Alaska News

Defense spending bill includes Arctic provisions

Efforts to move forward with Arctic priorities got a boost with the passage of the federal spending bill last week, which included items Alaska's lawmakers are calling vital to the Arctic.

"This bill is not perfect, but it is the product of bipartisan negotiations and directs resources critical to our state -- protecting the health and well-being of Alaskans and our fisheries, prioritizing our defense and investing in infrastructure for our state's needs and America's Arctic future," said Sen. Lisa Murkowski, in a release. "I thank my colleagues for coming together to avoid another unnecessary government shutdown, and I thank them for recognizing the importance of these provisions for Alaska."

The bill includes $25 million to perform hydrographic surveys (sonar mapping) of the nation's coastline.

These funds direct the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to survey and prepare navigational information for the Bering Straits region and the Arctic. NOAA is also directed to report the remaining gaps in the Arctic region following its work.

Murkowski said she championed the inclusion of funding for the U.S. to prepare for its future role as the chair of the Arctic Council, which starts next year. A $2 million appropriation was included and efforts to increase the number of personnel assigned to Arctic Council issues were also encouraged.

The Department of State was also encouraged to establish a position of U.S. Ambassador to the Arctic, something that was sidestepped, some feel, by the appointment of Adm. Robert Papp Jr. as Special Representative for the Arctic in July, and to include American indigenous communities in the council.

Murkowski has long been a proponent of increasing the U.S. fleet of polar-class icebreakers for the U.S. Coast Guard and the U.S. Navy. In the recent federal spending bill, Murkowski inserted language asking the Defense Department to conduct a study of the nation's satellite coverage of the Arctic region., and worked toward the appropriation of $7.25 million for the Defense Advanced Project Agency within the Pentagon to develop technology to enable maritime domain awareness in the Arctic.

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The federal funding bill now goes to the president for approval.

This story first appeared in The Arctic Sounder and is republished here with permission.

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