Port of Seattle Commissioners PO Box 1209 Seattle, WA 98111 Dear Commissioners Albro, Bowman, Bryant, Creighton and Gregoire
Port of Seattle Commissioners P.O. Box 1209 Seattle, WA 98111 Dear Commissioners Albro, Bowman, Bryant, Creighton and Gregoire, As elected officials, business owners, community leaders, and Alaskan residents, the undersigned groups represent a wide swath of the state of Alaska. We understand firsthand that Alaskan energy, and oil and gas in particular, is critical to the well-being of every Alaskan resident and business. It contributes ~90% of state revenue, represents 1/3 of Alaskan jobs, and constitutes roughly half of the state’s economy. Simply put, the health of Alaska is intricately tied to development of the state’s energy resources. It should therefore be no surprise that Alaskans overwhelmingly support energy development, including offshore in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas, which is home to an estimated 23.6 billion barrels of oil, enough to provide every licensed driver in the West Coast states with nearly 14,000 gallons of gasoline. Beyond Alaska and the West Coast region, in addition to fueling cars and trucks, this resource helps feed, clothe, and house hundreds of millions of Americans all across the nation. It is thus also not surprising that, as reflected in recent public polling, Americans in states as far away as New Hampshire, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana, and Iowa strongly support development of Alaskan energy resources. Indeed, as a federal advisory committee comprised of industry, academic, NGO, and government representatives recently concluded in a report requested by U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, new development of Alaskan energy in the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas must begin ramping up now to ensure the nation’s long-term energy security.
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