Arctic Power Statement on NAS North Slope Report

3/4/2003

From: Roger Herrera of Arctic Power, 202-544-5363 WASHINGTON, March 4 -- Following is a statement from Arctic Power on "Cumulative Environmental Effects of Oil and Gas Activities on Alaska's North Slope," a report prepared by the National Research Council of the National Academies: Arctic Power is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to opening the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to careful oil and gas development. The Cumulative Effects study is an interesting document that fails to identify any lasting impacts to North Slope wildlife with the exception of a readily reversible impact on a small numbers of birds. The study apparently discredits evolution and natural change in the area and shows a clear bias against the Inupiat Eskimos improving their lifestyle to that of the 21st Century. The report does nothing to discredit the claim that Alaskan arctic oil is produced with more care and attention to protecting the environment than any other oil in the world. Its examples of oil field mistakes are inevitably more than two decades old and have been rectified by new technology and practices. Roger Herrera, a consultant to Arctic Power, said, "It is sad that the authors embrace the myth that the Gwitch'in Indians are under threat when the Porcupine Caribou Herd has declined from 185,000 to its present level of 123,000 despite the fact that no development has occurred in its range. To suggest that the ANWR debate in Congress threatens the well being of the Gwitch'in is silly. The Dempster Highway in Canada has probably contributed to the caribou decline, because it is used for easy hunting access to the herd. Al Adams, an Inupiat elder, welcomed the changes in lifestyle on the North Slope. "Having a flush toilet is worth a few scars on the tundra", he said. "We have carefully assessed the impact of oil development and we think it has been hugely beneficial to us. Our culture is alive and well." The concerns expressed in the report regarding restoration of oil field sites disregards state and federal laws that mandate such actions. It also disregards the value of gravel pads for caribou insect relief. The report is too self-serving with its long list of recommended further studies, but nevertheless it can be used as a reference document in the future.