Sunday, March 13, 2005
Alaska Ocean Film Festival
The Alaska Oceans Film Festival was held Thursday, March 10 at the Bear Tooth Theater a second-run theater and art house combined with a microbrewery and pizzeria. The place was packed as the festival had sold out its single show. The festival featured international films and Alaskana short subjects on the deep soft coral area of the Bering Sea, surfing in the Yukutat area of Southeast Alaska, and an uniquely Alaskan event known as the Montague Cup. The Cup bears the name of the island where the surfing, silver salmon fishing, and deer hunting events that make up the competition take place. Whoever surfs the best set, catches the biggest fish, and shoots the biggest buck wins the Cup. The film featured great surf scenes but much less fishing with hunting footage pretty much absent from the film, save for a couple of guys with rifles slung over their shoulders. I guess the fishing and hunting were creatively edited because this film festival was somehow tied into the San Francisco Oceans Film Festival. I can only imagine what the reaction would have been to those in attendance in "the City" had the fishing and hunting sequences received the same play time as the surfing. I surmise the reaction would have been the same to suggesting that the 1002 area of the ANWR coastal plain be opened to oil and gas exploration, but that is a different blog.
I was watching the surf film "Riding Giants" last week with a surfer friend. In the course of the evening, the conversation turned to our respective childhoods. He grew up in semi-rural Portland while I spent my latter teen year in California. I remarked the Santa Barbara of the 1970's I knew growing up was quite different than the city today. I recalled going up into the Los Padres National Forest behind Santa Barbara to go target shooting with my high school buddies, which has now largely been prohibited by the Forest Service. The manager of the firearms department of the local rod and gun store would open the Junior ROTC firing range at Santa Barbara High School one weekend a month and teach marksmanship to the area's teens. I can only imagine the reaction of the school district if one were to make that proposal today. Yet, in Alaska, riflery is a high school interscholastic sport. In California, the number of hunters has precipitously tailspun in the last 30 years. In Alaska, the State authorizes wolf hunts to increase the number of moose as a game management technique.
This weekend I was reflecting on the state of ocean affairs in Alaska. I have come to the conclusion that Alaskans have a very utilitarian approach to the ocean. People depend on the ocean for subsistence or for an economic livelihood in the form of commercial fishing, sportfishing charters, or cruise ship and other tourism related activities. A small, largely-aging, offshore oil and gas industry does exist, almost exclusively in Cook Inlet. While it pops up from time-to-time, the abstraction of "mother ocean" or the concept of "the ocean for the ocean's sake" is largely absent from discourse in Alaska, save for the efforts of "Outside" connected environmental organizations to inject these ideas. A kernel of these ideas was present at the film festival. It will be interesting to see if the concept grows.
I was watching the surf film "Riding Giants" last week with a surfer friend. In the course of the evening, the conversation turned to our respective childhoods. He grew up in semi-rural Portland while I spent my latter teen year in California. I remarked the Santa Barbara of the 1970's I knew growing up was quite different than the city today. I recalled going up into the Los Padres National Forest behind Santa Barbara to go target shooting with my high school buddies, which has now largely been prohibited by the Forest Service. The manager of the firearms department of the local rod and gun store would open the Junior ROTC firing range at Santa Barbara High School one weekend a month and teach marksmanship to the area's teens. I can only imagine the reaction of the school district if one were to make that proposal today. Yet, in Alaska, riflery is a high school interscholastic sport. In California, the number of hunters has precipitously tailspun in the last 30 years. In Alaska, the State authorizes wolf hunts to increase the number of moose as a game management technique.
This weekend I was reflecting on the state of ocean affairs in Alaska. I have come to the conclusion that Alaskans have a very utilitarian approach to the ocean. People depend on the ocean for subsistence or for an economic livelihood in the form of commercial fishing, sportfishing charters, or cruise ship and other tourism related activities. A small, largely-aging, offshore oil and gas industry does exist, almost exclusively in Cook Inlet. While it pops up from time-to-time, the abstraction of "mother ocean" or the concept of "the ocean for the ocean's sake" is largely absent from discourse in Alaska, save for the efforts of "Outside" connected environmental organizations to inject these ideas. A kernel of these ideas was present at the film festival. It will be interesting to see if the concept grows.
Sunday, March 06, 2005
Learning to Protect Coastal Resources
I never considered myself an "activist," then "progress" threatened my dive spot.
Progress came in the form of a proposal to construct a cargo unloading ramp at Smitty's Cove in Whittier, Alaska. Whittier sits at the head of Passage Canal, one of the many fjords that radiate off Prince William Sound. Conceived as an alternate port in the "Thousand Mile War" of the Alaskan theater of World War II, the town is a portal to the Sound. Most people go to and from Whittier as a means of getting someplace else, whether it is coming off the cruise ships and immediately getting on the train to Anchorage or going to Whittier to catch the State of Alaska ferry to points beyond.
One of the town's local attractions is Smitty's Cove. With its existing boat ramp, the Cove is a great "put-in" place for scuba divers, kayakers, and recreational boaters. The Cove has a pretty good salmon run and is a favorite of local anglers. It also has an existing cargo transfer operation with a landing craft using the ramp to offload cargo destined for the Alaska Railroad freight train to Anchorage. The Cove is an exemplar of successful multiple use. This condition is like a marriage, some rough spots along the way and the parties having to work to make the arrangement a success. After a while a routine settles in. Then a seductress comes along in the form of Smitty's Cove LLC, a Seattle-based partnership with connections to Lynden Transport. It is usually not a good sign for the locals when a company in a far away place takes the name of a local landmark.
From the beginning, both the partnership and their local agent refused to meet with other users of the Cove or with the City Planning Commission which had the coastal review authority for the application to build a much larger cargo ramp in the Cove. Now this seemingly innocuous project raised questions like, "if the existing ramp is not adequate for your planned operations, just what operations are you planning and how will this affect other's use of the area?"
In the application, the partnership stated that the project was consistent with the enforceable policies of the local coastal zone district. In other words, the applicant certified that building the boat ramp would not violate local coastal land use plans, zoning, and ordinances. Among other things, these policies protected multiple use and recreational access to the area and required that any effects from the proposed boat ramp be mitigated.
An ad-hoc group formed to make sure that the project protected the existing use of the Cove. Our on-going effort teaches several lessons to people who find themselves taking action to protect local coastal resources.
The importance of having a point person, preferably one with ties to the larger local community and the groups who use the area, who can act as the early warning system for any emerging actions.
Early communication among the various interests and users is essential. Talking with each other is important, not only to keep everyone informed but to build solidarity. An email list is essential.
Know the rules of the game if you want to be a player. Permits often require action by more than one approving agency, each with their own procedures and rules. For example, any comment on the applicant's consistency certification has to be in reference to specific enforceable policies and why the project may be in violation of those policies. The public input process is not a referendum on the proposed project. While statements of opposition may result in a warm feeling of having done something, the bureaucracy will only consider those items submitted in accordance with the rules.
Get to know the approving officials. Making the "howdy rounds" is a good idea in most parts of the country for it allows the official to know who you are, not just what you think. In some places, personal relationships are still very important in getting things done. You can rest assured that the applicant probably has met the approving officials.
Get to know the applicant, if possible, but if the applicant doesn't want to meet there is not much you can do about it. Don't worry, eventually they will be conspicuous by their absence.
Knowledge is power, so do your homework. Raising questions about the potential effects of a project and providing credible input is hard work. It requires that you know something about the environment of an area. You don't need to be an expert, but you need a certain level of expertise. The most effective way of doing this is to have each person learn all they can about one aspect of a project.
If people need to be organized, organize them, no one will do this for you.
Progress came in the form of a proposal to construct a cargo unloading ramp at Smitty's Cove in Whittier, Alaska. Whittier sits at the head of Passage Canal, one of the many fjords that radiate off Prince William Sound. Conceived as an alternate port in the "Thousand Mile War" of the Alaskan theater of World War II, the town is a portal to the Sound. Most people go to and from Whittier as a means of getting someplace else, whether it is coming off the cruise ships and immediately getting on the train to Anchorage or going to Whittier to catch the State of Alaska ferry to points beyond.
One of the town's local attractions is Smitty's Cove. With its existing boat ramp, the Cove is a great "put-in" place for scuba divers, kayakers, and recreational boaters. The Cove has a pretty good salmon run and is a favorite of local anglers. It also has an existing cargo transfer operation with a landing craft using the ramp to offload cargo destined for the Alaska Railroad freight train to Anchorage. The Cove is an exemplar of successful multiple use. This condition is like a marriage, some rough spots along the way and the parties having to work to make the arrangement a success. After a while a routine settles in. Then a seductress comes along in the form of Smitty's Cove LLC, a Seattle-based partnership with connections to Lynden Transport. It is usually not a good sign for the locals when a company in a far away place takes the name of a local landmark.
From the beginning, both the partnership and their local agent refused to meet with other users of the Cove or with the City Planning Commission which had the coastal review authority for the application to build a much larger cargo ramp in the Cove. Now this seemingly innocuous project raised questions like, "if the existing ramp is not adequate for your planned operations, just what operations are you planning and how will this affect other's use of the area?"
In the application, the partnership stated that the project was consistent with the enforceable policies of the local coastal zone district. In other words, the applicant certified that building the boat ramp would not violate local coastal land use plans, zoning, and ordinances. Among other things, these policies protected multiple use and recreational access to the area and required that any effects from the proposed boat ramp be mitigated.
An ad-hoc group formed to make sure that the project protected the existing use of the Cove. Our on-going effort teaches several lessons to people who find themselves taking action to protect local coastal resources.
The importance of having a point person, preferably one with ties to the larger local community and the groups who use the area, who can act as the early warning system for any emerging actions.
Early communication among the various interests and users is essential. Talking with each other is important, not only to keep everyone informed but to build solidarity. An email list is essential.
Know the rules of the game if you want to be a player. Permits often require action by more than one approving agency, each with their own procedures and rules. For example, any comment on the applicant's consistency certification has to be in reference to specific enforceable policies and why the project may be in violation of those policies. The public input process is not a referendum on the proposed project. While statements of opposition may result in a warm feeling of having done something, the bureaucracy will only consider those items submitted in accordance with the rules.
Get to know the approving officials. Making the "howdy rounds" is a good idea in most parts of the country for it allows the official to know who you are, not just what you think. In some places, personal relationships are still very important in getting things done. You can rest assured that the applicant probably has met the approving officials.
Get to know the applicant, if possible, but if the applicant doesn't want to meet there is not much you can do about it. Don't worry, eventually they will be conspicuous by their absence.
Knowledge is power, so do your homework. Raising questions about the potential effects of a project and providing credible input is hard work. It requires that you know something about the environment of an area. You don't need to be an expert, but you need a certain level of expertise. The most effective way of doing this is to have each person learn all they can about one aspect of a project.
If people need to be organized, organize them, no one will do this for you.
Thursday, March 03, 2005
Welcome
Hello and welcome to coverdiver's underwater world. On this site I will be doing commentary on the ocean-related issues of the day from a conservationist's point of view. If you agree or disagree with me, I hope you will share your views with us.
