Notes From Alaska
We Cannot Wait Until Tomorrow - What’s At Stake With Bristol Bay
By Norman Anderson
Norman Anderson is of Aleut decent, born in Naknek, Bristol Bay. He is the youngest son of Edward J Anderson of Akutan, and Alma E Anderson of Ugashik. He is a commercial fisherman and lives a subsistence lifestyle as taught by the elders.
As many of you are aware the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas are under the world ’s microscopes, the Polar Bear the the Arctic’s original inhabitants are at risk of the ever encroaching mega Oil giants. We here in Bristol Bay are soon to become victims as well.
The Minerals Management service has divided Alaska’s offshore into 14 planning areas, 7 of these are in the fish rich Bering Sea. And home to the already endangered Pacific Right Whale. For generations we subsistence lifestyle people have safely lived off of the healthy diet of Wild Salmon, this pristine sea food now is in danger of becoming fouled with chemicals involved with the daily process of exploration directly in the path of migrating Salmon.
The first proposed offshore oil and gas lease sale in Bristol Bay occurred over 20 years ago, as Bristol Bay lease sale 92. We fought that with the Bristol Bay Buy Back program, about the time the Exxon Valdez hit Bligh reef, so no leasing or development occurred. Bristol Bay was protected under both a presidential and Congressional Moratorium after the Exxon Valdez oil spill. Years later the sale area was resurrected as the North Aleutian Sale area 92, then OCS, or Outer Continental Shelf lease sale 92, now it has surfaced again as lease sale 214, BUT is still in the same place off the Izembeck National wildlife preserve. Home to millions of migrating sea birds, Walrus, Seals and of course our five specie of migrating salmon.
For you not in the know, it is where The Worlds Deadliest catch is filmed, yes it gets pretty wild down there, weather wise that is, where people want to drill for oil and gas in Bristol Bay.
My involvement over the past twenty years has been to prevent any invasion of predator industry to disrupt our conservations efforts and to save the Wild Salmon label. I have watched the area safely be put under Moratorium and additional protection of the deferral status, and both removed by our governing bodies back in D.C.
MMS has worked close to the industry to open areas for exploration, against the best wishes of the Federally Recognized tribes. So much for Government to Government relations. I have secured over 150 resolutions from Federally recognized Tribes and hand carried them back to D.C. to share with our Delegates. I have met with Secretary of the Interior Kempthorne, one of three indigenous people, in a private meeting. I have given presentations at Universities and fund raisers, raising awareness of the dangers of Offshore Oil in Bristol Bay, I have organized three meetings with are fisherman, native leaders, governments and last year had visitors from Russia who have first hand seen the damage Shell Oil has done to the fishery there. Also at our meetings economists from the University gave his views on how Oil and Salmon cannot mix.
I have and continue to travel to Tribes speaking and securing support against Offshore Exploration, I have seen first hand that our people are strong and will fight for what they believe in, we have not all emptied our souls and are filling the void with promises of riches, I have witnessed that it is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary wont allow him to allow it, he sells his soul because he has lost his inherent values of tradition and culture. People have given our permission, without our permission.
In March 2008, An international conference called the North Aleutian Basin Energy-Fisheries Workshop will be held in Anchorage to address the controversial issues of offshore oil and gas development in Bristol Bay. This meeting will address the technical difficulties of oil and gas development in arctic conditions and the foreseen impacts to fish, wildlife, and the environment. It will be laden with industry and agency representatives. I plan to attend this meeting and encourage all others concerned about Bristol Bay and Alaska’s Bering Sea fisheries to attend.
I encourage people to attend this meeting to testify, write to our leaders in Washington, D.C., call in to your radio stations and let everyone know how you feel. call your Native Corporation, tell them to not support Offshore Oil. Remember it’s your company, they work for you.
This is something we cannot wait until tomorrow, we have already messed up our lands for our grand children. Look at the Prince William Sound after the Exxon Spill, remember the Selandang Ayu, the Kisoshamaa ll ships made to survive the treacherous waters of the Bering Sea, now bits of rotting steel in the Aleutians?
We all have to work together to save this big village we call earth. MMS is already scheduling additional offshore oil and gas sales for 2010 and 2011. We can stop them, or you will see a day when farmed salmon will be more healthy then what we catch now. Go ahead call someone. Please.
January 25th, 2008 at 12:23 am
Dear Norm,
Thank you for this great work/article and integrity. Keep me on this list.
“We shall overcome”
God Speed,
Elyssa