With Christmas right around the corner, Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell released a sneak preview of his wish list for the Legislature. He'll request tens of millions of dollars for pro-development efforts that include pioneer roads, streamlined permitting and rare-earth mineral assessments.
The governor is set to release the proposed budget on Dec. 15. His proposed budget last year totaled $11.1 billion in capital and operating funds, with $5.45 billion of that from state general funds.
In a press release issued Tuesday, Parnell noted resource development pays for 90 percent of the state's general fund budget. To help boost that income, he's planning to ask the Legislature to approve $28.5 million for his Roads to Resources effort to open development in remote corners of Alaska.
The roads request will break down like this:
- $10 million would help open access to oil industry roads on the North Slope, part of the controversial Road to Umiat project that's already received $25 million. The money would help pay for Environmental Impact Statements, environmental permitting and right-of-way issues. Some Alaska Natives fear the road will destroy their subsistence lifestyle.
- $10 million for the road to Tanana.
- $4 million for the Ambler Mining District Road, to provide all-season access to explore and develop the promising Northwest Alaska district. The money will help determine the best route, and pay for permitting, environmental work and right-of-way issues. The news release notes, mysteriously, that "a public-private partnership will be explored to proceed with financing and construction."
- $2.5 million will strengthen and refurbish pavement and bridge structures on the Klondike Highway to handle the increased traffic as Canadian mines haul ore to the Port of Skagway for shipment to smelters around the world.
- $2 million will be available for "smaller resource road opportunities to promote significant revenue and employment opportunities," the release notes, but doesn't say where that might be.
Other development-friendly requests will include $16 million for a digital mapping effort to update USGS topographic maps that are wrong and more than 50 years old. Only $3.7 million of that would come from the state budget. Federal funds would cover the rest.
"Accurate elevation data is vital to responsible resource and economic development, aviation safety, navigational devices, modern emergency response, disaster preparation, floodplain management, tsunami studies, and routing for roads and pipelines," he noted in the release.
Parnell also wants:
- $2.7 million for a three-year project to assess the state's rare-earth and strategic-mineral opportunities.
- $1.1 million to assess shale-oil opportunities on the North Slope and other areas of Alaska.
Contact Alex DeMarban at alex(at)alaskadispatch.com