SJR 20-CLEAN UP MARINE DEBRIS  4:07:09 PM CHAIR GIESSEL announced the consideration of SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 20 Supporting federal, state, and local efforts to clean up and remove marine debris from the state; urging the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency to provide additional funding for those efforts and to remove barriers faced by tribes and rural communities in accessing those funds; and urging the Alaska Congressional delegation to advocate for increased federal funding and support for marine debris prevention, clean up, removal, backhaul, and education. 4:07:33 PM SENATOR JESSE BJORKMAN, District D, Alaska State Legislature, Juneau, Alaska, paraphrased the sponsor statement for SJR 20: [Original punctuation provided.] SJR 20 Clean Up Marine Debris  Sponsor Statement Version N Alaska's culture revolves around a healthy ocean and ecosystem, the ocean provides us with food, jobs, and tradition. Alaskans use the ocean to provide for themselves every single day. Foreign trash floating through Federal water collects in remote areas where it pollutes beaches and kills wildlife. Distance, expense, and rugged conditions make cleanup a challenge. Allowing marine debris to continue to collect around the state's shorelines is detrimental to our way of life. Since 2006, NOAA has directly funded projects in Alaska that have removed over two million pounds of debris. Federal agencies like NOAA and the EPA can continue to help Alaska get on track to clean up the state's waters. The state of Alaska has an estimated 44,000 miles of shoreline, almost as much as the entirety of the United States combined. Based on the estimate of shoreline, only around 6 percent of the coastline in Alaska has been cleaned since efforts begun. It is extremely difficult to properly dispose of marine debris after removal, leaving communities with messes they did not create. SJR 20 urges the Alaska Congressional Delegation to advocate for increased federal funding to support marine debris cleanup, backhaul, prevention, and education. We urge members support of SJR 20. This Foreign debris must not trash Alaska any longer! 4:09:42 PM CHAIR GIESSEL announced invited testimony on SJR 20. 4:10:12 PM LAUREN DIVINE, Director, Ecosystem Conservation Office, Aleut Community of St. Paul Island, Anchorage, Alaska, expressed appreciation for SJR 20. She described the decades of extensive work done by the Aleut Community of St. Paul to remove marine debris from its remote shorelines. She emphasized the time, resources, capacity, and financial investment. She stated that this is a never-ending battle. She pointed out that the debris is not locally sourced; tens of thousands of pounds of marine debris are brought to Alaska via ocean currents. Over 80 percent of the debris on the St. Paul shoreline is fishing-industry related. This includes nets, ropes, fishing lines, and buoys, among others. She emphasized the negative impact marine debris has on wildlife. MS. DIVINE pointed out that St. Paul Island is home to the majority of the world's breeding population of northern fur seals. She emphasized that this fur seal population is an important subsistence resource and adds to the island's biodiversity. She stated that, in the Bering Sea, millions of seabirds and other marine wildlife are at risk due to exposure to marine debris. She said that the Aleut Community of St. Paul has worked to strengthen state and local partnerships to address the challenges of clearing marine debris. She emphasized the need for partnerships and financial assistance - and the important role SJR 20 would play in bringing greater attention and support to this issue. She added that this would benefit both remote and tribal communities and would aid statewide efforts. 4:13:19 PM SENATOR KAWASAKI directed attention to an Ocean Conservancy map of the Alaska shoreline. He noted that the map indicates storm currents in the Gulf of Alaska and the [Alaska Stream], which could bring debris to Alaska. He recalled Ms. Divine's testimony that most of the debris does not originate in Alaska and asked for more information about where the debris is coming from. 4:13:56 PM MS. DIVINE replied that Alaska currents carry debris from global currents. She explained that the debris can and does originate from outside of Alaska. Marine debris can come from beyond the Arctic and sub-Arctic areas. She said that St. Paul sees debris from countries across the Pacific Ocean. This includes large, commercial-scale debris. She noted that the debris often contains foreign language labels indicating its origins. She said the debris finds its way into currents around the Bering Sea and the Bering Sea shelf and float, which bring it to St. Paul Island. St. Paul Island shares debris sources and problems with Western Alaska and the Northern Bering Sea (i.e. the debris travels across the Pacific Ocean), while debris in the Gulf of Alaska has different origins. She invited others to note where debris in their regions is coming from. 4:15:39 PM MICHAEL LEVINE, Senior Director, Alaska Programs, Ocean Conservancy, Juneau, Alaska, expressed gratitude for SJR 20. He briefly described Ocean Conservancy's work in Alaska, which includes programs focused on fisheries, shipping, clean ocean energy, and marine debris. Ocean Conservancy has worked on marine debris issues for close to 40 years. He briefly described the International Coastal Cleanup program, which began in 1986 and has engaged more than 18 million volunteers and cleaned up 440 million pounds of trash in 155 countries. 4:17:18 PM MR. LEVINE said the International Coastal Cleanup program - and the Ocean Conservancy's work in Alaska - is built on providing support to communities (including tribes, individuals, and local organizations) that are working to clean up local beaches. He explained that Ocean Conservancy provides technical expertise, raise funding, and build connections among individuals working on marine debris issues. He emphasized that marine debris is prevalent and unique in Alaska. He explained that debris washes up on Alaskan shores in amazing quantities. He directed attention to SJR 20, page 2, lines 16-18, which states that as of 2014, tribes, communities, and organizations around the state have removed more than 3,000,000 pounds of debris in documented cleanups. MR. LEVINE estimated that this amount has increased by hundreds of thousands of pounds since that time. He turned to Senator Kawasaki's question about where the debris originates and confirmed that the debris comes from faraway places. He explained that debris from the Fukushima nuclear accident (Fukushima, Japan, 2011) has crossed the Pacific Ocean and washed up on Alaskan shores. He shared his belief that this issue is uniquely Alaskan, cutting across geographies and political lines. He noted that marine debris is a larger problem in Alaska than in other states, in part due to Alaska's large coastline. He emphasized partnerships with many organizations across multiple industries and said this is a lesson in what Alaskan's can do if they work together. 4:19:29 PM MR. LEVINE emphasized that the work is extremely expensive. He explained that debris cleanups in remote locations (e.g. St. Paul Island) require equipment, manpower, and technical expertise in order to transport the debris to the landfill. He pointed out that the debris then takes up space in the landfill, which creates another issue. He said Ocean Conservancy and other organizations are working to create a "back haul" program to transport the debris from remote communities to recycling and disposal facilities (largely in the Lower 48). He said Ocean Conservancy received a federal grant from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to begin a back haul pilot program in Alaska. He noted support from Alaska's Senate delegation and others across the state. He reiterated that this is a non- partisan issue that requires an "all hands on deck" approach. He encouraged the legislature's support and passage of SJR 20. 4:20:50 PM SENATOR KAWASAKI recalled funding that was allocated for Pacific states to use for cleanup after the Fukushima disaster occurred. He asked how the money was divided and what it was used for. He surmised that it was not enough to address all the associated cleanup needs. 4:21:23 PM MR. LEVINE replied that he does not know how all the money was spent. He recalled surveys to discover debris "hot spots." He said he would research this question and provide additional information to the committee. He pointed out that large quantities of debris have washed up on shore after recent weather events, including after Typhoon Merbok in 2022. He commented that, regardless of how the funds from the Fukushima disaster were spent, additional assistance is needed to clean up Alaska's shoreline. 4:22:47 PM RALPH WOLFE, Director, Indigenous Stewardship Programs, Native Lands and Resources, Tlingit and Haida, Sitka, Alaska, discussed the important role partnerships play in clearing marine debris. He stated that Tlingit and Haida partners with organizations like Ocean Conservancy to clean up marine debris in communities throughout Southeast Alaska. Over the past year, Tlingit & Haida has picked up nearly 10,000 pounds of debris across 4 communities (with two days spent by 10-15 people in each community). He said this does not cover a fraction of the debris that is present and in need of cleaning. He explained that coordination and logistics are often a challenge, as many of the locations are remote. He explained that time and funding pose a challenge. He said cleanup events must account for tide, weather, hazards, and arranging disposal. He stated that items left in Southeast Alaska dumps are at risk of ending up back in the ocean. 4:25:13 PM MR. WOLFE said that the coordination continues once the cleanup event is complete. He said the hope is to recycle the debris, rather than move it from one location to another. He emphasized the intention to find an ethical way to dispose of the debris. He said nets and fishing equipment washes up on beaches. He explained that large fishing nets are difficult to remove and offered a personal anecdote to illustrate this. He shared his belief that SJR 20 would help organizations like Tlingit and Haida find additional funding sources outside of Alaska. He opined that Alaskans should not have to deal with this issue but acknowledged that Alaskans are the ones on the ground and feeling the direct impacts. He briefly discussed microplastics and the impact they have on wildlife such as seals, sea otters, and sea lions. Microplastics are found throughout the marine food chain and pose a significant risk to the ecosystem. This negatively impacts sea life as well as those who rely on the ocean for subsistence and challenges indigenous ways of life. He indicated that Tlingit & Haida will continue to do this work regardless, but emphasized the importance of partnerships that can offer financial support. He stated that it is not simply "picking up trash" - rather, it is about safeguarding livelihoods, restoring ecosystems, and honoring the connection between people and place. He commented that SJR 20 would encourage investment in marine debris cleanup and would support partnerships throughout Alaska. He said Tlingit & Haida has partners from the southernmost coast of Southeast Alaska up to Kodiak and beyond. 4:27:39 PM CHAIR GIESSEL opened public testimony on SJR 20; finding none, she closed public testimony. 4:28:03 PM SENATOR KAWASAKI shared that Japan provided a goodwill gift to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to collect marine debris after the Fukushima disaster. He asked if there are other (national or international) avenues to address marine debris. He opined that each country should be responsible for its own debris - and should not be required to clean up debris from other countries. He asked if there are any international treaties that address this issue. He expressed uncertainty regarding whether the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) would apply in this case, as the United States is not party to that treaty. 4:28:50 PM SENATOR BJORKMAN deferred the question. 4:29:12 PM MR. LEVINE replied that he does not know. He said he would research this alongside Senator Kawasaki's earlier question related to Fukushima funding and provide any additional information to the committee. 4:30:11 PM CHAIR GIESSEL asked if Mr. Levine would also investigate whether the Arctic Council has any related policies or activities and provide this information to the committee. 4:30:45 PM CHAIR GIESSEL held SJR 20 in committee.