Borough assemblywoman Brenda Josephson, wife of local forester (no conflict of interest there), has expressed concern about the alarming state of our oceans, including ocean warming and acidification. Ballot Measure 1, supported by statewide coastal areas overall, was defeated by those who were quick to succumb to the scare tactics and false information put out by a $12 million dollar opposition campaign funded by ConocoPhillips, BP, and Exxon. Industry prefers to pass the costs of development on to local communities rather than pay for the permitting and extra measures they might have to take to develop their projects in the best way possible to sustain our salmon fisheries.

The cutting of thousands of acres of healthy, old growth forests in Alaska’s watersheds is itself a major contributing factor to ocean warming and acidification. For cold-water fisheries like salmon, warming oceans and warmed watersheds are killer conditions. Loss of forests worldwide, along with indiscriminate use of fossil fuels, is a major contributor of excess carbon in the atmosphere. Excess carbon in the atmosphere is the cause of ocean warming and acidification.

Even as Ballot Measure 1 was voted down, an important conversation about these issues has begun and must continue. We live here because we love this place and value these healthy watersheds and wild salmon that we now have. It’s future generations that will be deprived of what we now enjoy if we fail to be clear in no uncertain terms that sustainable fisheries require healthy forests and healthy watersheds.

Kathleen Menke

Author