February 26, 2005 Dear Resource committee members, I addressed the following comments on Senate Bill 85 to the Transportation Committee, and now I understand SB 85 has been referred to your committee for consideration. I am not sure when you will meet to hold hearing of this bill, but I am asking that you Please read & consider my comments in determining the future of Senate Bill 85, regarding lifting the ban on off road vehicles in the Dalton Highway corridor. Note to Sen. Seekins: I grew up & live in the village of Wiseman within the Dalton Highway corridor. I wrote to many of you voicing my opposition to a similar bill introduced by Mr. Seekins last year, and am very disappointed to see this issue resurface again this session. My feelings, & the reasons why this bill will impose detrimental impacts on this area have not changed in the past year. 1.) To start with, this Dalton Highway runs through a "utility corridor", that means this development & road were established for a utility route. I watched the road & pipeline being built, we all know the incredible study & research that were put into developing this pipeline without causing any serious impact to fragile habitat, wildlife, and human populations. My whole life I have seen Alyeska security patrol daily with helicopters to ensure their pipe is secure & nothing is amiss, people are not to use the pipeline pad without their knowledge, as it poses security risks. This pipeline has financially benefited every Alaskan equally. There is now new talk of a gas line running through this corridor, this I would imagine, if constructed, will follow similar low impact guidelines for development, and can safely be installed in this utility corridor with much care & consideration for the environment & populations. This will also most likely benefit all Alaskans if established. Opening this utility corridor to ATV's & snowmobiles, in other words allowing anyone to drive freely anywhere within & beyond the corridor, pipe pad, etc at will, in light of these utilities & the care exercised to maintain these utilities alone I would think is reason enough to throw out this proposed bill. Don't forget there is only 1 (one) trooper stationed at Coldfoot to patrol this entire Brooks Range & North Slope stationed at Coldfoot. 2.) A very large portion of the land mass surrounding the Dalton Highway corridor north of the Yukon River is Federally managed wildlife Refuge & Park lands. North of the Yukon River to the east is Yukon Flats Wildlife Refuge, to the West is Kanuti National Wildlife Refuge, within the Brooks Range bordering most of the entire road to the west through the Range is Gates of the Arctic National Park & Preserve, and once you are over Atigun Pass, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge comes within a mile to the East. ATV's are not permitted on the Park & Refuge lands, however, they do not draw lines on the ground that show when you are crossing into Park or Refuge land, so most riders will not have a clue. The corridor itself is federally managed BLM land, and they also do not have a provision for free for all ATV use. There is only 1 (one) BLM Ranger weekly patrolling the road, and once again, only one AK State Trooper to patrol this area. There is also one NPS Ranger stationed at Marion Creek , who has multiple duties, and it is impossible for him to patrol the Park border continuously to ensure folks are not overstepping borders. 3.) The Dalton Highway in the last 10 years has seen a steady increase of summer visitors, these visitors are taking tours or driving the road to experience the "last frontier", see the wilderness & wildlife in their natural state, and see for themselves the unique landscape & vegetation of the Arctic . This area is becoming actually a very popular tourist destination, and tourism as we all know helps the Alaskan economy. I would think the people in Fairbanks would actually want to secure the present state of this some what pristine environment to the north of them, as most all the visitors to this area have to pass through Fairbanks & spend money on their way north. I work in the Arctic Interagency Visitor Center in Coldfoot during the summer months, my husband & I also own & operate a small Lodge here in Wiseman, so I have talked with literally thousands of these visitors coming to this country, and had opportunity to ask why they came to this place. The majority of visitors are coming here to see it just as it is, wilderness, and they don't want to see more roads, signs, or watch ATV's driving across the tundra, or snowmobile's high marking on the hills. As it is, the north slope caribou hunters are so numerous during fall months, they end up chasing most of the caribou away from the road, disappointing to a tourist with a camera. But - they can still view the occasional bear or moose along other parts of the road that haven't been chased away, so it's still worth their while at this point. Let's keep it that way? If ATV's and snowmobiles are allowed to range the corridor it will tear up the vegetation, which is underlain by permafrost, which then melts & leaves very ugly scars (it doesn't, from what I've seen in 38 years, tend to regenerate much either). Also this increase of motorized humans ranging through the area will end up chasing the few remaining animals far from the road, where I would imagine many of them will also be harassed & shot by hunters since they will have free access roam, and the animals will no longer have any sanctuary to reach. 4.) I am not an anti hunter by any means, I grew up on moose & caribou and depend on these animals for survival here, but I also care about our wildlife populations here in the north. As you must know, Arctic populations (other than caribou) are not as plentiful as in other areas of the state due to severe weather conditions, and available food resources. The maze of both hunting and land use management regulations in this area have evolved over the years to provide for continued healthy wildlife populations, and although complex, they seem to be working for the most part to ensure wildlife will be a part of this area for generations & years to come. (With the exception of regulations pertaining to sheep hunting on state land to the east that is getting somewhat out of control.) Contrary to popular belief of the apparently uneducated to the area; the arctic is not teaming with unlimited numbers of wildlife, there is a lot of land north of the Yukon River , but for the amount of land, it is somewhat scarcely populated by wildlife. This is once again because of harsh living conditions, rough winters, predators, and hunters which all take a share of them every year, some years already going beyond the limit of healthy harvest. Hunters can already access area populations with aircraft, and highway vehicles - the addition of ATV's and snowmobiles is unnecessary. There needs to remain a place in this state where a hunter can drive up this road, and actually hike out to hunt an accessible animal. The hunters that can't afford an ATV or snowmobile will not have that opportunity if this proposal is passed, the game will be chased to far from the road. The ban on ATV's & snowmobiles within the corridor is an important part of this management system, if this is changed, it will disrupt every other aspect of the complex management in the area, and create somewhat of a domino effect on the management structure that has taken decades to build. If you don't really care about the wildlife & arctic landscape, or human populations in the area, think of it this way: this disruption will also end up costing every state, federal, and independent management participant involved in the area unknown amounts of $ in increased enforcement, reclamation, etc. 5.) There is also the issue of safety. There are no emergency medical facilities available up here. There are no roads to speak of, and no ATV or snowmobile trails, winters are harsh & the terrain can be treacherous in places. The landscape, creeks & rivers can all pose a threat to someone inexperienced to the area - especially someone up for a weekend to joy ride who is unfamiliar with the country. I can see the potential for a drastic increase in accidents & potentially life threatening situations for these folks should this corridor open up. People will be traveling further from the road, into more hazardous & remote country, and if they get hurt, who is going to find them? There is only one trooper in the area, and a long way to go for medical help. I will sum this up: right now, people are able to travel to this country north of the Yukon River, people with legitimate traplines are able to trap them, miner's are able to access their mining claims with ATV's, hunters are able to come up & hunt, guides are able to guide hunters, backpackers, and conduct river trips, people are able to ride horses, researchers are able to conduct sensitive research, and tourists are able to come up & take pictures & hike or float or whatever in a still relatively undisturbed wilderness setting. It seems to me there are a few people whining that they can't ride machines around up here, but if they have a legitimate cause to, they probably can if they would check into it. I'm sure all over the nation there are many who would like to see less regulations regarding one thing or another, but we all know regulations and management are essential to a healthy environment. Please weigh the current facts with the potential risks involved while considering this Bill. Please take my thoughts & comments into consideration, and do not pass SB 85. Thank you for taking the time to read this, Sincerely, Heidi Schoppenhorst
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