03/08/2021 03:30 PM Senate RESOURCES
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Presentation: Ocean Pasture Restoration Inc. - Alaska | |
| SB29 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | SB 29 | TELECONFERENCED | |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE RESOURCES STANDING COMMITTEE
March 8, 2021
3:35 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Joshua Revak, Chair
Senator Peter Micciche, Vice Chair
Senator Gary Stevens
Senator Natasha von Imhof
Senator Jesse Kiehl
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Click Bishop
Senator Scott Kawasaki
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
PRESENTATION: OCEAN PASTURE RESTORATION INC. - ALASKA
- HEARD
SENATE BILL NO. 29
"An Act relating to the powers of the Alaska Commercial
Fisheries Entry Commission; relating to administrative areas for
regulation of certain commercial set net entry permits;
establishing a buy-back program for certain set net entry
permits; providing for the termination of state set net tract
leases under the buy-back program; closing certain water to
commercial fishing; and providing for an effective date."
- MOVED SB 29 OUT OF COMMITTEE
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 29
SHORT TITLE: COOK INLET: NEW ADMIN AREA; PERMIT BUYBACK
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) MICCICHE
01/22/21 (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/8/21
01/22/21 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/22/21 (S) RES, FIN
03/03/21 (S) RES AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
03/03/21 (S) Heard & Held
03/03/21 (S) MINUTE(RES)
03/08/21 (S) RES AT 3:30 PM BUTROVICH 205
WITNESS REGISTER
TED CROOKSTON, Advocate
Ocean Pasture Restoration Alaska, Inc.
Kenai, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided introductory remarks on Ocean
Pasture Restoration Alaska, Inc.
RUSS GEORGE, President
Ocean Pasture Restoration Alaska, Inc.
Kodiak, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided an overview of Ocean Pasture
Restoration.
ACTION NARRATIVE
3:35:47 PM
CHAIR JOSHUA REVAK called the Senate Resources Standing
Committee meeting to order at 3:35 p.m. Present at the call to
order were Senators Kiehl, Stevens, Micciche, and Chair Revak.
Senator von Imhof arrived during the course of the meeting.
^PRESENTATION: OCEAN PASTURE RESTORATION INC. - ALASKA
PRESENTATION: OCEAN PASTURE RESTORATION INC. - ALASKA
3:37:11 PM
CHAIR REVAK announced the committee would hear a presentation
from Ocean Pasture Restoration (OPR Alaska).
He said the first of the two presenters is Ted Crookston who is
a key member of OPR Alaska and serves as a board member for
their Alaska Fisheries Advisory Board. Mr. Crookston is the CEO
of Tide Chaser Fishery, LLC, and is a fourth-generation Alaskan
fisherman based out of the Kenai Peninsula. Mr. Crookston is
very active in the Kenai community and is also on the Board of
Directors for the Kenai Peninsula Fishermen's Association.
3:39:08 PM
TED CROOKSTON, Advocate, Ocean Pasture Restoration Alaska, Inc.,
Kenai, Alaska, stated on behalf of OPR Alaska and their team, he
expressed his deep appreciation for the committee sharing its
time, talents, and intention to do good things for Alaskans. He
added his thanks to committee members for opening their minds
and hearts to OPR Alaska as well.
3:39:49 PM
[Audio difficulties 3:39:49-3:40:13.]
3:40:13 PM
CHAIR REVAK reconvened the meeting.
MR. CROOKSTON explained that OPR Alaska is not asking the
committee to solve their problem, provide money, or craft
complex legislation. OPR Alaska, as stewards over the resources
of Alaska, is extending an invitation to officially step forward
and join in an alliance to set the standard for ocean
stewardship to become advocates for OPR Alaska's vision to
restore the ocean pastures of the Gulf of Alaska to historical
levels of health, vitality, productivity, and ocean life
abundance.
He introduced Russ George who is recognized internationally as a
pioneer of sustainable, ocean restoration work, has dedicated
more than 20 years to the field of ocean restoration, and has
had a long career in environmental management and sustainable
development.
3:43:21 PM
RUSS GEORGE, President, Ocean Pasture Restoration Alaska, Inc.,
Kodiak, Alaska, stated he has been passionately involved with
ocean restoration for more than 20 years.
He said OPR Alaska invites committee members to take a lead role
in participating with their work over the next number of years
as OPR Alaska brings the oceans of Alaska back to their historic
level of health and abundance.
MR. GEORGE referenced a slide in his presentation showing
President Biden issuing an executive order on January 27, 2021
regarding the environmentespecially about climate change and
fisheries. President Biden called for the delivery of working
solutions to his office to save fisheries and restore the
climate within 60 days. He said OPR Alaska thinks it has one of
those solutions with the hope that the committee might recommend
OPR Alaska to President Biden.
3:46:51 PM
MR. GEORGE detailed slide 3, Absolute Proof OPR Works and Brings
Back the Fish. He detailed in 2013 the fisheries harvest
forecast for the State of Alaska was 50 million pink salmon
those forecasts are usually quite accurate. However, the harvest
stopped after 225 million pink salmon due to filled ashore
capacity.
MR. GEORGE referenced the Alaska Fish and Game Report 2020 graph
on slide 3 and pointed out 2012, the year OPR Alaska did its
ocean restoration in the Gulf of Alaska. He noted the four tall
bar-graph peaks the years following 2012the orange lines
represent pink salmon. In 2014, one year following OPR Alaska's
workgiven that pink salmon have a two-year lifecyclethat is
the largest run of pink salmon in all of history, and two years
later the second largest catch in all of history occurred. He
stated the restoration simply worked.
MR. GEORGE noted slide 4, "Location, Location, Location." He
explained OPR Alaska defines "ocean pastures" as large, slow-
moving eddies. He noted the satellite photo pictured on the
slide shows the many large circular eddies in the Gulf of
Alaska. In 2012, OPR Alaska worked in the Haida Eddynamed after
the Haida people from Old Massett who worked with OPR Alaska. He
added OPR Alaska is currently based in Kodiak.
He said OPR Alaska is quite certain the young salmon leaving
their streams need to get offshore as soon as possible because
the shoreline waters are full of predators. The streaky current
that passes closer to shore is a fast-moving river of water that
will sweep the salmon to the western side of the Pacific.
3:49:04 PM
MR. GEORGE turned to slide 5, How Ocean Pasture Restoration
(OPR) Works. He explained the restoration method is simple. The
OPR Alaska ship used in the summer of 2012 carried 100 tons of
mineral dust. The best product is hematite iron ore. OPR Alaska
sprinkled this natural product across the large Haida Eddy
"plowing the field" with a stream trail of muddy red water. The
tiny amount of hematite ore amounts to a few pounds per square
mile. The challenge OPR Alaska had was diluting the hematite ore
enough when putting it into the water.
MR. GEORGE pointed out a photo on the right side of the slide
that showed both the clear blue water before treatment and the
green ocean after treatment, which is the healthier of the two
and what the fish need to live in.
3:51:00 PM
MR. GEORGE explained slide 6, OPR Mimics Nature, Replenishes Her
Missing Dust, shows the natural effects that mineral dust has on
the ocean. The slide shows the Aleutian Island volcano,
Kasatochi. It erupted in 2008 and spewed out ash for weeks,
probably a million tons of ash landed in the Gulf of Alaska.
MR. GEORGE noted the volcanic ash turned the Gulf of Alaska
green, but nobody was looking at the water at the time, there
are no satellite records that caught the event because the
weather was too cloudy. Also, there were no ships studying the
Kasatochi region, so no one saw the plankton bloom. However,
what was seen was two year later, the sockeye salmon swam home
to British Columbia that resulted in the largest sockeye salmon
run in its history; OPR Alaska knows that volcanos do this,
especially volcanos in the Gulf of Alaska.
He pointed out the bottom picture in slide 6 shows an iceberg
from Greenland. The snow with the icebergs collects dust for
centuries. When an iceberg calves off of Greenland or Antarctica
and drifts free into the ocean, the natural dust in the icebergs
turns the ocean a nurturing green.
MR. GEORGE noted the photo on the upper right of the slide shows
a dust storm from several years ago that blew from Australia to
New Zealand. The dust landed in the Hobart Sea and promptly
turned the water green. The following year the Hobart Sea had
the largest catches of fish in all of history.
He said Mother Nature depositing dust all the time is a very
natural process. OPR Alaska does not claim to be as good as
Mother Nature, but OPR Alaska is smarter by knowing exactly when
and where to deposit the dust as well as the most ideal form of
dust. Instead of using random forms of dust, OPR Alaska knows
what the ocean is missing most, iron. OPR Alaska uses red
hematite iron ore rock dust, a very natural product that works
just fine.
3:54:02 PM
MR. GEORGE addressed slide 7, OPR 2012 In Gulf of Alaska Aboard.
The slide shows photos of OPR Alaska's work. OPR Alaska used the
fishing vessel Ocean Pearl out of British Columbiathe largest
fishing boat in British Columbiaand placed 100 tons of dust
onboard. The slide shows the Haida village crew from Old Masset
mixing 50-pound bags of dust with seawater.
MR. GEORGE pointed out the photo on the bottom of the slide that
shows a trickle of muddy red water behind the boat. That is all
OPR Alaska does to disperse the mineral but they must study the
water with scientific gear after dispersal. The top right photo
shows a $300,000 plankton net that carries instrument packages
to take samples and study the chemistry of the ocean at various
depths.
MR. GEORGE noted the photo on the bottom right shows a pair of
torpedo-like objects known as Slocum Gliders. They are state of
the art ocean robotics that carry 15 instruments and
autonomously swim hundreds of miles for up to 30 days. OPR
Alaska does an intensely scientific program to prove that the
dust is safe, sustainable, and effective.
3:57:03 PM
MR. GEORGE referenced slide 8, OPR 2002 Aboard Schooner Ragland
near Hawaii. It shows the schooner used to disperse a few tons
of dust in the ocean. The Journal Nature wrote an article on the
successful first experiment in 2003.
He addressed slide 9, "OPR 1990-2009 Institutions plus
approximately $300 million in public funds." He noted there is
more experience in ocean restoration. The international
community of ocean science has studied ocean restoration since
the 1980s with experiments like OPR Alaska did with iron mineral
dust conducted since the early 1990s. However, the international
science community's experiments were always small and never more
than two or three tons of dust.
MR. GEORGE noted the international ocean science community
conducted 11 experiments at a cost of $300 million in public
funds, primarily due to the use of the German icebreaker Polar
Star. OPR Alaska did the same work in 2012 at a lower cost. The
experiments always resulted in ocean blooms, but OPR Alaska
looked in places where the fish would come back. The ocean
science community's experiments were pure academic work and OPR
Alaska's work was purely about bringing fish back.
3:59:40 PM
MR. GEORGE noted slide 10, OPR's Many Miracles. He said OPR
Alaska certainly brings the fish back but bringing back the fish
means bringing back ocean life: plankton, seabirds, seals, and
whales. During the OPR Alaska experiment in 2012, they saw
hundreds of whales and albacore tuna schools come into the
plankton bloom. Thousands of Canada geese flew 300 miles
offshore to feed in the plankton bloom, which was a true oasis
of life. As the plankton grows, it takes carbon dioxide out of
the air, performs photosynthesis and converts carbon dioxide
into new ocean life. In doing so, the plankton reduces ocean
acidification into life instead.
MR. GEORGE said another thing the plankton bloom does is scrub
and remove mercury from the ocean surface, because it
accumulates in fish. Mercury naturally sticks to the plankton
and sinks to the bottom; the process literally scrubs the ocean
surface clean. He noted mercury arrives from coal burning power
plants.
MR. GEORGE explained plankton blooms release chemicals that
restore cloud cover and rain. Utility companies from western
states contacted OPR Alaska to inquire about ocean pasture
restoration improving rainfall for filling their reservoirs to
create hydroelectric power.
He stated OPR Alaska thinks ocean pasture restoration is the
world's best hope to mitigate the lion's share of humanity's
airborne carbon dioxide and in the bargain get paid off in fish
and healthy oceans.
4:03:33 PM
MR. GEORGE addressed OPR Alaska Inc. 3-Year Business Steps. He
explained OPR Alaska has a simple business plan and is hoping
the Senate Resources Committee can help. OPR Alaska wants to
deploy the ocean pasture restoration via a three-year
commercial-scale series of tests restoring one large ocean eddy,
similar to the Haida Eddy, but south of Kodiak.
He explained OPR Alaska wants to study its ocean pasture
restoration intensively to prove safety, sustainability, and
utility. OPR Alaska is certain its ocean pasture restoration
will bring back hundreds of millions of additional fish into
nets and on to the plates of Alaskans and the rest of the world
who are happy to eat wild Alaskan salmon.
MR. GEORGE noted the ocean pasture restoration will employ a few
people within the company, crews on their boats, scientists in
their research labs, and people in their business offices. Also,
OPR Alaska will grow a lot of fish that will employ thousands of
Alaskans in the fishing industry.
MR. GEORGE said one of the great values of ocean pasture
restoration is the process qualifies as a mitigation activity
under the Paris Agreement. It expressly states that doing
ecological restorationespecially nature-based ecological
restoration in the ocean to remove carbon dioxideproduces "Blue
Carbon." He explained blue carbon is a bankable and tradable
commodity in the Paris Agreement. OPR Alaska thinks this will
become one of Alaska's largest natural resources in the very
near future.
MR. GEORGE explained OPR Alaska is an investor-based company
that wants to prove commercial viability to its investors that
ocean pasture restoration is safe, sustainable, and that the
fish really come back. OPR Alaska anticipates seeing sockeye
salmon, chum salmon, and king salmon the following year, and
pink salmon two years later. OPR Alaska is certain it can target
specific ocean pastures for each salmon species.
MR. GEORGE said OPR Alaska's plan does not end after its three-
year project; that is just the beginning of a stewardship
business and lifestyle of the ocean pastures. Just like humanity
learned to take care of the pastures on land 10,000 years ago,
ocean restoration knowledge will finally allow for taking care
of pastures in the ocean. Restoration will become a stable
business in Alaska because ocean restoration must occur every
year from now until the rest of time.
4:07:15 PM
MR. GEORGE noted OPR Alaska always gets asked questions about
ocean pasture restoration such as whether restoration will work
for more than pink salmon, especially for king and sockeye
salmon. OPR Alaska is certain restoration works on other salmon
species, and they have the data to prove it.
MR. GEORGE said OPR Alaska receives questions regarding the
safety of ocean restoration. People have historically studied
natural dust events landing on the ocean. Charles Darwin noted a
dust storm on the Atlantic between Africa and South America 150
years ago. In all the years of studying natural dust events, no
one has seen negative effects in the deep oceans.
MR. GEORGE explained OPR Alaska is only able to work in the deep
ocean because the water close to the Alaska shore has perhaps
10,000 times more minerals in it. The deep ocean water is safe
and even if the dust were to come to shore, it could not
possibly harm Alaskan waters. OPR Alaska chooses the eddies and
pasture locations. OPR Alaska chooses the long, slow moving,
long living eddies tracked via satellite. They simply do not
come ashore.
4:09:39 PM
MR. GEORGE noted OPR Alaska receives questions regarding ocean
acidification. OPR Alaska thinks ocean pasture restoration is
the cure for ocean acidification.
MR. GEORGE said people ask OPR Alaska about the legality of
ocean pasture restoration. The National Academies of Sciences,
Engineering, and Medicine recently started holding a series of
meetings on ocean carbon. The institution assigned a lawyer from
Columbia Law School who opined ocean pasture restoration is not
against the law. There has not been any legislation directed at
ocean pasture restoration whatsoever and that gives OPR Alaska
an opportunity to talk with a group like the Senate Resources
Committee regarding a legal vacuum.
He stated OPR Alaska thinks the legal opinions say they have
every right to do ocean pasture restoration, as long as they are
only doing work that is beneficial to the ocean. Ocean pasture
restoration is a perfectly lawful and legal activity. OPR Alaska
is hoping a group like the Senate Resources Committee will take
the lead because no one at the state or federal government level
has written any legislation, rules, or regulations about ocean
pasture restoration.
4:12:13 PM
SENATOR STEVENS noted the discussion was fascinating and he
would appreciate learning more. He asked who their investors are
and what are their returns.
MR. GEORGE answered the investors are entirely private and he is
not at liberty to publicly identify them. The investors have
promised to provide OPR Alaska with the money to begin the
project.
He specified OPR Alaska wants to enter into a working
relationship with the State of Alaska and the committee meeting
is its first meeting to begin that working relationship.
Investors have asked OPR Alaska to get the company up and
running, and then to engage the government of Alaska. OPR Alaska
has met its investors' milestone by engaging the government of
Alaska, telling its story, and answering questions.
4:13:27 PM
SENATOR STEVENS asked what the investors are getting from their
investment.
MR. GEORGE explained the investors' return is that the project
will produceunder the Paris Agreementthe "Blue Carbon" credit.
The Paris Agreement provides that when anyone tries to mitigate
climate change via methods to stop fossil fuel emissions or
remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, receives carbon
credits. No one to date has delivered the Blue Carbon credits
provided under the Paris Agreement. He noted the trading system
only began in January 2020.
He likened OPR Alaska to an oil company that knows the oil is
there and has done the seismic surveys, but must do the
development work for production. OPR Alaska must do the ocean
pasture restorations, make all the definitive measurements, and
meet the Paris Agreement requirements for having accurate
measurements for verification and certification. He noted the
State of Alaska has the unique privilege to certify those
credits. OPR Alaska is ready to drill for anti-oil, Blue Carbon,
which will relieve the carbon footprint of oil.
4:15:45 PM
SENATOR KIEHL noted he talked about mercury, phytoplankton
accumulating mercury, and removing mercury from the process and
asked if the mercury is in some way removed or if it is being
"sent to the tables."
MR. GEORGE reiterated that mercury in the ocean comes primarily
from powerplants that burn coal. The mercury is in the form of
an aerosol dust or vapor that lands on the ocean. The process he
described is called biofiltering of wastes (similar to polluted
water passing through a wetland or marsh) where pollutants are
captured by organic molecules in the water. During the plankton
bloom, mercury on the surface of the ocean sticks to the
plankton and sinks to the bottom sediment.
4:18:18 PM
SENATOR KIEHL noted he correlated OPR Alaska's fertilizer and
the pink salmon runs and asked what the lasting effect is if the
committee were to take his chart as proof.
MR. GEORGE referenced the bar graph on slide 3 regarding larger
pink and chum salmon returns. He noted OPR Alaska received
letters in 2013 from many Native village councils that reported
never seeing as many spawning pink salmon in their streams. The
repeated high numbers shown on the bar graph indicate pink
salmon spawning success; however, the fish require feeding.
He noted the vessel used for the restoration in 2012 returned to
the Gulf of Alaska the following winter for black cod fishing.
The captain of the boat reported catching a far superior catch
with a higher weight and fat concentration. He added a vast
school of albacore tuna came into the Gulf of Alaska bloom that
OPR Alaska caught and tested. After a few weeks, the tuna added
one percent of their total body weight per day that resulted in
the tuna turning from "utility grade" to "sashimi grade."
MR. GEORGE said OPR Alaska knows that the fattened tuna does not
stay fat. The bloom lasted about six months and then it was
gone, and the food was gone. He explained like any pasture on
land, a good livestock herd requires taking care of the pasture.
4:23:19 PM
CHAIR REVAK remarked that it almost sounds too good to be true.
asked what OPR Alaska is specifically looking for from the
committee.
MR. GEORGE answered OPR Alaska hopes to enter into some form of
public-private partnership with the State of Alaska because OPR
Alaska needs oversight. The core of the Paris Agreement is for
transparent projects with informed stakeholders. OPR Alaska is
achieving the principal milestones of the Paris Agreement by
meeting with the Senate Resources Committee; this begins their
transparency, and they are ready to tell committee members
everything it can. OPR Alaska keeps a few business things
private in public forums, but they are happy to reveal much more
in private.
MR. GEORGE said OPR Alaska is hoping the State of Alaska will
simply say ocean restoration is a good idea that worked once,
has worked many times with volcanoes, and considered for trial;
OPR Alaska really does not need more than that. OPR Alaska
simply needs the State of Alaska as its friend and ally on the
ocean restoration project.
He noted there were three spectacular, historic events where
Aleutian volcanoes erupted and the dust landed in the Gulf of
Alaska in the summer months that, based on fish records,
resulted in the largest runs in history of fish coming back.
However, volcanic eruptions are few and far between. There was
the Kasatochi Volcano in 2008, one in the 1950s, and another one
in the 1910s. No one can rely on volcanic eruptions because they
do not dust the ocean often enough or at the right time to get
the effects.
He said OPR Alaska is smarter than a volcano because they put a
small amount of the right material, in the right place, at the
right time to support the young fish. A lot of smolt head out to
sea and OPR Alaska provides food for them. He referenced a
documentary on Atlantic salmon where the Atlantic Salmon
Federation stated that a lot of smolt go out to sea but do not
come back because they mostly starve to death. If OPR Alaska
targets the pastures that feed the baby fish when they are most
dependent and get them a good start in life, they will thrive
and come back in vast numbers.
4:27:01 PM
SENATOR MICCICHE noted Alaska's hatcheries grow a fraction of
the pink salmon that are grown in hatcheries in Russia and
Japan. He asked if Russia and Japan are considering employing
pasture restoration technology to increase their yields because
they are obviously facing the same challenges.
MR. GEORGE answered yes, they are considering the very same
technology. OPR Alaska has been in touch with leaders from
countries all over the world, especially island nations that are
desperate to see fish come back. OPR Alaska knows that the
Russians involved with salmon are confident that ocean
restoration will work, but they have not yet made the decision
to do it. However, OPR Alaska does not think it is far off.
CHAIR REVAK asked if OPR Alaska has plans to go out the summer
of 2021 or anytime soon.
MR. GEORGE replied if OPR Alaska can get the State of Alaska's
blessing to do the ocean restoration, they might make this
summer, but preparation and gearing up takes time. The end of
July is sort of the drop-dead date. Kasatochi Volcano erupted in
August 2008, but OPR Alaska would like to get the dust in the
water much earlier than that. If OPR Alaska did, then Alaska
could expect a couple of hundred million extra fish next year.
4:29:40 PM
SENATOR VON IMHOF referenced President Biden's executive order
and asked if there is federal financial support for fisheries
restoration, especially due to its effect on climate change, and
if mainstream media will start reporting on it.
MR. GEORGE replied he thinks the federal government is committed
to spending vast sums of money on projects that are like ocean
restoration. However, OPR Alaska is a private venture capital,
for profit firm that is not looking for state or federal funds.
OPR Alaska has lots of investors who think ocean restoration is
a fabulous idea if they can make the milestones of engaging the
proper government agencies. However, there is no legislation,
permit structure, or process review in any state or federal
government agency that OPR Alaska can apply for. Ocean
restoration is simply beneficial research with a commercial side
effect.
MR. GEORGE said the best outcome for OPR Alaska is if the Senate
Resources Committee was to write President Biden in support of
the ocean pasture restoration idea because it meets his
executive order decree by bringing the fish back and helping
meet climate change commitments in one project. He added he
thinks there would be talk about OPR Alaska when the federal
government shows interest and probably chips in a lot of their
resources.
MR. GEORGE noted the Canadian Space Agency loved the Haida
Project and offered access to the international ocean observing
satellite fleet for instrument access in the Haida Eddy. The
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) loved the
Haida Project and offered ARGOS satellite buoys for ocean
measurement transmission at no charge. The National Research
Council Canada loved the Haida Project and said if OPR Alaska
hired young scientists they would pay 50 percent of their
salaries and benefits. He said those were existing programs that
OPR Alaska did not need but allowed for engaging those groups.
MR. GEORGE noted Export Development Canada (EDC) signed an
agreement with OPR Alaska regarding product guarantee for the
export of their Blue Carbon. He explained if OPR Alaska produced
Blue Carbon and sold it to a foreign countrylike the United
StatesEDC wrote OPR Alaska a product guarantee worth 85 percent
of the face value of the Blue Carbon. OPR Alaska expects to have
a lot of government and research agencies in the United States
to offer their help.
He said that is sort of OPR Alaska's business plan to not go
"hat and hand" to government and research agencies with a
desperate need for money; however, OPR Alaska will certainly
have an open hand after informing them what they are doing and
would then welcome their participation.
4:36:19 PM
SENATOR VON IMHOF noted he said at this point there is no
permitting requirement either from the State or federal
government to do the ocean restoration worknot even the U.S.
Department of Environmental Protection Agency. Essentially, OPR
Alaska could deposit mineral-rich iron dust in the ocean with no
permit or permission from the State or federal government.
SENATOR VON IMHOF asked what would stop her from going out in
her boat and dumping whatever she wanted in the ocean, and what
is it that he needs from the committee because there is nothing
to stop him.
MR. GEORGE answered OPR Alaska is not saying nothing is going to
stop them because they know somebody is going to write
legislation around the ocean restoration work. What OPR Alaska
wants to do is carry on a carefully planned and executed three-
year pilot project at commercial scale to gather intensive data
that proves ocean restoration work is safe and sustainable; OPR
Alaska thinks that will result in legislation that will define
the ocean restoration work.
He explained OPR Alaska cannot dump anything, they are putting
rock dust into the ocean in tiny amounts100 tons across 10,000
square miles, a vast area of ocean dilution. OPR Alaska knows
mineral concentration levels are at least 10,000 times higher
near shore and their intent is to place mineral dust into deep
water far offshore, beyond the continental shelf because that is
where the ocean is starving for minerals.
4:39:12 PM
SENATOR KIEHL addressed the scale of ocean restoration as a
meaningful carbon solution to submit to the White HouseOPR
Alaska's 100 ton experiment versus Kasatochi Volcano blowing up
and releasing millions of tons. He noted OPR Alaska's estimated
algae growth attracted one-sixty-five-hundredth of the carbon
that the burning of fossil fuels puts into the air each year.
MR. GEORGE replied he spoke with the chief scientist for the
largest experiment ever done in the academic world via the Polar
Star, and experiment that four times the amount of iron into the
Southern Ocean than OPR Alaska. The chief scientist explained
the ratio between the iron put in versus carbon out of the
atmosphere is one to one million; one ton of iron captures one
million tons of carbon dioxide. The academic debate continues
because no one has ever done the ocean restoration process at
the kind of scale OPR Alaska is proposing. A little bit of iron
goes a long way for phytoplankton and zooplankton growth which
is a dynamic biological recycling system.
He explained OPR Alaska's purpose is to actually do the
measurements that nobody has done. OPR Alaska wants to do the
measurements three-years running to get the data and let the
data speak about what the realities are for ocean restoration.
4:43:08 PM
SENATOR KIEHL said he will be eager to see what the data from
OPR Alaska looks like when they produce it.
CHAIR REVAK stated the committee appreciates OPR Alaska's
presentation. He thanked him for his interest in making the
oceans a better place and increasing fish populations. The
committee will review the information and talk to OPR Alaska in
the future.
MR. GEORGE said ocean pasture restoration is a real story of
hope.
SB 29-COOK INLET: NEW ADMIN AREA; PERMIT BUYBACK
4:44:38 PM
CHAIR REVAK announced the consideration of SENATE BILL NO. 29
"An Act relating to the powers of the Alaska Commercial
Fisheries Entry Commission; relating to administrative areas for
regulation of certain commercial set net entry permits;
establishing a buy-back program for certain set net entry
permits; providing for the termination of state set net tract
leases under the buy-back program; closing certain water to
commercial fishing; and providing for an effective date."
He noted the committee first heard SB 29 on March 3, 2021 and
completed public testimony. He said the committee would like to
hear again from the sponsor and gauge the will of the committee
for the legislation.
CHAIR REVAK pointed out during public testimony the committee
heard from 25 testifiers who supported the bill. Most if not all
testifiers were setnetters or family members of setnetters.
He said the committee has received three additional letters of
support that were distributed to committee members. He added the
committee has not received any communication in opposition to SB
29, which certainly was not the case during the previous session
and is likely an indication of the unfortunate times and
complications that Alaska's fishing industry has faced.
4:45:41 PM
SENATOR MICCICHE, speaking as sponsor of SB 29, said the bill
goes on to the Senate Finance Committee and he looks forward to
that discussion.
SENATOR MICCICHE summarized that SB 29 has no state dollars
associated with it. The legislation gives setnetters the
opportunity to either retrain or reinvest in another fishery. He
said the east side of the Cook Inlet fishery has struggled with
this issue for 40 years and he believes SB 29 is the best path
forward.
CHAIR REVAK found no questions or comments and solicited a
motion.
4:46:43 PM
SENATOR MICCICHE moved to report SB 29, work order 32-LS0279\A,
from committee with individual recommendations and attached
fiscal note(s).
CHAIR REVAK announced that without objection, SB 29 was reported
from the Senate Resources Standing Committee.
4:47:10 PM
At ease
4:48:49 PM
CHAIR REVAK called the committee back to order and announced the
agenda for upcoming committee meetings.
4:49:11 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair Revak adjourned the Senate Resources Standing Committee
meeting at 4:49 p.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB 29 Support Letters 3.8.21.pdf |
SRES 3/8/2021 3:30:00 PM |
SB 29 |
| SRES Ocean Pasture Restoration -Alaska Presentation 3.8.21.pdf |
SRES 3/8/2021 3:30:00 PM |
Ocean Pasture Restoration Presentation |