Dear Neighbors,

         I tried hard to come up with an e-news title tying in this edition's topics.  That didn't work so well.  So, just pretend this is three separate e-letters: lessons from the Gulf Spill, Anchorage street sweeping news, and a great event aimed at raising money to help those fighting cystic fibrosis. 

         To make things more confusing, I'll just add a fourth here briefly - a link in case you're interested in yesterday's Anchorage Daily News article summarizing work we did across party lines this session to increase success in Alaska's foster care system - please let the Governor (Sean.parnell@alaska.gov) know what you think about that as he decides what to support and veto.

Memories of the Exxon Valdez Spill; Lessons from the Gulf Spill?

         In March of 1989 I called the Attorney General's Office to ask if what they were planning to do in response to the Exxon Valdez spill.  The clean up, despite the best efforts of many, was sputtering - going badly enough that we, like those in the Gulf, had to start weighing the Hobson's Choice of living with spilled oil we couldn't fully clean up, or spraying tons of toxic dispersants on the spill.   

         I joined the State's litigation team that year as an Assistant Attorney General, recently out of law school, and having just completed an Alaska Supreme Court clerkship with a great man, the late Justice Jay Rabinowitz.  Surprisingly, one of my early jobs was to - and I really didn't anticipate this when I signed on - help defend against a lawsuit Exxon and their partners at Alyeska Pipeline filed against the state for, and let me type this with as straight a face as they had when they filed the suit - letting them do such a terrible job storing and stockpiling necessary clean up equipment (much of which was buried by snow at their Valdez facilities at the time of the spill).  That was their early volley at owning up to responsibility.   Blaming others.  Then justice delayed.  Then justice denied. 

         We settled the state's case in 1991, for $1 billion in damages and a trust fund, but private citizens didn't see their shreds of justice until Exxon finally ran out the clock of court appeals this past year.  Today's spill is different.  It's likely bigger, affects more businesses and residents directly on one hand, and on the other, isn't in one of the world's great unspoiled environments. 

         Arguably, it's brought more of the absurd than the Exxon spill did.  As of last week the clean up was going so badly that they were talking about dumping golf balls into the Gulf.  It wasn't Plan A, or B, or C.  But it's been somewhere down the list of plans - to clog the gushing Deepwater Horizon well with rope, golf balls, and, well, garbage.  There is hope that enough progress is being made so the so called "junk shot" technique won't have to be used.  

         So, what are the lessons?  We're all sorting through that now, and will be for a while   So far it's impacted the national decision on how we'll proceed with offshore drilling in the future.  There are still important offshore prospects, including in Alaska, but I think the President is right to tell us all to take a short breather while we figure out how and where to proceed with offshore development.  My view is that the Federal government should consider giving states veto power over whether a particular offshore project proceeds. 

         Here's one issue I will start to look into.  The general word on the street is that we're fairly well prepared for a spill in Prince William Sound.  But some say our response capability in Cook Inlet isn't so great.  It's something I need to know more about, and something we've started researching.  

         In the end, the best that can come out of the Gulf spill is lessons.  Lessons we'll actually heed.

Street Sweeping

         Sweeping of Anchorage’s streets is an issue that legislators, including Rep. Mike Doogan and Senators Hollis French and Johnny Ellis, have taken the lead on the past few years.  Senator Johnny Ellis recently wrote a good newsletter on this, which I'll link here.  Last year's street sweeping effort was, um, what are the words I'm looking for?  Got it.  A disaster.  The state's contractor defaulted, and the contract was written in a way that left us little recourse other than to breathe dust into June.  The State Department of Transportation promised the Legislature that wouldn't repeat itself this year.  Included in Senator Ellis’ newsletter is the schedule for street cleaning that the State and City have had our contractors commit to.  Main arteries and local city-owned streets will be swept three times.  Major arteries have been swept for the first time by the deadline of May 15th, and residential streets will be swept by June 1st.  The city provides an interactive map showing which streets have been swept, and an online comment form.  Public concerns, we're promised, will be taken seriously. 

         Let us know if folks aren't responsive to you.  But try using their weblink for public concerns first.

Charity Shoot To Help Alaskans With Cystic Fibrosis 

         Shoot For The Cure is a sporting clay tournament held May 21st whose goal is to raise awareness and funds for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.   Five-member teams will shoot a round of trap and skeet at Birchwood Recreation and Shooting Park, followed by a banquet at Hilltop Ski Chalet. Live & silent auction, raffles and the entertainment provided by Hobo Jim round out this fundraising event!  Information is available on line at www.shootforthecureak.org or by calling Karen Rey at 907-830-6048 or kmmac@clearwire.net    "Your shot gives a child the shot at life."

         I hope your summer's off to a good start.  As always, let me know if you'd like to share any concerns or thoughts.

         Best,