Point Thomson isn't the only area where the Palin administration is taking a firm stance with oil and gas leaseholders that do not fulfill their drilling commitments. With two prospects in Cook Inlet, known as "Kitchen" and "Corsair," the state has refused to grant leaseholders more extensions to do the drilling they have promised. The leaseholders have yet to drill a well on either prospect. By taking this hard line in Cook Inlet, the Palin administration drew heavy fire from legislators at a hearing earlier this month. They were sympathetic to the plight of leaseholders, who are having difficulty getting the specialized drilling rig required to operate in the waters of Cook Inlet.
The two leaseholders, Escopeta Oil and Pacific Energy, joined together on a contract to transport a drilling rig here next summer. When the state looked at the fine print, though, the shipping contract was less than met the eye. It didn't guarantee Pacific Energy could meet its drilling deadline. The deal could be terminated if the state didn't extend the company's lease terms. And it didn't include paying a deposit, as the state had required. The "contract" was more like an option to ship a drilling rig here, with lots of contingencies.
Both leaseholders seem to be making good faith efforts to show the progress the state wants. But good faith does not ensure real results. The state is totally within its rights to expect that buyers will in fact explore on the oil and gas leases they get from the state. If they can't do so in a reasonable time, the state is within its rights to take the leases back.
Until recently, the Palin administration held firm and was pushing hard for the two companies to make good on the work they promised, on the schedule they promised. Thursday, the state indicated it's open to creative arrangements that will let the companies keep their leases and keep moving ahead with timely exploration plans. The state said they can do that by combining their leases into a common unit, possibly including one or two other prospects nearby owned by others, and working out a drilling schedule that lets them share the necessary equipment.
That's a reasonable offer, considering the leaseholders' continued struggles, requesting repeated extensions of time for drilling work, raise legitimate doubts that they can do the work they are supposed to do.
What's not appropriate is for the state to keep accepting unfulfilled promises of exploration work, so that companies can hold onto state leases long after the normal expiration date. That easygoing approach lets companies warehouse state leases instead of actually working them.
Alaska has a long tradition of letting that happen (as at Point Thomson). To the Palin administration's credit, it has ended that tolerant tradition.
BOTTOM LINE: The Palin administration is really ramping up the pressure on leaseholders to drill for oil and gas or surrender their leases.
Park grades
Volunteer ratings point the way for needed improvements
The city's first volunteer effort to grade neighborhood parks was a success in many ways. More than 1,000 people engaged in the assessment of 53 small parks around the city during September.
They found all sorts of problems: broken benches, peeling paint, graffiti on playground equipment, litter.
You might find that discouraging. And it is. But now the city has the ammunition to visit every community council, tell them how their parks rate, and get people involved in taking better care. That's the plan for the next three months, said city parks director Jeff Dillon.
Plus, the city has $3 million in grants, state and city money to fix these parks up.
The parks that rated highest were ones people love, such as Cheney Lake Park in East Anchorage and Suzan Nightingale Park on Government Hill, Dillon said. Or they were ones that had recent attention -- new playground equipment, or a paint job.
Overall, volunteers rated the neighborhood parks a C- compared with their expectations for the condition parks should be in.
Dillon promises to raise that grade to above average by the end of the summer. If many people pitch in, that goal is achievable. We should go for it.
BOTTOM LINE: Attention to neighborhood parks around the city will make Anchorage a better place to live.