ARCTIC NATIO i~AL \VILDLlFE R:EFUGE Fairbanks, Alaslia ~ ~ .. ~....... • AL~NUAL NARRATIVE REPOR"f- ., ,':, .. ~...... Calend~n· Year 199'3 ': lJ_nited Stat ~ s Department of the_Interior Fish and Wildlife Service NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE SYSTEM ARCTIC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE Fairbanks, Alaska ANNUAL NARRATIVE REPORT Calendar Year 1993 United States Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE SYSTEM REVIEW AND APPROVALS ARCfiC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE Fairbanks, Alaska ANNUAL NARRATIVE REPORT Calendar Year 1993 ~Refuge Manager Date INfRODUCTION Size Arctic National Wildlife Refuge includes nearly 19.8 million acres, including 8 million acres of wilderness. The Refuge spans more than 200 miles west to east from the Trans-Alaska pipeline corridor to Canada, and 200 miles north to south from the Beaufort Sea to the Venetie Indian Tribal Lands and the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge. Geography Major land forms include coastal plain, the Brooks Mountain Range and boreal forest areas south of the Brooks Range. Beginning on offshore barrier islands or at the Beaufort Sea coast where islands are not present, the Refuge extends south, including lagoon areas along much of the coast, encompassing the mostly treeless coastal plain, a relatively narrow strip of rolling tundra to the Brooks Mountain Range, located 8-50 miles from the Beaufort Sea coast. The mountain range extends roughly east to west, bisecting the Refuge and creating a natural north-south division. The Refuge includes the four tallest peaks (led by Mt. Isto, 9049 ft.) and the only extensive glaciation in the Brooks Range. The mostly hilly and mountainous south side is cut by numerous stream and river valleys dominated by sub-arctic boreal forest of spruce, birch and willow. Facilities No permanent facilities are located within the Refuge. The Refuge headquarters office is located in Fairbanks, 180 miles from the Refuge border. Additional facilities include a modern bunkhouse and field station on Barter Island, in a municipality within Native lands on an island a few miles from the Refuge's coastal plain. Most offshore islands, reefs, and sandbars in the Beaufort Sea are within the Refuge's exterior borders. Public access Public access is mostly unrestricted. Almost all of the visiting public access the area via bush plane. Subsistence users also use boats, snowmobiles and occasionally dog sleds. ATV's are restricted. Enabling Legislation On December 6, 1960, Secretary of the Interior Fred Seaton signed Public Land Order 2214 establishing the 8.9 million acre Arctic National Wildlife Range (original wildlife range), closing it to entry under existing mining laws. The original wildlife range was redesignated the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge with the signing of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) on December 2, 1980. Under ANILCA, the Refuge more than doubled in size to 18 million acres, including 8 million acres (most of the original wildlife range) as wilderness, and three National Wild rivers were designated. ANILCA (Section 1002) also established the "1002 Area," opening approximately 1.6 million acres of the Refuge's arctic coastal plain to a limited exploration program (seismic testing) for oil and gas. Exploratory drilling, leasing, development and production of oil and gas in the Refuge were prohibited. Section 1002 required an assessment of the resources of the coastal plain of the Refuge (Figure 1). An initial report and subsequent updates on the results of a continuing baseline study of fish, wildlife and habitat resources of the coastal plain were legislatively mandated. The results were to guide the development of an environmental impact statement and guidelines governing the seismic exploration program, and an assessment of impacts from any future oil and gas development. The legislation also required a report by the Secretary of Interior to Congress no later than September 2, 1986, on the oil and gas potential and an assessment of the impact that oil and gas development may have on the fish and wildlife resources on the Refuge's coastal plain. The report was issued in April 1987 and recommended oil and gas leasing of the entire 1002 area. The State of Alaska relinquished selection of approximately 971,800 acres within the Refuge in 1983 and the acreage was added to the Refuge. In 1988 the 100th Congress enacted Public Law 110-395 which added another 325,000 acres of BLM withdrawn land to the Refuge, bringing the Refuge to its current size, approximately 19.8 million acres. Refuge Purposes Public Land Order 2214 stated that the purpose of the original wildlife range, established in 1960, was to preserve unique wildlife, wilderness and recreational values. These purposes were added to by ANILCA Section 303(2)(B) of ANILCA specifies that the Arctic Refuge was established and shall be managed: (i) to conserve fish and wildlife populations and habitats in their natural diversity including, but not limited to, the Porcupine caribou herd (including participation in coordinated ecological studies and management of this herd and the Western Arctic caribou herd), polar bears, grizzly bears, muskox, Dall sheep, wolves, wolverines, snow geese, peregrine falcons and other migratory birds, and Arctic char and grayling; (ii) to fulfill the international treaty obligations of the United States with respect to fish and wildlife and their habitats; (iii) to provide, in a manner consistent with purposes set forth in subparagraphs (i) and (ii), the opportunity for continued subsistence uses by local residents; and (iv) to ensure, to the maximum extent practicable and in a manner consistent with the purposes set forth in subparagraph (i), water quality and necessary water quantity within the refuge. In Section 101 of ANILCA, Congress made clear its intent to preserve within conservation system units in Alaska, including the Arctic Refuge, "nationally significant" scenic, wilderness, recreational, wildlife and other values for the benefit of present and future generations. Section 101 further states that "it is the intent of Congress in this Act to preserve ... wilderness resource values and related recreational opportunities including but not limited to hiking, canoeing, fishing and sport hunting, within large arctic and subarctic wildlands and on freeflowing rivers." Refuge Resources The Arctic Refuge includes a unique diversity of habitats offering exceptional wildlife, wilderness, recreation, scientific and aesthetic values. The area includes an assemblage of plant and animal communities found nowhere else in the circumpolar region. Major habitat types include alpine tundra and rocky areas, wet and moist Arctic tundra, boreal spruce forest, muskeg bogs, coastal brackish lagoons, shrub thicket areas and numerous types of coastal and inland wetlands. An unusual diversity of arctic and subarctic wildlife is found on the Refuge. This includes the Porcupine and Central Arctic caribou herds. The Porcupine herd, numbering some 180,000 animals, winters in the southern portion of the Refuge and in Canada. Calving and post-calving activities occur on the coastal plain from late May to mid-June. Up to one-quarter of the Central Arctic herd, which numbers approximately 18,000 animals, utilizes the northwestern part of the Refuge. All three species of North American bears (black, grizzly and polar) are found on the Refuge. Grizzlies, which den in mountainous areas throughout the Refuge, are thought to number between 130 and 150 on the north slope. A few polar bears annually den on the coastal plain. The Refuge also contains about 400 muskoxen, which often are observed along rivers of the coastal plain. Large Dall sheep populations occur in the mountainous areas of the Refuge, although a reliable population estimate does not exist. Other mammal species found on the Refuge include moose, wolverine, wolf, arctic fox, lynx, marten and snowshoe hare. Grayling and Arctic char are the primary sport fish species in the Refuge's rivers. Approximately 165 species of migratory birds have been seen on the Arctic Refuge. The coastal plain is especially important for shorebirds and waterfowl that nest on or otherwise utilize the area during the summer. Oldsquaw is the most common waterfowl species in coastal lagoons, but king and common eiders, pin tails, brant and other species also are found. Approximately 75 pairs of tundra swans nest on the coastal plain. They concentrate on wetland dotted river deltas. From mid-August through mid-September, the eastern part of the coastal plain serves as the fall staging area for an average of 117,000 snow geese. The Refuge also supports the northernmost breeding populations of golden eagles and includes critical habitat for the endangered peregrine falcon, much of it along the Porcupine River. lncal Residents Residents of several Native villages harvest subsistence resources on the Refuge. Kaktovik, located on the northern edge of the coastal plain, is an Inupiat Eskimo village with about 210 people. Villagers utilize bowhead whale, caribou, polar bear, waterfowl, walrus, seal, Dall sheep, muskox, wolves, ptarmigan and several species of fish. Arctic Village, an Athabascan Indian village with about 130 residents, is located along the East Fork of the Chandalar River just outside the Refuge's southern boundary. Although villagers rely primarily on the Porcupine caribou herd, they also take moose, Dall sheep, wolves, marten, beaver, lynx, fox and several other species. Limited fishing occurs, primarily for whitefish and lake trout. Residents of Fort Yukon, Venetie and Chalkyitsik also use Refuge resources, but to a lesser degree. Public Use The Refuge is open to unlimited public use throughout the year. The remoteness, travel expense and weather limit most visitation to long duration (6-10 day) trips during the warmer months of the year (June - September) for almost all visitors. Most use occurs from June 15 through August, with peaks in July (floating, backpacking) and August - September (hunting). Hunting, followed by river floating and backpacking are the predominant uses. INTRODUCTION TABLE OF CONTENTS A HIGHLIGHTS . 1 B.