Government

An icebreaker in the Arctic is key to the United States’ position as an Arctic nation, according to the Commander of the 17th Coast Guard District in Alaska.

But Rear Admiral Thomas Ostebo said even if funding were available now, it would be 10 years before a Coast Guard icebreaker could be operating in the Arctic.

In a speech to the Juneau Chamber of Commerce Thursday, Ostebo said an ice breaker in the region may be even more important as ice recedes.

“Less ice in the Arctic, or an open Arctic, does not mean an ice-free Arctic. In fact you could make the argument that you really need more ice breakers now than ever, because you don’t know when the ice is coming in and out,” he said. “Every time you go up there you have the opportunity to run into ice that has broken off from somewhere else. The margins of the season up there are always going to be in flux and the opportunity for somebody to get stuck in the ice is there.”

As more traffic moves into the Arctic, requiring a greater Coast Guard presence, Ostebo said an icebreaker has to be part of the solution. He said he’s often asked if the Coast Guard should build an air station and a port in the region.

“My answer to that is if I have an icebreaker I almost don’t have to do that. Why? Because if I have an icebreaker with a flight deck, I can put helicopters on it. I don’t need a port if I have a place where I can take care of a whole lot of our folks. If I have the ability to respond from offshore and move that response capability around, that may actually be better,” he said.

Ostebo said the Northern Sea Route into the Bering Strait seems to be getting the most traffic. He called it a very busy area with poorly charted waters and no formal vessel traffic separation schemes to manage the traffic.

He said some of the largest ore and chemical vessels he’s ever seen are transiting the passage. Some are carrying more than a million gallons of fuel and would pose huge problems if there were ever a collision or grounding, he said.

Alaska’s Lieutenant Governor pressed Congress Thursday for new icebreaker ships to operate in the Arctic. The issue became more immediate as Mead Treadwell and others pointed to Nome’s trouble getting fuel this year. APRN’s Libby Casey reports from Washington.

The clock is ticking toward a decision on the fate of the Douglas Post Office. The 60-day public comment period ended last week on the U.S. Postal Service proposal to close it.

Blesilda Lochmann is acting Marketing Director at the Alaska Postal District Office in Anchorage. She has the job of reading every comment.

“I’d stopped counting,” she says with a laugh. “I have a pile that I have to go through and I have to read each one. Actually I have to enter them into the system and they will become part of our docket.”

Lochmann is one of the Alaska district staff who will recommend the Douglas Post Office close or remain open. One of the last letters she received came from the Juneau legislative delegation, concerned postal officials may not have all the facts.

They say the analysis should look at the space available at alternative post offices. The closest is in the downtown federal building.

Rep. Cathy Munoz says they’re told that closing Douglas may create a whole new problem for the postal service:

“The alternative site, the downtown site, already has a long waiting list for box holders, and we’re not even sure if the box holders from the Douglas facility will be able to be accommodated at the downtown facility,” she says.

Five-hundred sixty-eight box holders would be displaced if the Douglas station closes. They would have to rent a box at another Juneau post office, or get home delivery. Juneau Postmaster Susan Johnson says there is no waiting list at the federal building and there are more than enough vacant boxes to accommodate the Douglas box holders.

All Juneau mail is processed at the Mendenhall Valley Post Office.

The lawmakers’ letter also notes the postal service should consider finding ways to reduce costs at the Douglas Post Office so it could stay open. For example, renegotiating the lease or moving to another Douglas location, or reducing the number of hours the post office is open to save personnel costs.

Lochmann, of the Alaska Postal District, says such changes could be part of the recommendation for Douglas.

That recommendation will be considered by the USPS Western Area Office in Denver. If the station is to close, the public will have 30 days to appeal to the Postal Regulatory Commission.

If a shutdown is the final decision, Lochmann says, it wouldn’t happen until February.

Four other Alaska post offices are still on the USPS list for possible closure. They include the Postal Store and the post office at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage as well as the facilities at Fort Wainwright Military Base and Eielson Air Force Base in Fairbanks.

Governor Sean Parnell and First Lady Sandy Parnell will host the annual holiday open house at the Governor’s mansion next Tuesday, December 6th.

The open house is among the most popular holiday events in the Capital City every year, with members of the governor’s cabinet serving hot cider and holiday treats to Juneau residents waiting in line to have their picture taken with the first family.

More than 24,000 cookies and 100 pounds of fudge will be cooked up for this year’s event. Students at Dzantik’i Heeni Middle School are making Gingerbread houses that will be on display, and several local school and community groups will perform carols.

The holiday open house has been held every year since the Governor’s mansion was built in 1912, with the exception of two years during World War II. Over the last year, the mansion has undergone about a million dollars’ worth of repairs and weatherization improvements.

This year’s gathering is next Tuesday from 3 to 6 p.m. People with accessibility needs should contact the governor’s office to arrange early entry. The number to call is 465-3500.

Alaska Attorney General John Burns is resigning, effective Jan. 2.

In a letter to Gov. Sean Parnell, dated Nov. 19, Burns says his “resignation is based solely on personal reasons.” He says living out of a suitcase is neither fair to his family nor conducive to his health.

An attorney from Fairbanks, Burns took the job 11 months ago and did not move to the capital city. His youngest daughter is a senior in high school.

In his resignation letter, he says serving as “the managing partner of the state’s largest law firm has been an incredible and unbelievably fulfilling experience.”
He says he will miss working with the men and women in the Department of Law.

Burns says he is staying on until January to assure a smooth transition with his successor.

Parnell announced the resignation Friday. In a news release he called Burns a capable leader and “true public servant.”

The U.S. House has approved a measure that would allow the historic and decommissioned Coast Guard cutter Storis to possibly become a floating memorial and museum in Juneau. Now, the legislation moves on to the U.S. Senate for their consideration.

Congressman Don Young’s office said in an emailed release that the action came Tuesday, along with a measure that authorizes the service’s spending for fiscal years 2012 through 2014. Spending would total $8.49 billion and increase to $8.7 billion over those three years.

That larger funding bill also decommissions the Coast Guard’s two heavy-duty icebreakers. That’s something that Young says came out of frustration of the Administration’s inability to prioritize icebreaking needs and he believes it forces the administration’s hand. Young says he’s introduced a measure that allows the service to lease icebreakers.

The Storis legislation is House Resolution 1220. It was incorporated into House Resolution 2838 that was approved by the U.S. House on Tuesday.