Dear Friends:

After nearly a week on a special assignment I now come up for air with a message we often forget.

The message is, “Don’t forget to offer public comment whether you be Alaskan, Canadian or Lower 48 citizen concerned about national security, prosperity and the Left’s focus on socializing North America.”

With that gentle but firm reminder in place, we heed this message (below) from our friends at the Resource Development Council for Alaska.

Alaskans should provide comment or testify at tonight’s hearing.  Why?  Because agencies build a public record supporting their final decision.  If public opinion is rational, the decision might be as well.  If public opinion is swayed toward the social Left’s position (i.e. no fossil development is good), the agency’s decision could be affected.  That is, the project could still move forward but with more conditions than are reasonable.

Some people are nervous about testifying.  Comment testimony seldom invokes questioning.  Second, there are two types of testimony.  One type is relatively simple: “I am an Alaskan citizen and I support the project because the country needs the energy and Alaska needs the jobs and pipeline throughput.”  A petroleum geologist or engineer might offer the agency more technical detail.  Both types of testimony count.  One counts for numbers and citizen support and another may count for technical support of the proposition.  Final thought: never underestimate the importance of numbers of advocates who turn out to testify!

So please, let’s all heed the RDC advice and spring into action this afternoon/tonight!  -dh


Please Join Our Fellow Citizens Tonight 

(Tip: arrive a little early; if the Corps is taking a list of witnesses you might get on earlier…and get a better seat. -dh)

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will hold a public hearing in Anchorage this evening on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Nanushuk Project, proposed by Armstrong Energy LLC. The hearing is from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn, 4555 Union Square Drive.

It is important that Alaskans supporting increase oil production on the North Slope attend and present brief comments supporting Alternative 2, the Applicant’s Proposed Action. Armstrong, which is partnering with Repsol SA, describes its new field near the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska as the largest onshore U.S. conventional oil discovery in 30 years. The field is expected to hold at least 1.2 billion barrels of oil and produce up to 120,000 barrels per day.

The comment deadline is Monday, October 16th.

Action Requested:
Please participate in the comment period for this important project by attending tonight’s public meeting and submitting comments on the DEIS, specifically supporting Alternative 2, the Applicant’s Proposed Action. The comment deadline is October 16th.

Read the full action alert with points to consider for your comments.

Public Meeting:
Anchorage, Wednesday, October 4, 6:00-8:00 p.m. Hilton Garden Inn
Previous meetings were held in Nuiqsut, Utqiagvik, and Fairbanks.