                      
 recommendations.  There were no objections and it was so ordered.