Southeast

You’ve probably heard that cruise-ship bookings took a dive after the Costa Concordia hit a reef and partially sunk. But are travelers avoiding cruising or just delaying ticket purchases? And what does it mean for Alaska tourism?

The Carnival Corporation is the Costa Concordia’s owner. Carnival and its subsidiary lines will sail about 11 ships through Alaska waters this summer.

The corporation this month reported an almost 15-percent drop in worldwide bookings after the vessel struck a reef off Italy. The January 13th incident killed at least 30 people and badly damaged the ship.

But how will this tragedy halfway around the world affect cruise ship traffic here?

“I think Alaska is going to have a very good year,” says Stuart Chiron, a Miami-based industry analyst and cruise broker. He operates a website called “The Cruise Guy” that follows industry developments around the world.

Chiron says the sales dip won’t last – and may not hurt Alaska at all.

“There’s a lot of people who are on a wait-and-see type of scenario. But bookings as of now are looking very strong for Alaska. And there could be definitely some pickup if there are any hiccups on the international front, in the Middle East as well as in the Mediterranean,” he says.

(Read about the Prinsendam, which burned and sunk in the Gulf of Alaska. )

(Read about more recent cruise ship groundings and sinkings.)

Past crises, such as the 9/11 attacks, inspired American and Canadian cruisers to traveler closer to home.

Alaska Cruise Association President John Binkley says that might be the case this time too.

“There could be a feeling by the consumer that cruises in the U.S. that are under the jurisdiction of the United States Coast Guard are inherently more safe than those abroad. I don’t know that but there’s that possibility,” Binkley says.

Alaska’s cruise-ship capacity will grow to about 950,000 passengers in the upcoming season. And even if bookings drop, he says the lines know how to bring them back up again.

“If they have to, then they will just discount the pricing until they fill those berths. So it shouldn’t have an effect on the overall number of people coming up to Alaska on cruise ships. It could have an effect, though, on the amount of earnings that the companies get from those different berths coming up to Alaska,” he says.

When berths are cheap, the lines still make money by selling drinks, spa time and shore-based excursions.

Industry analyst Chiron says his information shows the bookings drop is largely over. In the meantime, lines such as Carnival and Princess are offering attractive deals highlighting other destinations.

“I can tell you that bookings did pick up very nicely. And we’ve also seen cruise lines begin to push Europe, Alaska and Caribbean summer sailings,” he says.

But the shipwreck’s timing could not have been worse. Binkley says many people book Alaska cruises in January or February.

Watch a video of the partially sunken Costa Concordia from RT media.

The most recent Interior Department appropriations bill includes provisions aimed at helping Alaska’s struggling timber industry. But one group says they go too far.

Budget bills often attract extra provisions that might not gain the attention needed to pass on their own.

That was the case for the most recent federal Department of Interior appropriations measure, signed in December by President Barack Obama.

Senator Lisa Murkowski inserted four items targeting logging in Southeast’s Tongass National Forest. They also apply to Southcentral’s Chugach National Forest.

Robert Dillon, Murkowski’s Energy and Natural Resources Committee spokesman, says one provision changes the appeals process for timber sales and other projects.

“It says, ‘Listen, before we give you the permit, before you finalize the process, let’s go ahead and do any appeals and take care of it just to streamline it a bit’,” he says.

“We see that to be very consistent with our intentions of taking a more collaborative approach to forest management, “ says Alaska Regional Forester Beth Pendleton.

She says the measure makes official what’s already being done.

“And I think it will increase the likelihood of resolving concerns and then resulting in a better, more informed decision in the long run,” she says.

The Southeast Alaska Conservation Council, a group that’s filed many formal objections, doesn’t like the provision. Bob Claus is SEACC’s forest program director.

“On the face of it, it doesn’t make sense that an appeal would happen before final approval. It happens after. That’s why they call it an appeal,” Claus says.

Another part of the appropriations bill aims to make it easier to sell red cedar, which is less common in the Tongass than hemlock or spruce.

SEACC doesn’t like that provision either.

“The Alaska red cedar export doesn’t do anything to help high-value-added industry in Southeast Alaska, which is where we think we ought to be capturing the value from the trees that are harvested her,” Claus says.

“It’s correct in that it does provide some authority for the export,” says the Forest Service’s Pendleton.

But she says that’s not the only priority.

“After that, that first right to process and mill goes to our local Alaska mills and our West Coast mills,” she says.

Another provision exempts logging road construction runoff from Environmental Protection Agency review. Pendleton and Murkowski spokesman Dillon say it just continues what’s been done for 30 years.

But SEACC’s Claus says it ignores an opportunity to protect clean water.

“There’s been a history of bad construction practice of roads. And this seems to continue that, which we would object to,” he says.

The final provision continues waiving a requirement that the Forest Service review management plans every 15 years.

Pendleton says it could impact decisions elsewhere, but not here.

“All of our plans, for the Tongass and the Chugach National Forest, are current in Alaska at this time,” she says.

Murkowski, in a press release, says the provisions are particularly important, since the Interior Department owns about two-thirds of Alaska’s lands.

Dillon, her spokesman, says the add-ons should help what was once one of Southeast’s main economic engines.

“We don’t want timber harvests and other activity to be stopped because of bureaucratic processes. So these provisions kind of fix loopholes and keep things going forward,”  he says.

Pendleton says the Forest Service has no objections.

“These provisions in the Interior appropriations bill, I find them all to be helpful. There’s really nothing in the appropriations bill for Alaska that’s really upsetting or of really any major concern,” she says.

But Claus, of SEACC, thinks it’s the wrong way to bring about change.

“Tacking things onto appropriations bills is not the best to make public policy,” he says.

The Forest Service says the provisions mesh with new rules for forest management plans.

Other Alaska items in the appropriations measure cover Native health programs and facilities, rural water system improvements and the Alaska Volcano Observatory.

This year’s Celebration Native cultural event will have an added focus on art.

Celebration 2012 is set for June 7th through the 9th at Juneau’s Centennial Hall. It’s organized by the Sealaska Heritage Institute, the cultural arm of the regional Native corporation of the same name. This year’s theme is “Strengthen Yourself.”

The event will include dozens of dance groups, most from Southeast Alaska, plus traditional food contests and lectures.

Institute President Rosita Worl says organizers have been looking for new ways to promote traditional and contemporary Alaska Native art.

“We are going to have a Native artists’ gathering on Wednesday opening up celebration. And at the close of the day, we’ll have the jurried art show,” Worl says.

Celebration always includes an artists’ market. Worl says this year, it will have a new outdoor venue to allow for more displays.

“We’re planning to have it right here on our parking lot. And we own the lot across the street where we’re going to be building our Sealaska Heritage Center. So we’re going to be seeing if we can have dancing there. It will become more visible right here in the center of town,” she says.

More information is on the Institute’s website. That includes applications for dance groups, which are due by March 2nd.

Hear earlier reports:

– Celebration 2010 features soapberry contest.

– Taste-testing black seaweed

– Watch a video of the soapberry contest from Kathy Dye of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

 

New planning rules for national forests will have little immediate impact on Southeast Alaska. But they could mean some changes for Southcentral forest lands.

Federal Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today released an environmental impact statement needed to finalize the rules. They call for stronger protections for forests, water and wildlife, while supporting rural economies.

Alaska Regional Forester Beth Pendleton says the rules describe the type of restoration and watershed protection already underway in Southeast’s Tongass.

“The new real strength of this planning rule is that focus on collaborations and utilization of best science in that revision process,” she says.

The rules spell out priorities for forest management plans.

Pendleton says the Tongass plan is not due for a full-scale update until 2018. But Southcentral’s Chugach will be revised in the next two or three years.

“We will be doing that under a new, more modern planning rule that I believe is going to better reflect science, public values and knowledge on how to create and implement more effective land management plans,” she says.

The rules also say the plans should address climate change’s impacts on the forests.

Agriculture Secretary Vilsack, who oversees the national forest system, says the new rules should help nearby towns and cities.

“We know these communities rely on the forest for jobs, clean air and clean water. We believe that this framework will take their concerns into consideration. We also believe that if an amendment or a change is required, it will take less time and less money to accomplish that change than under previous efforts,” he says.

The Agriculture Department oversees 193 million acres of forest nationwide. Southeast’s Tongass has about 17 million acres and Southcentral’s Chugach has about 5.5 million acres.

Link to plan information.

Watch a video on the rules by U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell.

Should the Alaska Marine Highway buy a used ship from the independent Inter-Island Ferry Authority? Supporters of the idea say it could save money for both operations.

The ferry Stikine once sailed a summer route from Coffman Cove, on Prince of Wales Island, to Wrangell and Petersburg. Those runs were cancelled in 2009 because they weren’t much used. The Stikine took over Hollis-to-Ketchikan sailings from the older ferry, the Prince of Wales. That left their owner, the Inter-Island Ferry Authority, with an extra ship.

“And I’m hoping to convince some of my colleagues to maybe look at buying that and

helping the Inter-Island Ferry Authority out at the same time so they don’t have to carry the expense of maintaining that boat and not using it,” says state Senator Albert Kookesh, who represents much of Prince of Wales Island, where the ferry authority is based.

The Angoon Democrat is interested in using the spare IFA vessel to fill in for the state ferry system’s smaller ships.

“When the Aurora or LeConte break down or have to go in for service, they hire Allen Marine. And all they have is catamarans, and there’s many a time when those things can’t make it around Point Retreat, for instance, because of the weather, he says.

Kookesh says buying the ship could be far cheaper than building an Alaska Class Ferry, though he supports completing the first in that design.

The Inter-Island Ferry Authority says it spends about $300,000 a year storing, maintaining and providing security for its unused ship. That’s about 8 percent of its annual budget. The IFA is also paying off debt from vessel construction.

“We’re trying to trim costs and limit the amount of money that we require from the state for an annual subsidy,” says Bruce Jones of Petersburg, the IFA’s general manager.

He says the Prince of Wales is only used as a fill-in vessel when its sister ship is being repaired.

“So if we can get those two things taken care of, there’s a possibility that the IFA can stand on its own, unless of course the fuel prices continue to go through the roof,” Jones says.

There is a significant difference between the IFA’s vessels and Alaska Class Ferries.

The yet-to-be built state ships are expected to cost in the range of $120 million each. The Prince of Wales was built for a sixth of that amount, and a recent survey showed its value as far lower.

That’s in part because the Prince of Wales is smaller, carrying about a third as many passengers and half as many vehicles. Jones says it also has fewer amenities.

“It doesn’t have any cabins for crew quarters, but it could be used as a day boat by the Alaska Marine Highway System, similar to what we use it for,” he says.

State ferry chief Mike Neussl of Juneau says he hasn’t been contacted by lawmakers or the IFA, so he can’t comment on a possible purchase.

Marine Transportation Advisory Board Chairman Robert Venables of Haines also hasn’t been contacted. But if asked, he’s willing to take a look.

“On the surface, there does seem to be some benefit to having a newer vessel in the fleet,” Venables says.

He’d want to know more, such as whether it’s compatible with marine highway docks and ramps.

But he’s most interested in building Alaska Class Ferries. They’re being designed for the northern and southern ends of Southeast’s marine highway system.

“Generally, we’re seeing an increased need with a number of the mechanical situations and delays from the fleet that really I think highlights the need for an improved fleet. And the Alaska Class vessel is going to be one of the most important things we do at the marine highway system and MTAB this year,” he says.

IFA officials met recently with several Southeast lawmakers.

Senator Kookesh, who chairs his chamber’s Transportation Committee, says he’ll pursue the idea.

The ferry Taku may be back in action on Thursday, after its second breakdown this month.

The 370-passenger ship was tied up in Juneau Sunday night due to a problem with its propeller control system. Officials then cancelled a roundtrip sailing to Prince Rupert.

Marine highway chief Mike Neussl says the Coast Guard determined the Taku was not safe to sail.

“There are two systems for the two different propellers so that there is redundancy. If one of them fails, the other could control both,” Neussl says. “But we will not be allowed to operate with one controlling both shafts. Because if it fails, then there is no control and a loss of propulsion, which is obviously a bad thing in the restricted waters of Southeast Alaska.”

The Taku stopped sailing about a week and a half ago after a hairline crack was found in its hull. It returned to service after being patched up. Neussl says the two problems are not connected.

He says repairs should allow the Taku to resume its route Thursday afternoon. But Petersburg, Wrangell and Ketchikan lost port calls. The ferry Matanuska filled in with a stop in Kake.

Officials also cancelled the ferry LeConte’s Juneau-Haines roundtrip today (Tuesday) for equipment maintenance and testing. They say it should resume sailing Wednesday.

The Taku’s controllable-pitch propeller system is a little like a hydraulic transmission.

“Instead of varying the revolutions per minute of the engine, or the speed of the engine, you change the pitch on the propeller blades to increase or decrease thrust or propulsion,” Neussl says. “So the hydraulic system had contamination, had a mechanical problem in it. That’s being taken apart, analyzed and assessed for repairs.”

The 350-foot-long Taku is almost 50 years old.