February 6, 2017

Representative Geran Tarr, Co-Chair
Representative Andy Josephson, Co-chair
House Resources Committee
Juneau, AK 99801   

Re: HJR 5, Urging the U.S. Congress to open the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas exploration, development, and production; urging the U.S. Department of Interior to recognize the private property rights of owners of land in and adjacent to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, relating to oil and gas exploration, development, production, and royalties; and relating to renewable and alternative energy technologies.

Dear Co-chairs Tarr and Josephson:

The Resource Development Council for Alaska, Inc. (RDC) is writing to support HJR 5, which advocates for opening the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) to oil and gas development.

RDC is a statewide business association comprised of individuals and companies from Alaska’s oil and gas, mining, forest products, tourism and fisheries industries. RDC’s membership includes Alaska Native Corporations, local communities, organized labor, and industry support firms. RDC’s purpose is to encourage a strong, diversified private sector in Alaska and expand the state’s economic base through the responsible development of our natural resources.

RDC has consistently supported opening the “1002 area” of ANWR’s coastal plain to oil and gas development. The coastal plain is considered America’s best onshore prospect for conventional oil and gas discoveries.

HJR 5 advocates for the State of Alaska and our nation’s interests in recommending the 1002 area be opened to responsible oil and gas development, as was recommended by the Department of Interior and Congress in the 1980s and 1990s. 

The 1002 area was excluded from the Wilderness designation in a compromise struck under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) over 35 years ago. In exchange, Congress doubled the size of the refuge and designated eight million acres outside the 1002 area as Wilderness. In recognizing the 1002 area’s enormous oil and gas potential, Congress mandated a study of the 1002 area’s petroleum resources, as well as its wildlife and environmental values. In 1987, the Department of the Interior recommended the 1002 area be opened “to an orderly oil and gas leasing program.”

A 1987 Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) noted in its summary that impacts from “exploration and development drilling were minor or negligible on all wildlife resources on the 1002 area” and that production would directly “affect only 0.8 percent of the

1002 area.” In 1995, Congress voted to open the area to responsible oil and gas development, but President Bill Clinton vetoed the bill.