Legislature(2009 - 2010)BUTROVICH 205
02/26/2009 08:00 AM Senate WORLD TRADE, TECH, INNOVATIONS
| Audio | Topic |
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| Start | |
| the U.s. Arctic Research Program and Alaska | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON WORLD TRADE, TECHNOLOGY AND
INNOVATION
February 26, 2009
8:05 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Lesil McGuire, Chair
Senator Gary Stevens
Senator Bill Wielechowski
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator Hollis French
Senator Lyman Hoffman
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
Alternative Energy Opportunities & Technologies in Arctic and
Sub-Arctic Alaska
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record.
WITNESS REGISTER
Mead Treadwell, Chair
U.S. Arctic Research Commission
Anchorage, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Delivered PowerPoint on the Arctic Research
Program and Alaska
ACTION NARRATIVE
8:05:50 AM
CHAIR LESIL MCGUIRE called the Senate Special Committee on World
Trade, Technology and Innovation meeting to order at 8:05 a.m.
Present at the call to order were Senators Stevens,
Wielechowski, and McGuire.
^The U.S. Arctic Research Program and Alaska
CHAIR MCGUIRE announced the business before the committee is to
hear from Mead Treadwell who has been asked to talk about the
Arctic as well as standard and alternate energy opportunities.
8:06:48 AM
MEAD TREADWELL, Chair, U.S. Arctic Research Commission, said
this is a Presidential appointment and he is one of seven
commissioners. He named the five commissioners who accompanied
him to Juneau. He described the commission as the pilot fish for
the $400 million per year Arctic Research Program that involves
at least 15 federal agencies cooperating with over 12 nations
and using research infrastructure worth billions of dollars. We
believe this research helps build the U.S. competitive position,
he said.
The commission is, by law, charged with submitting to the
President and Congress a biannual report on goals and objectives
for Arctic research. The 2009 report will again ask the federal
government to focus on five research themes: 1) Environmental
change in the Arctic and Bering seas; 2) Arctic human health; 3)
Civil infrastructure; 4) Natural resource assessment and earth
science; and 5) Indigenous languages, identities, and cultures.
He said that while he was asked to talk about energy, he would
like to highlight that on the issue of Arctic human health they
are being intensive this year to respond to the suicide problem
in Western Alaska. They are asking Congress to fund a study by
the National Academy of Sciences to dig deeper to find what
other medical information can be developed to help fight the
problem. Working with the National Institute of Health, there
will be a conference in Anchorage in early June on behavioral
health problems in the Arctic region and he welcomes legislative
participation.
MR. TREADWELL referenced the civil infrastructure research theme
and said that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is taking a
leadership role. Finally, he noted that for the first time since
the commission was created in 1984 there is a social science or
anthropological theme in the Arctic research plan. The point in
mentioning that indigenous languages, identities and cultures is
included as a research theme is that this generation is losing
the languages of their grandparents faster than the Arctic sea
ice is shrinking. Losing a language is a tremendous loss of
human knowledge and is a serious concern. The commission will be
encouraging federal agencies to work with school districts to do
immersive language training. The current problem is that even
though schools have money for the program, there is sometimes a
shortage of qualified teachers.
8:11:56 AM
MR. TREADWELL said after he became chair two years ago the
commission urged the President to review and revise U.S. Arctic
policy. Last time the National Security Council adopted an
Arctic policy for the U.S. was in 1994. The new policy was
signed in January 2009 and in her confirmation hearing Secretary
Clinton said they are looking forward to implementing that
policy. It looks at a number of things, but for the first time
it talks about the policy with respect to climate change in the
Arctic, shipping in the Arctic, and the need to have stronger
international cooperation on research. He acknowledged that this
committee has urged ratification of the Law of the Sea Treaty,
which commits the nation to work on international cooperation
including joint search and rescue activities, discussion of
regional fisheries agreements, and other activities to make sure
that shipping is safe secure and reliable.
After the Russians planted a flag on the surface of the ocean
bottom at the North Pole, an issue in Arctic policy that has
been discussed at length centers on what is happening with
sovereign rights and jurisdiction in the Arctic. The U.S. has a
maritime boundary with Russia that makes it clear that what
Russia can claim under Law of the Sea may benefit the U.S. If
the treaty is ratified, the U.S. has the right under the Law of
the Sea to make a claim to an area outside the 200-mile limit
that is geologically part of the continental shelf. Currently
work is being done to do bathymetric and seismic research in the
Arctic Ocean to help prove up the claim. That will essentially
add considerable territory to the U.S. off Alaska.
CHAIR MCGUIRE asked to see a slide of some of shipping routes
that are discussed in the Arctic policy.
MR. TREADWELL displayed a slide showing the Bering Strait and
said if you wanted to enter the Arctic Ocean for a trans-Arctic
shipment or to take the northern sea route across the top of
Russia or to go through the Northwest Passage over the top of
Canada you would need to enter through the Bering Strait from
the Pacific Ocean. He noted that some people are calling it the
"Bering Gate." You would exit the Arctic Ocean either to the
west of Greenland, to the east of Greenland through Fram Strait
near Spitsbergen or over the top near Norway. The most direct
route is straight across and if ice conditions continue to
change that could be a major route going past Alaska shores. For
50 years global aviation has traversed these great circle routes
and made Alaska a crossroads. What happens with shipping over
the next few years is something the commission has spent
considerable time and money on.
8:16:27 AM
MR. TREADWELL noted that it's of interest to Alaska that there
is a disputed boundary with Canada on the Beaufort Sea. That
boundary was last negotiated when Alaska was owned by Russia and
Canada was owned by Britain. Documents only go to the ocean
edge. The U.S. feels that it is customary international law to
follow the headland and Canada has a different view. What is at
stake is a 6,200 square nautical mile pie slice within the 200-
mile limit that, because of the disputed ownership, is not being
leased for energy purposes.
MR. TREADWELL said much of what the commission has done looking
at research on Arctic energy began with sponsorship of an Arctic
energy summit and International Polar Year activity that was
held in the fall of 2007 and has continued since. They looked at
rural energy, extractive energy, and sustainability issues. The
event drew people from all countries surrounding the Arctic and
others across the world.
Arctic energy research in Alaska has global implications, Mr.
Treadwell said. Safer and more efficient fossil fuel development
is an important subject for research for a number of reasons.
Senator Murkowski recently stressed the importance of new
exploration techniques onshore and offshore to safely get oil
and gas up and out. This is something the commission has been
watching closely. Longer winter drilling seasons in a warming
climate led to the tundra study that helped to discover ways to
do this. The American people were promised a robust oil spill
research program in the Arctic, sub-Arctic and around the
country but funding for that program has gradually slipped away.
The commission is pushing hard to coordinate committees in the
federal government to reengage. The disputes over drilling in
the Beauford and Chukchi seas highlight the importance. Entities
in the federal government and industry are working on joint
programs in Norway to help improve cold weather oil spill
response. The commission again is calling for stronger oil spill
research. The state has in the past been a player using the 470
fund, but there is a similar federal fund and significant money
is available. Hopefully more of that will be committed to oil
spill research.
Safe secure reliable shipping also is an issue in the Arctic.
Russian Arctic oil shipping has been increasing over the last
few years as new projects go online in the western Arctic.
Currently it all heads west through the Arctic, but it certainly
has the legal right to head east through the Bering Strait so it
is in Alaska's interest for regimes to be in place to see that
safe shipping is ensured in this area.
Finally, carbon sequestration is a goal of the U.S. climate
change technology program and the use of gas hydrates has
brought Japanese investment to Alaska through a joint industry
program.
8:21:24 AM
SENATOR STEVENS asked if he intends to talk more about Alaska's
rights and responsibilities in Arctic shipping.
MR. TREADWELL replied he will address that topic shortly.
He noted that the commission has also done some work on the
issue of alternative energy and the goal the governor set to
have 50 percent of the state's power production to be from
renewable energy is very ambitious. The motivation for stronger
research can stabilize costs and mitigate global climate change.
The focus on alternative energy can be rural, urban, and export;
it can be onshore and offshore; it can cover electric power,
heat and ultimately all transport modes. Some of the work going
on in Iceland on hydrogen power for ships could be very
important to Alaska's fishing industry and ultimately lead to
more stabile power costs for shipping. Because of the issues
with black carbon, the world may over time want to commit itself
to hydrogen power shipping. That research is important to
Alaska.
The state has tremendous natural assets including hydro, wind,
tides, geothermal, waves, biomass, and solar that can be applied
to power and other energy needs. Also, Alaska and the Arctic may
be a geo-engineering venue as well. There are some grand schemes
to mitigate climate change in a faster way and are worthy of
research. He recapped that between fossil fuels and alternative
energy, Alaska has great opportunity to do research that
contributes to the state and the world.
MR. TREADWELL responded to a question and explained that the
idea of geo-engineering is to slow the heating of the
atmosphere. One idea is to darken the atmosphere of the Arctic
for about a five-year period by distributing aerosols or dust in
the upper layers. That might bring enough reduction of heat to
bring back the Arctic ice pack and counter the effects of
greenhouse gases. Another project relates to magnetic forces and
currents. The earth has chimneys at the North and South poles
where particles enter and leave the earth's atmosphere by riding
magnetic currents. There may be some way to manipulate those
currents or they may be unwittingly manipulated already to
export carbon dioxide or carbon molecules. At this stage those
are fanciful science, but it would only happen in the Arctic
region so it's important to pay attention.
MR. TREADWELL highlighted the USGS study that came out last
summer assessing the undiscovered oil and gas potential of the
Arctic. He displayed a chart that shows that about 15 percent of
the world's undiscovered conventional oil and about 30 percent
of the undiscovered conventional gas is to be found within the
Arctic Circle. Thus, the Arctic as a venue for traditional
hydrocarbon production is likely to be significant for some time
to come. It is something that Alaska should keep its eye on.
Alaskans knows about dependence on oil revenue but Russia is
certainly dependent on significant oil revenues nationally based
on Arctic oil production largely in the northwest. Norway is
also dependent economically on oil production in the North Sea
and Greenland has been given incentive by the government of
Denmark for self sufficiency from oil reserves to potentially
achieve political independence. Likewise northern Canada is
dependent on working on major oil and gas development. Of
course, Alaska is working hard to get its gas to market and find
new sources on and offshore. The point is that the Arctic is an
energy province with fossil fuels being a significant part of
the region. In Iceland hydro and geothermal power is a major
part of the country's economy and exports.
8:28:19 AM
Alaskans learned the hard way that oil spills can't be ignored
so efforts to improve oil spill response in Arctic waters
continue. He noted that lots of work is going on in the Beauford
and Chukchi seas, but efforts to test oil spill response in cold
weather has moved to Norway where more on-water testing is
allowed. We've been supporting a joint industry program there,
he said. Largely because of production in the western Arctic and
Russia, more ice-class tankers have been constructed. Ice
capable tankers and LNG tanker orders to serve the Russian
market have been growing considerably. That is just one thing
the commission found in the Arctic shipping assessment that it
helped sponsor financially. They will take that shipping
assessment to the ministers of the eight Arctic nations in April
and one thing it will point out is that Arctic shipping isn't in
the future; it's now. In 2004 close to 5,000 ships of 100 tons
or greater were operating in those waters and it's time that the
nations get together and make sure it happens safely.
CHAIR MCGUIRE questioned how they are regulated today.
MR. TREADWELL explained that there is a voluntary code for the
way ships must be constructed to operate in the Arctic. The U.S.
is part of the Arctic policy signed in January 2009 saying that
it will go to the UN with Canada to try to make that polar code
mandatory rather than voluntary. A number of design changes are
needed for a ship to safely operate in Arctic waters, but to
make something compulsory on the world oceans it has to be
agreed to by the International Maritime organization. That is a
UN body in which all nations of the world participate. The Coast
Guard currently is working with Russia to set up traffic systems
in the Bering Strait. Other issues are going on with the marine
exchange where they are working to build an identification
system for locating ships. Ships are required to broadcast their
position but without receivers to process the information it's
worthless. That issue was on the front page of the Juneau Empire
just yesterday, he noted.
MR. TREADWELL displayed slides of the minimum ice cover in the
Arctic Ocean in 2002 and in 2007 to show that the change is
dramatic. Scientists have varying estimates on when the Arctic
Ocean might be ice free in the summer. The current consensus is
that it will be around 2030 to 2040, but there have been
estimates as early as 2013. One of the reasons this is happening
is because the thick multi-year ice that builds up has been
flushing out of the Fram Strait east of Greenland in the last
several years. Annual-ice melts comparatively easier. Other
issues are that the temperature of the Arctic Ocean itself and
the atmosphere are warming. Arctic habitat is changing quickly
and has affected polar bears and other species. Understanding
what is happening in the ice cover is important and has given
the world a sense that the Arctic is more accessible. In the
fossil energy field the Office of Management and Budget
estimated that the lease sale in the Chukchi Sea last year would
earn about $60 million, but the bid was about $2.7 billion for
rights to drill in that region.
8:33:56 AM
MR. TREADWELL said one thing that is interesting about global
climate change is that the Arctic exhales carbons as the tundra
warms. About one quarter of the world's carbon dioxide is stored
terrestrially either in the boreal forests or the tundra itself
so carbon and methane releases certainly should be watched. He
noted that gas hydrate research is an important initiative of
the U.S. Department of Energy, the Japanese government, and
industry in Alaska because gas hydrates may up-well anyway and
these deposits could be new sources of natural gas.
He displayed a chart prepared by Katy Walter with UAF showing
the out-gassing of methane from a pond. Last year NOAA reported
a new spike of methane in the atmosphere. Methane is nearly 24
times more potent as a greenhouse gas than CO2 so the Arctic may
become a major contributor of greenhouse gases as warming
occurs. There's an energy component and a climate component
there, he said.
8:37:16 AM
MR. TREADWELL said the U.S. Climate Change Technology Program
was one of the most unsung programs of the previous
administration. It was a multi-billion dollar commitment by the
U.S. to improve alternative energy technologies. However, it did
not look closely at opportunities for alternative energy
research in the Arctic. He said he believes that this program
will be substantially revised in the present administration.
Stimulus money is available and is one reason that the
commission produced the document "Why the Arctic Matters: The
Potential Contribution of Arctic Research to U.S. Climate Change
Mitigation Strategy." Right now the U.S. has aggressive plans to
develop alternate energy solutions including: reducing emissions
from energy end-use and infrastructure; reducing emissions from
energy supply; capturing and sequestering carbon dioxide;
reducing emissions of non-CO2 greenhouse gases such as methane;
enhancing capabilities to measure and monitor greenhouse gases;
and basic science to technology development. The commission has
repeatedly made the point that Alaska and the Arctic need to be
in on this program.
MR. TREADWELL thanked Senator Murkowski for the trips she
sponsored for the Secretary of Energy to come to Alaska last
year and noted that he included correspondence the commission
has had with the Department of Energy as well as the commitment
made by the out-going Secretary of Energy to put a staffer in
Alaska to help develop more alternative energy research.
According to the head of the Renewable Energy Lab, that
commitment will be fulfilled. For over a decade there has been a
Department of Energy sponsored Arctic energy office in Alaska
but it is funded through the DOE fossil fuels program and thus
money has only been spent on fossil fuel energy research. The
congressional mandate is broader than that and the commission
has asked the Secretary of Energy to include funding for
renewables. Unfortunately, the only alternative energy done in
Alaska by DOE is considered an earmark. The commission has asked
that DOE embrace the program and work with Alaska on something
that is vital not only to the state but to the country and
world. The point they've made repeatedly is that Alaska pays
more for its energy. Even costly testing might cost less than
what is currently being spent on diesel fuel in 200 villages
that are off the road system and off the electric power grid. He
said that point has been made successfully and thanks go to
Senator Murkowski and the DOE for committing to have researchers
in the state.
Some work has also been done to build capacity at the University
of Alaska to do work on alternative energy. There are
congressional authorizations that are unfunded, but the point is
that as this committee looks at many things the state is doing
with its own funds to work in the alternative energy area,
trying to leverage power resources is something that everyone
needs to work together on. This means focusing on issues like
gas hydrates, inflow, rivers, power production, and biomass
replacements. These are all things DOE is doing around the
country and the commission questions why it isn't doing it in
the Arctic as well.
CHAIR MCGUIRE expressed appreciation for the information and
said legislators who are going to the upcoming energy conference
will echo that request in their scheduled meetings with the DOE.
MR. TREADWELL urged the committee to read the federal plan on
alternative energy research and asked members to recognize that
DOE will probably be revising it in the new administration. The
commission will work to ensure that the Arctic component is
involved in the revision.
8:42:37 AM
MR. TREADWELL said housing is another issue he wants to address.
Alaska Housing Finance Corporation (AHFC) did a survey in 2005
in conjunction with the Cold Climate Research Center in
Fairbanks and the commission would like to see that program
become more robust. One way that Alaskans can help reduce fossil
fuel energy use and be more efficient is to upgrade insulation
in houses. He noted that the money that Alaska has committed to
this program represents a significant percentage of what's being
done nationwide.
CHAIR MCGUIRE related that the Senate Resources Committee had
the Cold Climate Research Center visit this last week when
legislation was introduced implementing a lot of the
conservation recommendations from that report including new
building code requirements.
8:43:53 AM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI added that the committee is interested in
further conversations about alternative energy resources and
ways to reduce energy consumption in Alaska.
MR. TREADWELL said some people working with the new Secretary of
Energy have expressed an interest in coming to Alaska to look at
opportunities and needs and to learn more about projects like
the geothermal project at Chena Hot Springs.
CHAIR MCGUIRE said this Senate committee would be interested in
partnering and helping to host a DOE delegation.
MR. TREADWELL said this is an area where the current
administration and the state have every opportunity to work
together. A major issue in the climate talks that will take
place in Copenhagen this year is how to make sure that the less
developed countries can advance while efforts are underway to
reduce carbon use. Developing appropriate energy sources for
small villages that are off the grid has global implications.
CHAIR MCGUIRE agreed and added that consumers in China and India
want consumer items that make life more comfortable and the U.S.
could have taken a more leadership role.
8:46:35 AM
MR. TREADWELL displayed a slide showing shipping routes and said
that a northern sea route saves up to 40 percent of the distance
between eastern Asia and northern Europe compared to going
through the Suez Canal. Also, transiting through the Suez Canal
is most constrained in the fall season when the Arctic is the
most open. Lloyds Shipping has indicated it might be able to
reduce insurance rates for shipping in the Arctic if there are
better rules and if there are ship salvage and tug capabilities
in the area. Alaska needs to decide what it wants to ensure
safety. The commission has been working on not only the marine
shipping assessment, but also arguing for more research in this
area. He said it's not just melting ice that's making Arctic
shipping routes potentially attractive. It's also changing
technology and global demand for Arctic resources.
MR. TREADWELL displayed a slide of an ice-breaker built by Aker
Arctic Technology of Finland and noted that it is propelled by
an Azipod, which consists of an electrically driven propeller
that is mounted on a steerable pod that can turn 360 degrees.
Essentially it can make the bow of the ship the stern and vice
versa. The next slide showed an ice-breaking container ship
built by Aker Arctic for use by Russia in the Arctic Ocean. The
stern is spoon shaped to make it easier to back through heavy
ice. One of the big issues in Russia is whether or not these
ice-breaker ships need to pay for ice-breaker escort services.
This technology has been adopted by the U.S. and the first Coast
Guard icebreaker has been built for use in the Great Lakes. He
noted that ships are being built that are larger than the canals
of the world can handle so the prospect of bringing those ships
through shorter sea routes is attracting attention.
8:50:23 AM
Several years ago the Legislature funded a project that looked
at the prospect of an Arctic container shuttle link from Adak to
Europe. The finding was that trans-Arctic ships could operate
360 days a year. Right now Arctic LNG carriers are under review
and although the state is well invested in pipelines, the
changes in Arctic shipping may ultimately change the picture on
pipelines as well.
CHAIR MCGUIRE asked which countries are currently shipping LNG.
MR. TREADWELL replied there are LNG shipments in Arctic waters
from Russia and Norway bound mostly for European ports. He said
he's unaware of any other LNG Arctic projects that have been
proposed but the issue has been studied in the past. One
proprietary project shows that at a certain speed shipping would
be economic compared to a pipeline. He surmised that newer ships
would likely attain that speed. An issue in Alaska is port depth
but with the newly accessible Arctic Ocean the state needs to be
prepared for energy and mineral development.
CHAIR MCGUIRE asked if he's had conversations with FERC about
what an export license would look like.
MR. TREADWELL said no.
8:53:28 AM
MR. TREADWELL urged the committee to think about what the Coast
Guard does now on other shores and pointed out that it doesn't
have the capability to do that in the Arctic right now. The
Healy is a light icebreaker and the two polar-class icebreakers
that were commissioned in the Nixon administration are ready to
be retired. Alaska's Congressional Delegation and the commission
have worked hard to give the Coast Guard the capability to build
new polar-class icebreakers and came close in the stimulus
package. He suggested that a resolution from the Alaska
Legislature in support of icebreakers is important because
Alaskans and this Arctic coastline deserve the same protections
that the rest of the country gets. He encouraged the committee
to invite Admiral Brooks to address the committee on this
important topic as part of the state's homeland security
objectives and environmental objectives.
CHAIR MCGUIRE said you can look forward to a resolution from the
committee and an invitation will be extended to the admiral.
8:56:42 AM
MR. TREADWELL displayed a map to show that the North Magnetic
Pole is moving at an ever increasing rate across the Arctic
Ocean towards Russia. It's an interesting element of Arctic
research that has energy implications and climate change
implications. CO2 in the atmosphere is being monitored closely
and is now at higher levels than at even the warmest times of
the earth. A climate regime to be developed in Copenhagen in
December will be an attempt to get all nations to sign on. The
targets that are chosen and the timing to get to those targets
will have a dramatic impact on what happens in the Arctic in
terms of erosion, ice melt, shipping, habitat platforms for
wildlife and subsistence users. Alaska has an important stake in
what happens in Copenhagen in December. The commission has been
asking for a special assessment of what the targets that are
being discussed mean for Arctic residents because that's not
well understood.
9:00:01 AM
With the melting icecap the reflectivity in the Arctic Ocean is
lessening and the solar radiation is being absorbed by the
darker land and dark blue ocean surfaces. Techniques to
stabilize multi-year ice will help show the world that we've
turned the corner, but as yet modeling isn't good enough to
figure out what targets will help to bring the ice back.
MR. TREADWELL noted that just yesterday the two-year program
called the International Polar Year ended. It was the first time
since the International Polar Year of 1957 that there has been a
sustained assault by scientists from 60 countries on the
mysteries of the Arctic and Antarctic. Arctic research plays an
important part in Alaska's economy and the knowledge that is
being worked on could play an important part in answering
current problems.
CHAIR MCGUIRE thanked Mr. Treadwell for the presentation and the
work he's done on behalf of the state and the country. We look
forward to continuing the dialog, she said.
9:01:56 AM
CHAIR MCGUIRE adjourned the Senate Special Committee on World
Trade, Technology and Innovation at 9:01 am.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| 2009.2.26 Treadwell testimony to Alaska Senate Special Committee.pdf |
SWTI 2/26/2009 8:00:00 AM |