Jm IWR 185 Arcric NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE Fairbanks, Alaska

ARCTIC NATIONAL WILDLIFE

Fairbanks, Alaska

ANNUAL NARRATIVE REPORT

Calendar Year 1985

U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE SYSTEM

Jm IWR 185 ARcriC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE Fairbanks, Alaska

ANNUAL NARRATIVE REroRT

Calendar Year 1985

u.s. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE SYS'IEM REVIEW AND APPROVALS

ARCTIC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE Fairbanks, Alaska

ANNUAL NARRATIVE REOORT Calendar Year 1985 INI'RODUcriON The Arctic National Wildlife Range (ANWR) was established by Public Land Order Number 2214 on December 6, 1960 for the purpose of preserving unique wildlife, wilderness and recreational values. The Arctic NWR, located in the northeastern corner of Alaska, contained approximately 8,900,000 acres. The area was withdrawn from all forms of appropriation under the public land laws, including the mining but not the mineral leasing laws. This was the culmination of efforts begun over a decade earlier to preserve this unique part of Alaska. In 1949, while the Navy was searching for oil and gas in the Naval Petroleum Reserve Number 4 (now National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska) and adjacent areas, the National Park Service (NPS) began a survey of Alaska's recreational potential. The survey was directed by George L. Collins, Chief of the National Park Service's (NPS) Region 4 State and Territorial Recreation Division. In 1954, following field work and consultation with prominent conservationists such as Olaus Murie and A. Starker Leopold, Collins recommended to the NPS that the northeast corner of Alaska be preserved for its wildlife, wilderness, ret:'reationnl, Sl""ientifi("' nnn t:'ll]turnJ valnes, rollins nlso n;.("'ommennPn thnt the area be an international park, to include contiguous lands between the Alaska-canada border and the Mackenzie Delta. During the next seven years there ensued a political struggle over the future of the arctic wilderness. While there was considerable support for such an action, there was strong opposition from those concerned with future industrial development in the territory and the restriction that such a designation would require. The oil industry and those branches of government that promote energy development already recognized the oil and gas potential of the area. Among conservationists and federal representatives there was some disagreement over which agency should manage the land. George Collins had originally proposed a park, while Olaus Murie felt that rather than promoting "mass recreation" and related economic development, the area should be managed as wilderness by the u.s. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). It was ultimately agreed that FWS management should be sought. Public support for establishment of Arctic NWR continued to grow, while opposition also increased from mining interests who desired entry, and Alaskan politicians who feared a growing federal role in Alaska. When the national elections of November 1960 brought eight years of Republican administration to an end, Secretary of the Interior Fred Seaton acceded to increasing public pressure during his final days in office and signed Public Land Order (PLO) 2214 creating the Arctic NWR and closing it to entry under existing mining laws. Over the next eight years, opposition from Alaska's Congressional delegation successfully blocked appropriation of funds to manage Arctic NWR. It was not until 1969 that funds for management of the wildlife range were appropriated for the first time. During the next decade, as an outgrowth of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) of 1971, efforts were made to add unreserved public lands in Alaska into the National Park, National Forest, National Wildlife Refuge, and National Wild and Scenic Rivers Systems. On December 2, 1980, President Jimmy Carter signed into law the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA). This act was a compromise piece of legislation. It re-established the range as the "Arctic National Wildlife Refuge" encompassing the existing approximately 8.9 million-acre Arctic National Wildlife Range and an additional approximately 9.1 million-acres of adjoining lands west to the Trans-Alaska Pipeline and south to the Yukon Flats (Figure 1). An area of approximately 8 million acres, comprising most of the original wildlife range, was designated as wilderness. Approximately 1.6 million acres of the arctic coastal plain withi~ the refuge was opened to a limited exploration program (seismic testing) for oil and gas (ANILCA Section 1002). Exploratory drilling, leasing, development and production of oil and gas in the refuge were prohibited. Section 1002 of ANILCA required an assessment of the resources of the coastal plain of the refuge. 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. In addition, the legislation 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 arid gas development may have on the fish and wildlife resources on the refuge's coastal plain. ANILCA also redefined the purposes of the refuge as follows: (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 the 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 paragraph (i), water quality and necessary water quantity within the refuge. Within the boundaries of the refuge along the arctic coast to the north, the surface estate to approximately 65,292 acres was conveyed to the Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation (KIC) under the provisions of ANCSA. Under provisions of ANILCA the surface estate aggregating approximately 2,854 acres not previously conveyed under ANCSA on Barter Island was conveyed to the KIC. On August 9, 1983, Secretary of the Interior James Watt signed an interim conveyance to the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation for the subsurface estate to lands previously conveyed to the KIC aggregating 65,292 acres. Figure 1 ocean Arctic ANILCA Section 1002 Coastal Plain eeauforf Sea Study Area

t _r-

Vill/iArctic

I I

~IJJtfi WILDERNESS

0 50 100 ARCTIC Miles NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE Total acreage within refuge: 18,525,000t Ac. USFWS DIVISION OF REALTY ANCHORAGE, AK. Figure 2. ANILCA Section 1002 Coastal Plain Study Area

BEAUFORT SEA

( An inholding of approximately 971,800 acres was added to the refuge as a donation by the State of Alaska in 1983. An adjacent tract of public land (approximately 325,000 acres) has been added to the refuge until July 8, 2005 (pending Congressional joint resolution before June 28, 1986) as a withdrawal under Section 204(c) of PL 94-579. In the Alaskan arctic the refuge offers unique wildlife, scientific, recreational, and aesthetic values. It is the only area where people may practicably travel on foot or by boat and traverse a full range of north slope landscape and habitats due to the close proximity of the arctic coast and mountains. Mt. Isto, (9,049 ft), Mt. Chamberlin, (9,019 ft), Mt. Hubley (8,914 ft), and Mt. Michelson, (8,855 ft), the four tallest peaks in the Brooks Range, are located in the Arctic NWR. The refuge contains the only extensive glaciation in the Brooks Range as well as a full complement of arctic flora and fauna. This includes portions of the critical calving grounds for the Porcupine caribou herd, one of the largest in Alaska (approximately 170,000 caribou), reintroduced muskoxen, critical habitat for the endangered peregrine falcon, snow geese and other migratory bird species, grizzly and black bears, wolverines, moose, and a complete complement of the other wildlife species common to arctic and subarctic Alaska. In addition, the waters offshore of the refuge harbor summering bowhead whales, and the coastal lagoons provide year-around habitat for polar bears and ringed and bearded seals. Other marine mammals which may be found in the coastal lagoons or offshore waters include walrus, spotted seals, gray whales and beluga whales. Polar bears den on refuge land. 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. Approximately 138,300 acres are included in glaciated areas. A landcover mapping program is currently in progress and will provide more detailed landtype data in future years. The climate of most of the refuge is classified as arctic, though it grades into subarctic toward the south. Temperature extremes are greater south of the Brooks Range, though surface winds are stronger and weather more turbulent and variable north of the mountains. Mean January minimum temperature at Barter Island is -20°F. In the southern portion of the refuge it is -28°F. Mean July minimum temperature is 35°F at Barter Island and 46°F in the southern portion. Mean maximum July temperatures are 47°F and 75°F respectively for the northern and southern portions. The following is a summary of climatic conditions at Barter Island. During summer continuous sunlight or twilight conditions prevail from late April to mid-August. During winter Barter Island daily receives only four to seven hours of daylight between mid-November and late-January. The sun remains below the horizon at Barter Island from about November 17 until January 24. Freezing temperatures may be reached during any month of the year. Diurnal temperature variations tend to be narrow during the summer (less than 8°F in June) but much more variable during winter. Snow covers the ground eight months of the year, and snow may fall during any month. Relatively strong winds are common from October through February though they may occur in any month. Drifting and blowing snow are common. Wind combined with the extreme cold make living at Barter Island challenging. Ice begins to form on ponds and lakes in late August. Lagoons and rivers freeze in late September or early October. Ice on the Beaufort Sea may support a human's weight by September 24, but has been unsafe as late as mid-November. The ice normally remains safe for vehicles until the first of June and sometimes almost to the end of June. During summer, fog and relatively high humidity are the rule. There is a tendency toward increasing continental and decreasing maritime influence on climate as one moves from the coast inland. The coast experiences more fog, cloudiness, and higher winds during summer than farther inland. Conditions can vary drastically as one moves just a few miles from the coast. Snow has usually melted and rivers opened by early June. Break-up and snow melt tend to occur earlier farther inland in the Brooks Range foothills and then proceed coastward. Ice floes remain in coastal lagoons until early July. Winter snows begin accumulating in early September. INI'RODUCI'ION

TABLE OF CONTENI'S i

A. HI G-IL I GITS ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 1

B. CLIMATIC CONDITIONS •••••••••••••••••••••••• 2

C. LAND A()JUISITION

1. Fee Title •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 2. Easements • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••.•••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 5 3. Other . •..•.....••.•••••.•••••••••...... •..•.••..•.•....•.•..••.••.•.. 5

D. PLANNING

1. Master Plan . ••••.•••••..••••••••...... •...•..••..•••••••.••.••.•.••••••• 7 2. Management Plan •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 3. Public Participation ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 4. Cumvllauce willl Euviroumenlal and Cultural Resource Mandates •••••••••••• 7 5. Research and Investigations .•••....••...... •.••••••...... •.••...... • 8 6. Other •...•....•.•.•••.••.•...••••...•...... •••.•.•••• (Nothing to Report)

E. ADMINISTRATION

1. Personnel ...... 30 2. Youth Prc::>c;Jrams •.•••••••••.•••••••••.••••••.•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 32 3. Other Manpower Programs •••••••••••• ...... 32 4. Volunteer Pr<>gram ...... •...... •. 32 5. Funding ...... •...... •...... •• · · · 33 6. Safety ...... 34 7. Technical Assist an~ ...... 36 8. Other ..••...... •.••...•....•..•.••..•...... •.••..••.• (Nothing to Report)

F. HABITAT MANAGEMENT

1. General • ••.•...••••...... •••••.••.••...•.•..••••••••..•••.••...•.••••• 36 2. Wetlands ...... 37 3. Forests .•...••.•.••...... (Nothing to Report) 4. Croplands ••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 5. Grasslands . ...•...•..•....•..•••.•..•••.•...••.••...• (Nothing to Report) 6. Other Habitats ...... (Nothing to Report) 7. Grazing ...... (Nothing to Report) 8. Haying . ..••.•..•.•...... •••.•.•.••...•.....••..• (Nothing to Report) 9. Fire Management. 38 10. Pest Control ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) ll. Water Rights . ..•.•...... ••••...••...... ••.••...••...... •..•••• 39 12. Wilderness and Special Areas ..•..•....•...... •.••..•..••...... •...•• 40 13. WPA Easement Monitoring •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report)

i G. WILDLIFE

1. Wildlife Diversity ...... 41 2. Endangered and/or Threatened Species ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 41 3. Waterfowl ...... 44 4. Marsh and water Birds ....•.•.••.••••.•••••••...... •••..••.•••..•..••..•.• 44 5. Shorebirds, Gulls, Terns and Allied Species •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 44 6. Raptors • •••••.••••....•••.•.••.•..• ~ •••••••••••••••••••..••••••••••..•.•• 45 7. Other Migratory Birds ..•..•.•.••...••.•.••.•••..••.••.....•.•••••••.•..•• 45 8. G~ Marmnals • •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 46 9. Marine Marmnals • ••••••••.•••••••••••••••••••••••..•••••••••••••••••••••••• 47 10. Other Resident Wildlife ...... 48 11. Fisheries, Resources ...... 48 12. Wildlife Propagation and Stocking ••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 13. Surplus Animal Disposal ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 14. Scientific Collections ...... 49 15. Animal Control •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report ) 16. Marking and Banding ...... 50 17. Disease Prevention and Control ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 51

H. PUBLIC USE

1. General ...... 51 2. Outdoor Classrooms Students ••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 3. Outdoor Classrooms Teachers ••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 4. Interpretive Foot Trails •••••••••••• ~ ••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 5. Interpretive Tour Routes •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 6. Interpretive Exhibits/Demonstrations ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 52 7. Other Interpretive Programs .•.•.•.••.•..•..•...... •.....•..••...... •• 53 8. Hunting ...... •...... •.•...... •..••....• 53 9. Fishing ...... , ...... 55 10. Trapping ...... •...... 55 11. Wildlife ()):)servat ion ...... 55 12. Other Wildlife Oriented Recreation ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 55 13. CainPing . ..••...... (Not bing to Report) 14. Picnicking ••..••••.•••..••••...•...•..••••....••..•.•. (Nothing to Report) 15. Off-Road Vehicl ing ...... 57 16. Other Non-Wildlife Oriented Recreation •••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 17. r..a.w Enforc:ement ...... • 57 18. Cooperating Associations •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 19. Concessions ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) I. EQUIPMENT AND FACILITIES

1 . New Const ruct ion...... 59 2. Rehabilitation...... 60 3. Major Maint enanc:e-...... 61 4. Equipment Utilization and Replacement •••••••••••••••.•••••••••••••••••••• 61 5. CoiTITlunicat ions Systems...... 63 6. C0111puter Systems...... 63 7. Energy Conser vat ion ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• (Nothing to Report) 8. Other ...... 64 ii J. OTHER ITEMS

1. Coo~ rat i ve Pre>c3rarns.. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 64 2. Other Economic Uses. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 68 3. Items of Interest. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • . • • . . • • • • • • • • • • • • • . . • • 85 4. Credits ••••••••.••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••.•••••••••••••••••••••••••• 88

K • FEEDBACK. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • 8 9

L. INFORMATICN PACKETI'

APPENDIX I News and Magazine Articles APPENDIX II Program, Alaska Environmental Assembly Meeting, 1985

iii 1 A. HIGHLIGHTS The Arctic NWR Land Exchange project surfaced as a regional high priority item during the year. (Section C.3). Approximately 325,000 acres were added to the refuge by Public Land Order, subject to Congressional ratification. (Section C.3). Comprehensive conservation planning got off to a slow start. (Section D.l). The last "official" field season for ANILCA Section 1002(c) baseline studies was completed. (Section D.5). The number of personnel (both paid and volunteer) working for Arctic NWR during 1985 totaled 63. (Section E.l). Several non-service aircraft accidents occurred during 1985. (Section E.6). A Kaktovik resident was killed in a snowmachine accident on the refuge. (Section E.6). Wildfires burned almost 50,000 acres. (Section F.9). Major Porcupine caribou herd calving occurred from the Jago River uplands eastward to the Kongakut River (Section G.8). One of the female polar bears denning on the refuge prematurely abandoned her den in January. No cubs were observed with her. (Section G.9). A rabies outbreak occurred among wolves and arctic foxes on the north slope. (Section G.l7). A minimum impact camping brochure was completed in conjunction with Gates of the Arctic National Park. (Section H.6). New bunkhouses were approved for construction at Kaktovik and Arctic Village, but land problems at Arctic Village prohibit construction there. (Section I.l). A project by the u.s. Army, Corps of Engineers was initiated to restore and clean-up abandoned DEW Line sites. (Section I.2). The new refuge pilot received authorization to fly refuge aircraft on February 13. (Section I. 4). The leased bunkhouse at Kaktovik was turned back over to owner. (Section I.4). The refuge received a new microcomputer, Data General SPlO. (I.6). Major office space assignment changes occurred at the federal building. (Section I.8). Major effort began on the ANILCA Section 1002(h) report to Congress. (Section J .1). 2 A second season of seismic exploration occurred on the ANILCA Section 1002 coastal plain area and the KIC land. (Section J.2).

An exploratory oil/gas well (KIC #1) began drilling on KIC Land. (Section J. 2). Stratigraphic test wells were proposed for KIC Land. (Section J.2). Offshore exploratory wells were proposed and one was drilled near the refuge. (Section J.2). Ten permittees conducted surface geology studies on the ANILCA Section 1002 coastal plain area. (Section J.2). ANILCA Section 1002 oil and gas exploration ended August 9. (Section J.2). Secretary of the Interior William Hodel visited the refuge on June 10. (Section J.3). A number of u.s. House of Representatives members visited the refuge on August 10. (Section J. 3). The 25th anniversary of establishment of the Arctic National Wildlife Range was recognized at a meeting in Fairbanks during the weekend of December 7-8. (Section J.3). B. CLIMATIC CONDITIOOS

Climatic conditions at Barter Island averaged about normal for the year, but temperature and precipitation were somewhat aberrant on a temporal basis. On the average it was slightly warmer and drier than normal. The mean monthly deviations from normal were +l.6°F and -0.15 in. for temperature and precipitation (water equivalent) respectively. Monthly temperature and precipitation data are presented in Table 1. Temperature extremes were +71°F on July 28 and -53°F on February 17. Despite the overall minimal deviation from normal, most months tended to be warner than usual. The months of January, March, May and December were unusually warm with average temperatures 6.6, 4.8, 4.5 and 10.0 °F above normal. With respect to normal the coldest month was April, with a temperature deviation from normal of ....:8. 7°F. This condition produced a somewhat later spring on the north slope. The temperature reached above 70°F on only one day at Barter Island. By comparison 175 days saw the mercury dip to 0° F or below. Freezing temperatures were reached on 306 days of the year. In terms of precipitation the year was somewhat dry. The dryest month was April with only 0.06 in. of water equivalent precipitation falling. However, in terms of departure from normal, August received -0.88 in. less than usual. The dry summer conditions also brought with them more sunshine and fewer rainy days than usual, a welcome condition for working on the north slope. The rains began again in September, however. That was the wettest month, with 1.23 in. of water equivalent precipitation. A total of 4.65 in. of 3 precipitation fell during the year. Greatest snowfall occurred in January with 11.2 inches. In total, 36 inches of snow fell during the year at Barter Island. Climatic conditions on the south slope of the refuge are not as well known. The nearest weather recording station is located at Ft. Yukon, which is approximately 60 miles south of the closest part of the refuge and in the middle of the Yukon Flats NWR. The following account of 1985 Ft. Yukon weather is excerpted from the Yukon Flats NWR-Annual Narrative Report. "Spring breakup" on the Yukon River at Fort Yukon occurred 20 May on the main channel. There was minor spring flooding in the village of Circle caused by an ice jam. Breakup in 1985 was 1 day later than in 1984. "Freeze up" of the Yukon River at Fort Yukon started approximately the 2nd week of October with a total freeze completed by early December. The following table summarizes the monthly maximum and minimum temperatures recorded at Fort Yukon during 1985. This table well illustrates the extremes of temperatures occurring on the Flats. 1985 Record MAXIMUM MINIMUM MAXIMUM MINIMUM January 20 -21 40 -75 February 29 -55 42 -70 March 36 -33 50 -52 April 48 -30 65 -41 May 74 20 91 -03 June 86 36 100 23 July 83 40 97 25 August 83 35 88 22 September 66 19 79 03 October 51 -21 61 -38 November 20 -39 40 -62 December 35 -41 37 -72 4 Table 1. Temperature and Precipitation Data for Barter Island, 1985. Normal Normal Maximum Minimum Deviation Precif2itation Deviation January +20 -27 +6.6 0.73 +0.23 February +17 -53 -1.4 0.15 -1.12 March +18 -32 +4.8 0.21 -0.03 April +22 -35 -8.7 0.06 -0.16 May +47 -05 +4.5 0.11 -0.24 June +62 +24 +2.5 0.12 -0.44 July +71 +29 +0.9 0.75 -0.28 August +58 +27 +0.3 0.20 -0.88 September +59 +20 +0.4 1.23 +0.43 October +37 -11 -3.9 0.39 -0.42 November +30 -25 +3.3 0.23 -0.17 December +25 -32 +10.0 0.47 +0.24

1. Temperature in °F. 2. Precipitation in inches, water equivalent. 5

C. LAND ACQUISITION 2. Easements In March Doyon, Ltd. notified the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) that it wished to have conveyed certain lands (deficiency selections) previously identified under the provisions of Section 12(c) of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA). These lands consisted in the aggregate of 68,485 acres south of the Brooks Range in the vicinities of Old Man Lake and Buffalo Mountain/Smoke Creek. In August the BLM issued a public notice concerning identification of possible public access easements across these lands prior to conveyance. The refuge identified 30 miles of trail across the lands to provide continued access for subsistence, recreation and refuge management purposes. In December the BLM notified the refuge that the easements recommended by the FWS did not meet the requirements of the easement regulations (43 CFR 2650). No further actions on the matter were taken, and the lands had not been conveyed by year's end. 3. Other

SincP the nnrrntivP rPpnrt format has no provision for a sertion nis~1ssing land deletions, those will be discussed here. Doyon, Ltd. land selections were discussed above. Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation selections. Under the provisions of Section 143l(g)(3) of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) the Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation (KIC) is entitled to selection of an additional approximately 20,000 acres either within or without their ANCSA Section ll(a) (1) withdrawal area. During the fall a number of selection criteria were jointly worked out between the FWS, the KIC and the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC). Under the provisions of the Chandler Lake EXchange Agreement the ASRC is entitled to the subsurface estate of whatever lands may be conveyed to the KIC. In December the KIC identified additional selections in partial fulfillment of their entitlement and requested an expedited conveyance. By year's end no conclusive action had been taken. Native allotments. No additional Native allotments were approved during 1985. There are presently 35 allotment applications on file with the BLM Fairbanks District Office Adjudication Section pending approval or rejection. Native historical sites. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) submitted eight reports resulting from ANCSA Section 14(h)(l) Native historical site investigations. All eight of the sites were selected by Doyon, Ltd. Under the law, Native regional corporations may receive fee title to existing cemetery sites and historical places. The sites identified in the reports included cemetery, grave and camp sites, cabins, a store and a caribou fence. Total aggregate acreage was 159.2 acres. None of these sites were conveyed during the year. Arctic NWR Land Exchange. During 1985 the Department of the Interior began work toward a possible land exchange involving the relinquishment (at least in part) of the subsurface estate of the refuge's coastal plain in return for acquisition of certain inholdings held by a number of different Native corporations on a number of different refuges in Alaska. This exchange is to 6 he contingent upon Congressional authorization of oil and gas leasing on the refuge's coastal plain. Originally semi-secret and dubbed Project wMw, the proposal later became known officially as the Arctic NWR Land Exchange. Early in 1985 the regional realty office began gathering information on all refuge inholdings across Alaska and assembling a priority list for acquisition. Some Arctic NWR inholdings, primarily south of the Brooks Range, were to be involved in this exchange. The project began accelerating in the fall when seven FWS land appraisers from other regions arrived in Alaska to assist with appraising all of the inholdings. Four of these appraisers worked out of the Fairbanks office and appraised inholdings on the Arctic NWR and other interior refuges. In addition to larger conveyed and selected inholdings they also appraised the native historical (ANCSA Section 14(h)(l)) selections. The appraisal process was completed in December just in time for the visiting appraisers to return home for the holidays. Preparations were made for formally notifying the numerous village corporations holding the majority of the inholdings to determine the level of interest in any such exchange. Previous discussions had mainly involved several of the regional corporations. By year's end there was considerable doubt within the Department that the exchange would ever take place, due to a multitude of potential legal and political issues.

Remains of a caribou drift fence that was used by Athapaskan people as an aid in caribou hunting. Archaeological sites such as these may be conveyed in fee title to the Native Regional Corporations under the ANCSA. Photog. unk. 1318 F 1972 7 FLPMA Section 204(c) withdrawal. On July 8 Public Land Order (PLO) 6607 was signed revoking previous PLO'S which had withdrawn 325,000 acres within the refuge for a transportation and utility corridor. The PLO simultaneously withdrew these lands from surface entry and mining but not the mineral leasing laws and made them part of the Arctic NWR for a 20-year period. Under provisions of ANILCA, however, the PLO must be ratified by a joint resolution of Congress within one year or it will expire at that-time. The House of Representatives passed approval in the fall. The Senate is to act on the measure in March of 1986. Once passed, the PLO will remain in effect until July 8, 2005. During the intervening time the FWS will have the opportunity to introduce legislation to permanently make the addition part of the refuge.

D. PlANNING 1. Master Plan

Comprehensive conservation planning initiation continued to be pushed farther back due to slow progress with ongoing planning for other refuges and problems within the planning process itself. As stated in last year's narrative report, plan initiation and scoping were to begin in fall 1985. This would have provided about two years to complete the plan, which is due on December 2, 1987. However, scoping was pushed back to spring 1986. Work began during the fall on drafting various sections of the affected environment section of the planning document. Preparation of the section on socio-economy was contracted. The regional office was assigned the section on vegetation. Other sections were assigned to refuge staff. A target date of December 31 was set for an initial draft, but was not completely met for all portions due to higher priorities. Earlier in the year, refuge staff reviewed the planning document and attended meetings concerning the planning process for Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. It was thought that the Park Services experiences with that process might be helpful to our future planning efforts for the refuge since the two areas are very similar. A public consultation committee similar to that used for "Gates" was planned. 4. Compliance with Environmental and Cultural Resource Mandates Early in the year the regional office determined that both an environmental assessment (EA) and a Section 106 clearance (National Historic Preservation Act) needed to be completed by the end of the fiscal year for the proposed new Kaktovik bunkhouse. It was later determined that an FA would not be necessary since the site was already developed (an EA had been written for previous development). The Section 106 clearance was postponed until 1986. The regional subsistence specialist had requested late in 1984 that refuges and other organizations make sure that these determinations conform to a standard format to be used region-wide. The format used by the refuge needs to be modified in order to conform to the standard. However, due to other priorities this has been regarded at this station as a technicality that could be dealt with later and therefore it went undone along with numerous other 8 needs. The refuge will make a special effort to deal with this during 1986 c•post-1002.). No situations came up that \tile oonsidered special enough to warrant developing a new Section 810 determination from scratch. Refuge compatibility determdnations are also completed for each special use permit. 5. Research and Investigations

As was the case for the past four years, most of the scientific biological study on the refuge in 1985 was related to the legislatively-mandated baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain (ANILCA Section 1002). This was the final year for many of these projects, although some of them may continue at a reduced level over the next few years depending on funding. Most analyses had not yet been completed at the time this report was prepared. Results of the the 1985 studies will be published in the 1985 update report, baseline study of the fish, wildlife, and their habitats. This report should be available in surraner 1986. It will be referenced as Garner and Reynolds (1986).

A moose inspects a biologist's camp site on the coastal plain. DD 07-25-85

Arctic NR85- •Muskox population, distribution, movements and habitat use in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.• This investigation is part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by section 1002 of ANILCA. Muskoxen, reintroduced to the refuge in 1969 and 1970, remain on the refuge year round. They are one of the few species vulnerable to impacts from potential oil and gas exploration and development in winter when most construction activities are likely to occur. 9 This was the fourth year of this study which was begun in 1982. Objectives were: 1. Tb determine population size and composition of refuge muskox herds; 2. Tb document distribution, movements and seasonal utilization of specific areas by refuge muskox herds; 3. Tb describe the habitat present in areas used by refuge muskoxen. In 1985 population data were collected during spring and fall surveys of the entire study area and composition counts of herds in early July. Distribution and movement data were obtained by relocating radio-collared muskoxen. Habitat use information was collected during relocation flights and high use areas were <:bserved on the ground. OVerwinter mortalities in wintering areas were documented. This study was conducted by Pat Reynolds, Ecologist with the Arctic NWR. Biological Technicians Jim Herriges and Mark Masteller assisted with data collection and data compilation.

A herd of muskox rest on a snowbank in the upper Katakturuk River Valley. PJR 07-85

The Arctic NWR muskox population is expanding in time and space. In November 1985, post-calving population was estimated to be 476 muskoxen. Productivity has been high (0.66 to 0. 75 calves per cow) and JOCbility has been low. The population has almost doubled since October 1982. Mixed-sex herds moved into new areas on the Katakturuk River and east of the Aichilik River. Most radio-collared cows showed a high fidelity to specific areas. Marked bulls ranged over larger areas and were often seasonally segregated from cows. Muskoxen utilized riparian habitats along major drainages in summer and fall but many moved to adjacent ridges and hills in winter and spring. See Figure 4. ~High Use Areas ~ High Use Areas ~During calving ~ Nm- calving

Figure 4. Muskox major use areas on the Arctic 1WR coastal plain. 10

Publications: Reynolds, P.E., J. Herriges and M. Masteller. (in prep.) Population and herd dynamics, distribution, movements and habitat use of muskoxen in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 1982-1985 in G.W. Garner and P.E. Reynolds, eds. 1985 update report, baseline study o~the fish, wildlife, and their habitats. u.s. Fish and Wildlife Service, Anchorage, AK. Arctic NR85 - "Effects of winter seismic exploration activities on muskoxen in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, January- May 1985." This investigation was part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by Section 1002 of ANILCA. Muskoxen are year-round residents of the coastal plain and, as such, are one of the few species which may be directly affected by winter seismic exploration activities. This was the second and final year of this study. The objective was to document the effects of winter seismic exploration activities on distribution, movements and daily activity patterns of muskoxen. Radio-collared muskoxen were relocated during January to April 1985 while two seismic exploration crews were operating on the refuge's coastal plain. The crews were using the vibrator truck technique. Miscellaneous muskoxen observations were made during other aircraft overtlights ot the area as well as by FWS field monitors traveling on the ground with the seismic crews. Data have not yet been analyzed. This study was conducted by Pat Reynolds, Ecologist with the Arctic NWR, with the assistance of numerous FWS seismic exploration field monitors. Arctic NR85 - "Distribution and relative abundance of golden eagles in relation to the Porcupine caribou herd during calving and post-calving periods, 1985." This investigation was the final year of a two-year study to gain a better understanding of interactions between golden eagles and calving caribou on the refuge. It is part of the baseline study of the coastal plain which was mandated by ANILCA. Data collection was integrated with other baseline studies on the calving grounds of the Porcupine caribou herd. Objectives were: 1. Determine relative abundance and distribution of golden eagles associated with calving and post-calving caribou; 2. Determine temporal aspects of golden eagle occurrence on the northern portion of the Arctic refuge; 3. Measure productivity of golden eagles nesting adjacent to caribou calving and post-calving areas. Distribution and abundance of golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos) in relation to calving and post-calving activities of the Porcupine caribou (Rangifer tarandus) herd were investigated by compiling records of incidental observations made by various field personnel. The status of golden eagle production at nest sites adjacent to caribou calving and post-calving areas was determined by aerial and ground methods. A total of 336 observations (400 eagles) were recorded between April 7 and September 26, 1985. This was very similar to 1984 when 323 observations totaled 428 eagles. For those 11 observations when age was determined (n=240), 79% were sub-adults. In 1984 approximately 86% were sub-adults. sixty-eight percent of recorded observations were made in areas of current or recent caribou occupation. Golden eagles were observed either feeding or perched at caribou calf carcasses on 15 (4.5%) occasions and were at adult caribou carcasses on 9 (2.7%) occasions. Necropsy investigations confirmed that predation by golden eagles was most probable cause of death in 9 of 25 calf carcasses examined in 1985 and 6 of 25 in 1984. Concentrations of golden eagles in caribou areas occurred during the late calving (June 13-19) and post-calving (June 20-30) periods in both 1985 and 1984. Only 1 out of 8 eagle nest sites in 1985 and 1 of 12 in 1984 that were adjacent to caribou calving and post-calving areas produced young. This study was conducted by Francis J. Mauer, u.s. Fish and Wildlife Service, Arctic NWR, Fairbanks, AK. Arctic NR85 - "Wolves of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: Seasonal movements and prey relationships." This investigation was part of the ANILCA Section 1002 baseline studies of the Arctic NWR. Data on wolf populations on the refuge were very sparse and consisted of incidental observations of wolves and the location of several den sites that were used in past years. Objectives: 1. Define the seasonal ranges of individual wolves and associated packs that use the north slope of the Brooks Range and the coastal plain in _ the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. 2. Determine seasonal availability of potential prey within the ranges of study wolves. 3. Determine the seasonal diets of study wolves and relate foods consumed to prey availability. This was the second and final year of the study although radio-tracking efforts will continue at least through 1986. TWenty-six wolves were radio-collared and located on a 1-2 week interval from early spring to early winter. Dens were observed in July to assess pup production. Post-abandonment visits at den sites were made to collect scats. Data analysis is incomplete at this time. Preliminary results are as follows: 1. Eight wolf packs were located. 2.- Fall population numbers were 30-35 wolves in both 1984 and 1985. 3. Caribou were the major prey species utilized by denning wolves. 4. Packs do not appear to have seasonal shifts in territories as has been documented for wolves in western Alaska and Canada. 5. PUp production and survival was low conpared to other areas. 6. An outbreak of rabies resulted in the death of at least 5 wolves and the possible breakup of two packs. 7. Wolves on the refuge are part of a very dynamic and wide-ranging population. Interchange between packs was common and wolves ranged up to 826 km. 12 The study was conducted by Arctic NWR WB's Greg Weiler and Gerald Garner with the help of many of the biologists and biological technicians working for the refuge. Arctic NR85 - "Population size, corrposition, and distribution of moose along the Canning and Kongakut Rivers within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, spring and fall 1985." These surveys are part of the baseline study program on the coastal plain of the Arctic NWR. Moose are present throughout the year in the Canning and Kongakut River systems within the refuge and are used by wolves as prey items at various times of the year. These surveys provide data on the moose component of the predator prey system in the area, and these data will be used to assess seasonal prey base of wolves in the northern portion of the refuge. Aerial surveys were flown along the Canning and Kongakut river drainages in April and October 1985. Totals of 203 and 201 moose were recorded in the Canning River drainages in April and October, respectively. These data indicate a 25% increase in the previous number of moose recorded along the Canning River from 1980 to 1984 (normally 150-160 animals). It appears that the Canning moose population is periodically subject to influxes of moose from drainages to the south (i.e. Junjik River). 'l'he major wintering area used by moose in the Canning River drainage is the Cache/Eagle Creeks area. In normal years, 75-90% of the moose population in the drainage winters along these two creeks. Totals of 205 and 194 moose were recorded during aerial surveys of the Kongakut River in April and October, respectively. The spring survey indicated a 14% decline from the previous high number of 239 moose recorded in fall of 1984. This decline is probably due to emigration of moose .from the Kongakut River into adjacent drainages (i.e. Joe Creek, Mancha Creek, Firth River to the east, and the Sheenjek River to the south). sex ratios in fall 1985 were 85 bulls/100 cows calving along the Kongakut River and 77 bulls/100 cows along the Canning River. These populations are only lightly harvested by sport hunters, and are subject to very little subsistence hunting. Another indication of little harvest by sport/subsistence hunters was the unusually high proportion of the bulls in the large category in 1985 (greater than 50 inch antler spread). Along the Canning River, 45% of the bulls were in the large category, while 61% of the bulls along the Kongakut River were in the large category. These surveys were conducted by Gerald Garner, Arctic NWR. Arctic NR85 - "Distribution, abundance, and productivity of fall staging lesser snow geese in coastal habitats of northeast Alaska and Northwest Canada, 1985." This investigation is part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by Section 1002 of ANILCA. The number and distribution of lesser snow geese staging on the refuge vary annually. Knowledge of variation in goose numbers and high goose use areas of the coastal plain is important for assessment of potential impacts of oil and gas exploration and development. 13

Objectives for the fourth year of the study were to: 1) Determine the chronology of migration and staging; 2) Estimate the distribution and number of snow geese present during the peak of staging; 3) Estimate the percent young present during staging; 4) Identify areas used consistently by staging snow geese. survey flights were flown on August 31 and September 11. Additional flights were precluded by inclement weather. Data analysis is incomplete. However, estimates suggest a staging population in excess of 300,000 geese on the refuge. This study was conducted by Russell M. Oates and Marta MCWhorter of the refuge staff. Arctic NR85 - •Ecology of Lesser snow geese staging on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska.•

This investigation is part of the baseline study of the Arctic Nw.R coastal plain mandated by Section 1002 of ANILCA. Portions of the western arctic snow goose population stage on the refuge coastal plain in late August to September of each year. Fall staging is a necessary part of the life cycle of the geese as they feed and rest in preparation for their long migration flights south. Disturbance or other disruptions of this activity which may increase energy expenditures and decrease fat accumulation by the geese could potentially affect survival, especially survival of juveniles and breeding females. This was the seeond year of the study. Objectives were: 1. Quantify the normal daily activity patterns of staging snow geese; 2. Determine the types of foods consumed and the average daily food intake; 3. Quantify the changes in body weight, body protein levels, and lipid levels during the staging period on the refuge; 4. Determine the caloric and protein quality of foods ingested; 5. Develop a model of energy expenditure and intake by the staging snow geese to predict the consequences of varying levels of disturbance. Time budgets of staging snow geese were studied for the second year. In addition, 76 geese were collected for food habit analysis, whole body composition and proximate analysis of intestinal contents. Results are not yet available. This study was conducted by Alan Brackney, Arctic NWR. Arctic NWR85 - •Ecology of brown bears inhabiting the coastal plain and adjacent foothills and mountains of the northeastern portion of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.•

This investigation is part of the baseline study of the Arctic Nw.R coastal plain mandated by section 1002 of ANILCA. Brown bears seasonally occupy the coastal plain and may den there during the winter months. Brown bears are also one of the components in the predator-prey complex of the coastal plain that is linked to the Porcupine caribou herd. 14 This year was the fourth and final year of the study. Objectives of the study were:

1. Determine location and ecology of denning for brown bears using the coastal plain. 2. Determine seasonal habitat use patterns. 3. Determine seasonal interrelationships between brown bears and other wiidlife species, especially caribou. 4. Determine the structure, size, status, and reproductive biology of brown bears.

A brown bear den on the south side of the Sadlerochit Mountains. JH 07-85

A total of 146 brown bears were captured and marked in May, June, and July 1982-1985 on the coastal plain and adjacent foothills and mountains. Radio-transmitters were attached to 107 different bears during this time period and these bears were monitored through denning (October-Noveni.>er) each year. Brown bears were observed feeding on 81 carcasses during the study, of which 69 were caribou. Analysis of radio-location indicates that bears east of the Sadlerochit River shift habitat use patterns to coastal areas in June and early July to coincide with occupancy of those habitats by calving and post-calving caribou. A total of 209 winter dens were located during fall surveys. Of this total, 103 were sampled intensely the following summer. Average den site slope was 56% + 3 SE for the 103 dens and average elevation 2881 feet + 192 SE. Exposure of the den site was primarily on the southeast facing slope (average aspect = 148°+ 11 SE). Emergence from winter dens occurred in late April through late-May in most years, with early emergence of males and non-parturient females and later emergence of females with cubs and females with young. In October and early November of each year, bears moved south into foothills and mountainous habitats to den. Only 6 bears denned on the coastal plain habitats on the refuge. 15

This study was conducted by Gerald Garner (Arctic NWR) and Harry Reynolds (ADFG) plus numerous terrporary biological technicians and volunteers.

Biologist Harry Reynolds of ADFG measures a drugged brown bear as part of a cooperative study of the species's ecology on the refuge JH 06-16-85

Arctic NR85 - •oistribution, abundance, and productivity of tundra swans in the coastal wetlands of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska. •

This investigation is a part of the baseline studies of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by Section 1002 of ANILCA. Preliminary swan surveys were conducted on the refuge in August 1978 and August 1980. Standardized survey areas and methods were developed in 1981 and spring (late June) surveys were begun in 1983 to examine nesting effort by the population.

Nesting surveys were completed on June 27-28, 1985. A total of 66 nests were located. This was a considerable decrease from 1984 (100 nests) and 1983 (79 nests). However, the number of broods located in August 1985 (56 broods) were only slightly lower than 1984 (63) or 1983 (62). Mean brood size in 1985, (2.54 cygnets/brood) was lower than 1984 or 1983 (2.62 cygnets/brood and 2. 73 cygnets/brood respectively).

This study was conducted by Alan Brackney and Rd:>ert Platte, Arctic NWR.

Arctic NR85 - •aabitat use and behavior of molting oldsguaw on the coast of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska 1985. •

This investigation is part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by Section 1002 of ANILCA. Oldsquaw are abundant I.X>stbreeding residents in the lagoons of the refuge coast. Little information is available 16

on habitat use by the oldsquaw within the lagoons or the dependance of the ducks on this estuarine system. The effects of disturbance, habitat modification or displacement are not known.

A variety of data were collected from oldsquaw to deterrrdne food habitats, molt chronology, and physiological condition. AWB 08-85

This was the first and only year of the study. The objectives were to:

1. Quantify the effects of roolt chronology, weather arrl lagoon characteristics on habitat selection and use; 2. Deterrrdne and corrpare the types of foods consumed by oldsquaw feeding offshore and in the lagoons, the availability of those food items, and the characteristics of the areas used; 3. QUantify the temporal changes in body condition of postbreeding oldsquaw. The study was conducted from the abandoned Beaufort Lagoon DEW Line site between July 22 and August 21. Time activity data in various habitats were 17 taken. One-hundred oldsquaw were collected from Nuvagapak, An<;JJn, and Jago Lagoons to examine food habits, molt chronology and physiological condition indices of premolting and molting birds. Results are not yet available.

This study was conducted by Alan Brackney and Robert Platte, Arctic NWR.

Nets are used to capture oldsquaw for radio-tagging and other investigations in the coastal lagoons. JN 08-11-84 Arctic NR85 - •Migratory bird use of the coastal lagoon system of the Beaufort Sea coastline within the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 1985.• This investigation is part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR mandated by Section 1002 of ANIDCA. This study has been undertaken periodically since 1970 with surveys performed by various entities in 1970, 1974, 1978-79, and 1981-85. Only the 1981-85 surveys by Arctic NWR are standardized and comparable. The 14 estuarine lagoons along the Arctic NWR coastline are major concentration areas for migrant and postbreeding waterfowl. Oldsquaw comprise 85-95% of the 20,000-35,000 birds using the lagoons at the peak of the open-water season. Surveys of such concentrations of waterbirds are necessary to determine their spatial and temporal distribution in order to assess potential impacts from development. The objectives of the study are: 1. Obtain an index of relative numbers of migratory birds using coastal lagoons, especially oldsquaw molting in selected lagoons; 2. Continue investigating the validity of the 400 m strip aerial census by comparing data from 400 m strips with aerial census of entire lagoon surface; 3. Evaluate the relationship between aerial strip census of shoreline, mid-lagoon, and barrier island strips and aerial census of entire lagoon surface; 18

4. Examine the distributioo of oldsquaw within the 16 km offshore area of the Beaufort Sea. Weather and aircraft scheduling problems hindered survey efforts in 1985. Only 2 surveys out of a scheduled 5 surveys were successfully completed. The highest estimate was made on July 21, 1985 when 21,478 birds of 17 species were estimated using the ooastal lagoons and irrunediate offshore area.

This study was oonducted by Alan Brackney and Rert Platte, Arctic NWR. Arctic NR 85 - •Terrestrial bird populations and habitat use on coastal plain tundra of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.• This study is part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by Sectioo 1002 of ANILCA. The ooastal plain annually hosts over 100 species of birds of which more than 60 species breed there. Nineteen species migrate, molt, or stage on the ooastal plain. Basic informatioo on bird use of different habitats and population densities is required for assessment of potential impacts from oil and gas exploration and development. Objectives for the fourth year of the study were: 1) Determine and oompare bird densities of the major habitats defined by Landsat mapping of refuge coastal plain; 2) Determine breeding, transient, and resident population density estimates of quality sufficient to make extrapolation for the coastal plain; 3) Determine baseline levels of annual variation for five key species (lapland longspur, red-necked phalarope, lesser golden-plover, pectoral sandpiper, semipalmated sandpiper).

Establishing bird study camp at Niguanak Lake. ID 06-02-85 19

Seven camps were established on the coastal plain in early June and censuses were conducted at 8 locations (Aichilik River, Jago River Delta, Jago River at w.BM Bitty, Niguanak Lake, Okpilak River Delta, Sadlerochit River Delta, Marsh Creek, and Katakturuk River). Crews of three or four ooservers oensused bir&3 weekly on permanently established plots through the breeding season and through early fall mig rat ion. Although data analysis is inoomplete, preliminary results indicate that riparian areas and flooded tundra support highest densities and most species of bir&3.

This study was conducted by Russell M. Oates, Christct>her A. Babcock, Marta Md'lhorter, David Douglas, Steven Gehman, Dr. Rebecca Field, Dr. Terry Maxwell, and John Morton, and volunteers of the Arctic NWR staff.

VL's Shellie Gareau and Patsy Christgau trying to sort out food at beginning of field season at Sadlerochit Camp. MM 06-01-85

Arctic NR85 - •Fall and winter movements, distribution, and annual mortality patterns of the Porcupine caribou herd, 1984-1985•.

This investigation is a continuation of an ongoing effort to monitor herd distribution and mortality. It was associated with the baseline study of the coastal plain of the Arctic NWR mandated by ANILCA. This project was a cooperative effort between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the canadian Wildlife Service. Objectives were:

1. Monitor movements and distribution of the Porcupine caribou herd during the fall and winter periods: 20

2. Measure annual mortality rates for radio-collared cohorts of the Porcupine caribou herd. In 1984 fall movements and distribution of the Porcupine caribou herd were apparently influenced by weather factors. During mild weather in September large numbers of caribou drifted north to the northern Richardson Mountains in Canada where they remained for the winter. In Alaska caribou moved to traditional winter ranges in the Chandalar and Sheenjek drainages during October. Based on proportions of radio-collared caribou found, it is estimated that about 60-70,000 caribou wintered in Alaska and about 90,000 caribou wintered in Canada. First-year mortality (based on survival rates of radio-collared calves) was estimated at 38%. Male calves had a higher mortality rate (53%) than female calves (23%). Annual mortality of young adult (1-3 years old) radio-collared caribou was lower (5%) than that for adults older than 3 years (32%). Following a brief period of high mortality immediately after parturition, calves survived well until fall, when mortality increased. OVer-winter mortality of radio-collared calves was low. This study was accomplished cooperatively by Kenneth R. Whitten (Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Fairbanks), Francis J. Mauer and Gerald w. Garner (USFWS-Arctic NWR) and Donald E. Russell, (canadian Wildlife Service, Whitehorse). Arctic NR85 - •ealving distribution, initial productivity and neonatal mortality of the Porcupine caribou herd, 1985•. This investigation was the final year of field work for a three-year project. It is part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by Section 1002 of ANILCA. Collection of baseline information regarding distribution of calving, herd productivity and calf survival for the Porcupine caribou herd, which has its primary calving grounds on the coastal plain of the refuge, has been a central focus of the baseline study effort. This project was integrated with investigations of primary predator species (wolves, brown bears and golden eagles). Objectives for this study were as follows: A. Primary 1. Delineate distribution of the Porcupine caribou herd calving as part of a continuing effort to collect baseline information on wildlife resources in the portion of ANWR open to petroleum exploration; identify any annual consistencies in calving distribution and/or common characteristics among separate calving areas. 2. Determine initial calf production and extent, causes, and chronology of mortality among neonatal calves (i.e., 4-6 weeks postpartum). 3. Measure variation in calf mortality and calf mortality factors between core and peripheral areas and/or between different habitat types or localities. B. Secondary 1. Provide productivity data for analysis of herd status. 21

2. Identify characteristics (i.e., habitat, snow ablation patterns, topography, etc.) of core and peripheral calving areas and/or calving areas in different habitat types or localities. 3. Provide additional collared caribou for concurrent studies of overwinter calf survival and seasonal movements. 4. Provide incidental observations of other species as part of the locations of radio-collared muskoxen, brown bears, and wolves. Major concentrations of calving activity were mapped on the coastal plain of the Arctic NWR during all three years of study. Initial productivity ranged from 67-78%. Mortality of newborn calves during the first month varied from 6.6-17%. Predation accounted for 70-80% of natural mortality, with golden eagles, brown bears and wolves involved in declining order of inportance. A majority of calf mortality occurred in the southern/southeastern foothills which are peripheral to the principal calving concentration areas in all three years. This study was conducted by Kenneth R. Whitten (Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Fairbanks), Francis J. Mauer and G.W. Garner (Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Fairbanks). Arclic NR8!:> - "IllluediaLe and long-Lerm errecls or winLer seismic exploraLion on the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge." This study was designed to evaluate the impacts of winter seismic exploration which occurred on the coastal plain of the refuge in 1984 and 1985. The coastal plain provides important habitat to many wildlife species, and is valued by many people for its aesthetic and wilderness qualities. A review of the existing literature on vehicle trails on the tundra has revealed little information on the immediate and long-term effects of winter seismic trails. Such information is needed to better understand the existing impacts and possible future impacts of oil exploration on the coastal plain. This is the second year of an on-going study. The research objectives are: 1. Evaluate the immediate impacts of winter seismic exploration on the vegetation, permafrost, and visual resources of the coastal plain; 2. Determine recovery rates of disturbance caused by seismic exploration; 3. Determine the relationship between disturbance level and the protective character of snow cover; 4. Gather data on seasonal and yearly variations in snow characteristics at Barter Island, and the distribution of snow over the coastal plain. Data were collected at the 16 intensive study plots established in 1984 plus an additional 18 new plots. Vegetation and soil descriptions, disturbance levels, and visibility ratings were recorded for each site. Disturbance at each site was documented with a series of 35 mm photographs. Vegetation cover and frequency data were gathered for disturbed and control plots. Recolonization of bare patches by seedlings or vegetative growth was estimated. Plant samples were collected at three tussock tundra sites and three wet or moist sedge sites to determine productivity, nitrogen content and phosphorus content on disturbed and control plots. Active layer depth and track depression were measured to document any changes to the underlying permafrost due to disturbance. Refuge botanists using a point frame to deterrrdne plant cover density in the study of impacts to vegetation caused by seismic exploration on the coastal plain. CAB 07-85 Fifty photo-trend plots established in 1984 plus 16 new photo-trend plots were visited this year. Descriptive data, disturbance levels, and visibility ratings were recorded, photographs were taken, and active layer depths were measured at each plot.

Large white markers were used to mark beginning and end points for aerial photographs taken as part of the study of seismic exploration impacts to vegetation. GlE 06-85 22

Color infrared and true color aerial photography (1 :6000 scale) were acquired for a portion of the 1984 a00 1985 seismic lines and camp-move routes. Field studies were conducted to assess the accuracy of the photo interpretations made in 1984. Ground data were gathered fran a m.IITber of sites in addition to the study plots to aid in development of the 1985 photo interpretation key.

Eight vegetation types and 4 disturbance levels were described on the photos. Interpretation of points on seismic lines and camp moves is presently in progress, and will provide an estimate of the distribution of disturbance levels within vegetation types.

Color infra-red aerial photograph of a winter 1984 seismic cat train ca.np on tundra. NAP 08-84

Ninety plots were established in tussock tundra and moist sedge-shrub to determine the relationship between disturbance level and snow cover. Snow depth was measured in the winter when vehicle travel occurred. Vegetative cover, visibility, and disturbance level dat a were collected during the summer.

Snow depth, density, and hardness were measured JOOnthly at two permanent transects on Barter Island. Snow depth and site description data were collected at 400 sites by FWS field monitors on seismic crews. These data provided a historical record of snow distribution across the coastal plain at the time of seismic activity. 23

This study was conducted by Nancy A. Felix, M. Tbrre Jorgenson, Robert Lipkin, Martha K. Raynolds, Deborah L. Blank, and Brian Lance (All Arctic NWR). Results will be published in the 1985 update report of the baseline study.

Arctic NR85 - "Summer ecology of the Porcupine Caribou herd" (WOrk Unit 945.01) Potential for oil and gas development on the coastal plain of the Arctic NWR has necessitated an understanding of the Porcupine caribou herd's ecological requirements in order to assess possible impacts from any future development. This was the third field season of an ongoing study. Major objectives are: 1) Develop and implement a satellite tracking system to monitor individuals of the Porcupine caribou herd; 2) Determine critical habitat, migration routes, and possible impacts from oil and gas development for the Porcupine caribou herd. The first major objective has been successfully achieved. Satellite radio collars employing sensors to monitor collar temperature, short-term (1-minute) and long-term (24-hour) activity and mortality, were deployed on 10 cows (2 in the Central Arctic herd). These were tracked a total of 12,000 times during the spring and fall migrations and on the summer range. Results and systems utility have established high project credibility. Slope, elevation, aspect, insect relief habitat, snow-ablation on the calving ground, drainage systems, and oil and gas development scenarios are being digitized and formatted for the Geographic Information System (MOSS, MAPS). The hardware and most of the software required are in place. Field work to assess accuracy of the Landsat landcover map was completed. Data from the third field season quantifying the insect-landcover-caribou interactions were acquired. A proposal to assess the loss of habitat at exploratory well sites was prepared and accepted. This project was conducted by Larry Pank (USFWS Research Division, Faidbanks, AK). Pank, L.F., W.L. Regelin, D. Beatty, and J.A. Curatolo. 1985. Performance of a prototype satellite tracking system for caribou. Pp. 97-118. In R.W. Weeks and F.M. Long (eds.). Proc. 5th Int. Conf. Wildl. Biotelemetry. Chicago, Sept. 30, 1985. Pank, L.F., c. Curby, B. Nankivell, c. Simon, and R. Wright. 1985. Spatial and temporal distribution of biting and parasitic insects on the coastal plain and adjoining foothills of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Pp. 17, 695-723. In G.W. Garner, and P.E. Reynolds (eds.). Arctic National Wildlife Refuge coastal plain resource assessment, 1984 update report, baseline study of the fish, wildlife, and their habitats. u.s. Dept. Int., Fish Wildl. Serv., Anchorage. 777pp. 24

Arctic NR85 - "Movements of Arctic char and Arctic cisco in Beaufort Lagoon, Arctic NWR, Alaska, 1985." This investigation is part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by Section 1002 of ANILCA. Arctic char and Arctic cisco are the two most abundant anadromous species inhabiting the nearshore coastal waters of the Beaufort sea. These are also the major fish species in the Kaktovik subsistence harvest. This was the second year of the study. The objectives were:

1. Determine period of peak movement of anadromous species in the lagoon: 2. Determine relative distribution of anadramous species within the lagoon: 3. Determine age and growth structure of populations. Sampling was conducted in Beaufort Lagoon from July 7-August 9, 1985 and included three habitat types: 1) nearshore mainland, 2) mid-lagoon and 3) inside barrier island. Relative abundance at these stations was determined by utilizing fyke nets and variable mesh gill nets. Fish have been tagged to aid in movement studies along the coast. Peak period of movements for Arctic char oceurred in early and late July, and for Arctic cisco in early and mid-July. The inside barrier island station accounted for over 80% of the capture of anadromous species. Tagged Arctic char from Beaufort Lagoon have been intercepted by Kaktovik residents near Barter Island. Recoveries within the lagoon have been predominantly of char tagged in the Hulahula River. This study was conducted by Robin L. West and David w. Wiswar, USFWS, FA Fairbanks, Alaska. Arctic NR85 - "Fall movements and overwintering of Arctic grayling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 1985." This investigation is part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by section 1002 of ANILCA. Arctic grayling are an abundant freshwater species inhabiting many streams and rivers on the coastal plain. Should development associated with oil and gas exploration occur, impacts such as pipeline crossings, road construction, culvert implacements, gravel removal and water withdrawals could adversely impact grayling habitat. This was the second year of the study. The objectives were: 1. Determine the period of movement from summer feeding grounds to overwintering locations; 2. Identify overwintering locations. Arctic grayling from the Akootoktak, Itkilyariak and Tamayariak Rivers were implanted with radio transmitters and tracked periodically from August to December. The peak periods of movement to overwintering locations were determined and locations were identified. 25

Arctic grayling began their movements to overwintering locations by the end of August and most fish were on or near these sites by September. Grayling from the Tamayariak River overwinter in lower Tamayariak, lower main channel of the Canning River and Canning delta. Grayling from the Itkilyariak River overwinter in Peters and Schrader lakes, Kekiktuk River and in Sadlerochit River near the springs. Grayling from the Akootoktak River overwinter in Okpilak and Hulahula Rivers. Arctic NR85 - "Notes on the age, growth, distribution and SUimler feeding habits of Arctic flounder (Liopsetta glacialis) in Beaufort Lagoon, ANWR, Alaska.• This investigation is part of the baseline study of the Arctic NWR coastal plain mandated by Section 1002 of ANILCA. Arctic flounder are an abundant marine species inhabiting lagoon and nearshore coastal waters throughout the year. Because of their abundance and tendency to remain in nearshore waters, Arctic flounder may prove to be a good indicator species for future monitoring in areas facing development. This is the second year of the study. The objectives were: 1. Determine age and growth structure of the population: 2. Determine major habitat use within the lagoon: 3. Determine summer feeding habits in the lagoon. Sarrpling was conducted in Beaufort Lagoon from July 7-August 9, 1985. Arctic flounder were collected to aid in determining objectives, and relative abundance at different habitat types was noted. Arctic flounder were predominately in the length category 126-150 mm and correspond to 3 and 4 year old flounder. Most (85%) flounder were captured at the nearshore mainland station. The amphipod Gammarus setosus was the major prey item utilized by Arctic flounder in Beaufort Lagoon. This study was conducted by David w. Wiswar, USFWS, Fairbanks, Alaska. Arctic NR85 - "Notes on the food habits of pre-smolt and residual Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) in streams of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska." Food habits of Arctic char serve as clues to their distribution. Diet may also explain, in part, the coexistence of three different forms of char. It has been proposed that the pattern of char segregation depends on genetic constitution and access to food. Preliminary diet analyses of pre-smolt and residual char in the Arctic NWR may contribute to the understanding of sympatric stocks and to our ability to characterize suitable char habitat. Specimens for this study were collected coincidentally with other sampling projects carried out in 1982, 1983, and 1985. Objectives were: 1. Identify major components of the diet. 2. Determine differences within and between drainages, and between age/size classes. 3. Compare prey items with availability when possible. 26

192 fish taken from the Canning, Hulahula, Aichilik, and Kongakut drainages were analyzed. Food habits varied within and between drainages with the emergence phenologies of the m::>st common prey items: chironomid larvae, plecopteran nynphs, ephemeropteran nyrrphs and adult dipterans. Larger fish ate a greater variety of prey than smaller char but not necessarily more of each prey item. Small char from 3 drainages contained grayling fry in their stomachs. All Fairbanks Fishery Resources staff participated in collection of samples. Tonya Stevens and Steve Deschermeier analyzed stomach contents. Tonya Stevens prepared the report. Arctic NR85- •Fisheries investigations on the Kongakut River, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska, 1985.• Early survey workers described the Kongakut River as a possible major spawning, rearing and overwintering stream for Arctic char and grayling. Recreational use of the river is on the rise and oil development in the 1002 study area would likely bring a great increase in the number of recreationists, particularly rafters, who enjoy exploiting the high-quality fishing opportunities. Baseline fisheries information is needed in order to assess future impacts. This was the only year for this study. Objectives were: 1. Identify spawning, rearing and overwintering areas for char and grayling; 2. Describe age and growth characteristics; 3. Delineate physical and chemical characteristics of the river and selected tributaries; 4. Determine species composition and abundance of benthic invertebrates. Work was conducted via river rafts June 21-July 5, 1985. Char and grayling were generally found near aufeis formations. Adult non-spawning char and spawners aged 5+ and 6+ were absent from our sanples, due to later migration upriver from summer lagoon feeding areas. The early migration of large spawners increases vulnerability to fishing enthusiasts and may have management implications. We recorrmend a greater sampling effort be made in order to establish char population structure and dynamics. The study was carried out by Steve Deschermeier, Tonya Stevens, David w. Wiswar, and Robin West, Fairbanks Fishery Resources. Arctic NR85- •Arctic fish habitats and sensitivities.• This investigation is a contract between USFWS, Division of Fishery Resources, and the Minerals Management Service (MMS) with funding through NOAA, National Ocean Service.

This was the first year of a 16-m::>nth study. The objectives were: 1. Electrophoretically identify and catalog the major Arctic char stocks using rivers draining into the Beaufort Sea adjacent to Federal offshore lease offerings. 27

2. Describe a coastal sampling program that would, if employed using stock identification characteristics obtained in FY86, provide range information on the discrete Arctic char stocks during the open water season, identify stocks which may be at risk from planned OCS actions in the Arctic (including the degree of isolation and intermingling of stocks). Juvenile Arctic char were collected from 3 sites along the Hulahula River and sent to USFWS, Fishery Research, Anchorage, Alaska for genetic analysis. The principal investigators of this study are Michael W. Smith, USFWS, Fairbanks, Alaska, and Gerry Gray, USFWS, Anchorage, Alaska. 28

Personnel (PFr) 1. Glenn w. Elison, Refuge Manager, GS-13, EOD 09-08-83 2. Gerald w. Garner, Supervisory Wildlife Biologist, GS-12, EOD 06-15-80 3. Douglas J. Fruge, Primary Assistant Refuge Manager, GS-12, EOD 01-22-84 4. Francis J. Mauer, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, GS-11, EOD 06-28-81 5. Patricia c. Reynolds, Ecologist, GS-11, EOD 11-01-81 6. Donald P. Garrett, Supervisory Wildlife Biologist, GS-11, EOD 03-18-84 7. Roger w. Kaye, Assistant Refuge Manager/Pilot, GS-11 EOD 12-23-84 8. Alan w. Brackney, Wildlife Biologist, GS-11, EOD 07-01-84 9. Paul A. Liedberg, Administrative Officer, GS-09, EOD 04-22-79 10. Nancy A. Felix, Botanist, GS-11, EOD 07-10-83 11. Daniel J. LaPlant, Fish and Wildlife Biologist, GS-09, Trans. 12-21-85 12. Russell M. Oates, Wildlife Biologist, GS-09, EOD 10-28-84 13. Katrina Davis, Financial Assistant, GS-05, EOD 04-15-85 14. Barbara s. Plaster, Clerk/Typist, GS-04, EOD 04-29-84 15. Kathleen M. Digan, Clerk/Typist, GS-03, Trans 04-26-85 16. Kathie Kiser, Clerk/Typist, GS-03, EOD 07-07-85 Converted to Perm 07-21-85, upgrade to GS-03 10-13-85 17. E.A. "Liz" Aucoin, Financial Assistant, GS-05, LWD 02-02-85 Term .Appointments · Local Ilire, NTE 09 30 86 18. Larry D. Martin, Wildlife Biologist, GS-09, Trans. 02-02-85 19. Pamela A. Miller, Wildlife Biologist, Gs-09, Resigned 05-10-85 20. Cathryn s. Moitoret, Wildlife Biologist, GS-09, Resigned 06-08-85 21. Gregory J. Weiler, Wildlife Biologist, GS-09, EOD 01-22-84 Temporary Appointments 22. M. Torre Jorgenson, Botanist, GS-07, EOD 07-22-84 23. Douglas J. Butyne, Clerk/Typist, GS~03, LWD 02-04-85 24. Royce Mullins, Clerk/Typist, GS-03, EOD 02-19-85, LWD 05-14-85 25. Martha Raynolds, Botanist, GS-07, EOD 05-28-85 26. Rob Lipkin, Botanist, GS-05, EOD 05-28-85 27. Debbie Blank, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 05-28-85, LWD 12-20-85 28. Mark Masteller, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 05-06-85, LWD 09-27-85 29. Jim Herriges, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 05-20-85, LWD 11-22-85 30. Chris Babcock, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 05-12-85, LWD 12-20-85 31. David Douglas, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 05-20-85, LWD 09-03-85, and EOD 12-29-85 32. Steve Gehman, Biological Technician, Gs-05, EOD 05-12-85, LWD 10-25-85 33. Marta MCWhorter, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 05-20-85 34. John Morton, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 05-28-85, LWD 09-18-85 35. Bob Platte, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 06-09-85 36. Brian Lance, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 06-23-85, LWD 08-30-85 37. Jannifer Stoddard, Clerk/Typist, GS-03, EOD 09-16-85 38. Craig Bitler, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 09-20-85 39. Mike Phillips, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 09-20-85 40. Gary Muehlenhardt, Biological Technician, GS-05, EOD 10-07-85 29

Volunteers 41. David Anthon 42. Suzanne Apellaniz 43. Doug Braddock 44. Patsy Christgau 45. Mark Conover 46. George Durner 47. Ada Fowler 48. Michele Gareau 49. Geoff Kingman 50. Robert Loftin 51. Mamoru Matsuki 52. Terry Maxwell 53. Paul Obbink 54. Doug Plurrmer 55. John Rider 56. Rob Secunda 57. Kim Sepanski 58. David Whiting 59. Todd Curro 60. Jenny Zimnerman Student Conservation Association 61. Bill Stahl

YCC 62. Kim Wallis Work Experience Program 63. Roni Widner RM Glenn Elison in his second full year as Refuge Manager. KRD 02-86

SWB Gerald Garner coming out of brown bear den, 84-39 . LDM 1984 Monday morning staff meetings are routinely led by PARM Doug Fruge'. KRD 02-86

Cessna N24164 being fueled by ARM/P Roger Kaye and held up by BT Jim Herriges. Jim assisted on the muskox and other studies. BP 07-85 WB Fran Mauer on •wintering grounds•. KRD 02-86

EC Pat Reynolds working on muskox data. KRD 02-86 SFWB Phil Garrett functions as permits coordinator am as the coordinator/supervisor of field monitoring for oil and gas exploration. KRD 05-86

Lagoon/old squaw study crew. Left to right: VL Bill Stahl (who also served as logistics coordinator at Barter Island); WB Alan Brackney; VL Jenny Zinmerrnan; and BT Bd:> Platte. BP 08-85 WB Russ Oates, tireless leader of the 1985 tundra bird study. DD 06-85

AO Paul Liedberg administratively officiating. KRD 02-86 Botany Crew. Left to right: BN Roo Lipkin, BN Nancy Felix, m:' Debbie Blank, BT Brian Lance, BN Torre Jorgenson, BN Martha (Tako) Raynolds. TJ3 07-85

FWB Dan LaPlant and tundra conpanion. KJ'll-A 03-85 WB Pam Miller gathering snow data on seismic line. NAF 03-85

WB Kate Moi t oret and her trusty •bomber•. CSM-84-03-00 01-29-84 WB Greg Weiler and ~lf tlO ~ 05-85

FA Barb Plaster paying the bills. KRD 02-86 cr Kathie Kiser. KRD 05-86

cr Katrina Davis •driving• the Wang. KMK 02-86 CT Jannifer Stoddard filled the 1-year temporary clerk-typist position. KRD 05-86

BT Marta MCWhorter worked on the tundra bird study as leader of the sadlerochit River camp. BP 06-85 Niguanak Lake tundra bird study crew. Left to right: VL Dave Anthon; VL George nurner and BT David Douglas ( canp leader). RMO 06-85

BT Mark Masteller worked on a variety of projects during the field season but mainly on tracking brown bears. JM 09-84 Okpilak River tundra bird study crew. Left to right: VL Paul Obbink; VL Bob Loftin; BT John Morton ( canp leader); and VL Mamoru Matsuki RHO 07-85

Jago Delta tundra bird study crew. Left to right: VL Suzanne Apellaniz; WB Becky Field (canp leader); VL Kim Sepanski. Marsh Creek tundra bird study crew. Left to right: VL Roo Secunda: BT Chris Babcock ( carrp leader) , VL Ada Fowler: VL Shellie Gareau.

Aichilik River tundra bird study crew. Left to right: VL Terry Maxwell ( carrp leader) : VL Doug Braddock: VL David Whiting. RMO 06-85 Sadlerochit River tundra bird study crew. Left to right: VL Patsy Christgau; BT Marta McWhorter (carrp leader); VL Doug Plummer; VL Shellie Gareau. RMO 06-85

BT Gary Muehlenhardt worked on the bear den and other studies. KRD 05-86 30

E. ADMINISTRATION 1. Personnel Abbreviations for position titles are used throughout this report as follows: RM-Refuge Manager; SWB-Supervisory Wildlife Biologist; PARM-Primary Assistant Refuge Manager; FWB-Fish and Wildlife Biologist; EC-Ecologist; SFWB-Supervisory Fish and Wildlife Biologist; ARM/P-Assistant Refuge Manager/Pilot; WB~ildlife Biologist; FM-Field Monitor; A0-Administrative Officer; EN-Botanist; FA-Financial Assistant; CT-clerk/Typist; BT-Biological Technician; VL-Volunteer. Through a documentation for accretion of duties, the botanist position occupied by Nancy Felix (GS-430-09) was upgraded to a GS-11. Nancy was promoted on April 14. Through the same procedure the wildlife biologist position occupied by Russell oates (GS-486-09) was upgraded to a GS-11 and Russ subsequently was promoted effective October 27. Daniel LaPlant, Fish and Wildlife Biologist (GS-401-09) transferred, effective December 22 to the Soil Conservation Service in Anchorage. Dan was with the Arctic NWR for just over 2 years, having transferred from the Soil Conservation Service in September 1983.

On February 2, Elizabeth Aucoin resigned as the Financial Assistant (GS 503-05) to take a position with private business. The position was refilled by Katrina Davis on April 14. Katrina transferred from the u.s. Geological survey, Map Distribution Office in Fairbanks. On October 14, Katrina accepted a reassignment to the position of clerk/typist at the refuge.

By the year's end the FA position had been vacant for five months of the last 11. Recruitment was underway and a selection was expected early in 1986. Throughout the FA vacancy, clerk/typist Barb Plaster assisted in processing purchase orders, paying bills, data entering for budget tracking and the other duties associated with the vacant position. This was done on top of Barb's other duties of administering a word processing system used by all FWS divisions in the Fairbanks Federal Building and processing payroll for up to 25 errpl~ees. In addition, NJ Paul Liedberg was on LIDP from January to mid-May, compounding the complexities of the finance duties. Without exception, all refuge staff members and Regional Office personnel who worked with Barb recognized her exceptional performance under very trying conditions. Barb readily accepted the additional duties which placed an extremely heavy workload on her. Throughout the period, however, she maintained a cheerful disposition and was always willing to help wherever needed, trademarks she has maintained throughout her employment with the refuge. For her efforts she was presented with a special achievement award. Administrative Officer Paul Liedberg was authorized LWOP to be utilized over a 12-month period to complete a resource management degree at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. He was absent full-time from January 15 through May 15 and half time from September 5 through December 15. He completed his ooursework in December and returned to his position full time. 31

Position audits were completed for refuge personnel by the regional classification specialist in February. This completed a task originally started in December 1984. Several reclassifications were done during the year as a result of this station audit. Kathleen Digan, clerk/typist (GS-322-03), transferred to the Bureau of Land Management effective April 26. Douglas Butyne, clerk/typist (GS-322-03), was terrndnated effective February 4. Doug occupied a 60-day special hire appointment to assist in preparation of the ANILCA Section 1002 baseline study report. These 60-day appointments have worked well to supplement our typing force when we have a heavy load. Besides saving 2 months in the selection process if we recruit through OPM, it also opens the door to a much greater selection of candidates. We have always been able to get candidates that have the experience we need and thus, require a lirndted amount of training. Although these short appointments do not warrant a great deal of training, there is no reason to let the less complex jobs such as typing, filing, and running errands go for want until a vacancy is refilled. Royce Mullins, clerk/typist (GS-322-03), was appointed to a temporary position on February 19 and subsequently to a permanent position on April 29 upon the transfer of Kathleen Digan. However, Royce's husband was advised in the interim that his requested release from the Air Force had been granted and she resigned effective May 14 to live in Michigan. As was the case in 1984, this was a year of great turnover in refuge personnel. Most of this was in the clerical and local-hire positions with only one vacancy (Dan LaPlant) occurring in the permanent management or biological staff. Four local-hire positions (specific to Alaska under the provisions of ANILCA) were established and filled in January 1984 to conduct monitoring of seismic exploration occurring on the coastal plain of the refuge. These appointments were made for 30 months, scheduled to expire in September 1986. Three of these positions were vacated during the year. Larry Martin resigned effective February 2 to take a temporary position with the Hawaiian Islands NWR with a duty station at Tern Island. Pam Miller resigned on May 10. Later in the year she secured a permanent wildlife biologist position with the Northern Alaska Ecological Services office in Fairbanks. Cathryn Moitoret resigned effective June 8 and immediately went to work in a permanent position with Northern Alaska Ecological Services as well. Needless to say, the loss of these three individuals who had provided extensive assistance to our biological program for the past several summers left quite a void. Although a third winter of seismic exploration was requested, it was not approved and none of the three local-hire field monitor positions were refilled. Cathy CUrby, a biological technician working for the Fairbanks office of the Denver Wildlife Research Center, provided much assistance to the refuge staff in the area of automated data processing. The refuge paid part of her salary during the year. 32

Although never officially detailed to the Arctic NWR, Rebecca Field worked as a camp leader in the tundra bird project for the summer. She was officially assigned as a biologist with the Special Studies Office (HR). The refuge paid a portion of her salary during the time she worked with us. Staffing trends (paid personnel) over the past 5 years are shown in the table below. (Number of Employees) Permanent Temporary Total FTE Full-Time Part-Time

FY 1981 11a 0 2 11 FY 1982 9b 0 6 9 FY 1983 11c 0 6 11 FY 1984 16d 0 1oe 16 FY 1985 15 0 17e 13 a Addition of a wildlife biologist and a fish and wildlife biologist b Administrative staff reassigned to Kanuti NWR c Addition of a botanist and a fish and wildlife biologist d Administrative staff reassigned back to Arctic NWR e Includes four local-hire wildlife biologists (field monitors)

2. Youth Programs One Youth COnservation Corps (YCC) enrollee was utilized at this station in 1985. Kim Wallis provided assistance for the office staff in the summer when expediting for field crews consumed a major portion of time.

The YCC program is of limited value to this refuge because we have very few labor intensive tasks to accomplish relating to facility maintenance and upkeep in Fairbanks. Coupled with the need for close supervision and the prohibition against YCC enrollees obtaining Government drivers licenses, we are limited to utilizing the program for office assistance.

3. Other Manp:>wer Programs Roni Widner began work for the refuge under the Work Incentive Program on June 10. This is a state program designed to provide work experience for the disadvantaged. The salary is a token amount. Immaturity took its toll, however, and Roni was terminated on July 5 for tardiness. 4. Volunteer Program The Service's volunteer program was again used in a large way to supplement salaried permanent and seasonal staff in accomplishment of field projects. Twenty-one volunteers contributed 11,900 hours in support of the refuge programs. Eighteen of these worked on the tundra bird project on the coastal plain. This converts conservatively, to $86,000 worth of time if we had paid for the services. 33

The first volunteer arrived in rrdd-May and the last departed in early September. With the exception of a day or two on either end, the entire period was spent in field camps on the refuge or briefly at the field station in Kaktovik. Recruitment for volunteers began in January by contacting approximately 50 universities and other organizations, and working with the regional volunteer coordinator. Over 120 applications were received for the 18 tundra bird positions. The selected volunteers had experience ranging from undergraduate students to chairman of a biological department at a university. Only two volunteers were from Fairbanks with the remainder arriving from as far as Florida. With only one exception, the volunteers were an extremely enthusiastic crew. Performance problems were non-existent and most were interested in remaining on the project as long as possible. The success of this can be attributed to good recruitment and screening, good orientation and supervision, and a unique and appealing work environment. Wildlife Biologist Russell cates is to be ccmnended on his administration of the program. TWo volunteers were also used on the oldsquaw study in August. One Student Conservation Association (SCA) volunteer was utilized for the summer. Bill Stahl was selected to serve as a logistics expeditor and assist with other work as needed when stationed at Barter Island. Bill worked from May 25 through August 20 at a cost to the Refuge of $1,947.57. He put in many hours in an often thankless position and provided a much-needed service to the refuge. Following is a summary of volunteer use by the refuge over the past 5 years. Number of Volunteers Hours

FY 1981 1 280 FY 1982 6 1056 FY 1983 19 10112 FY 1984 21 8560 FY 1985* 21 11900 *Including SCA 5. Funding

The trend of funding increases for the ANWR continued as it has over the past 5 years. The Congressionally-mandated studies on the coastal plain again received almost all of our attention. Even though funding appears good, we spent virtually no time in the 17,500,000 acres of the refuge which are not in or adjacent to the 1002 study area. 34

Summary of Funding FY 1981 to FY 1985 FY 1981 FY 1982 FY 1983 FY 1984 FY 1985 1210 88 350 420 1220 230 550 600 1240 46 20 20 -1260 10 10 10 1,581 1,395 1450 5 5 1480 5 1520 1 3 1994 3 6850 455 697 7201 20 Total 374 374 930 2,045 2,125 Section 1002 of ANILCA continued to be a fiscal blackhole for the ANWR. Work outside of the study area and immediately adjacent areas was essentially non-existent. The ANWR has evolved into a 2,000,000-acre study site attached to a 17,500,000 acre area suffering from benign (we hope) neglect. Efforts to secure funds for use outside of the 1002 program have been fruitless. Though the bulk of funding is provided under the category of "Refuge Operations and Maintenance", annual work plan advices and the high priority of the 1002 program preclude use of these funds on other refuge needs and programs. · What Accelerated Refuge Maintenance Management (ARMM) funding was not originally programmed to the 1002 baseline studies was eventually reprogrammed to cover shortfalls in these studies. Total ARMM funds for the year were $151,700. In addition to appropriated funding, the refuge also received funding in the form of a reimbursable (Expenses for Sales) account (Subactivity 6850) to cover expenses incurred in reviewing, permitting and field monitoring oil and gas exploration activities. During FY 1985 most of these expenses were incurred through the ANILCA Section 1002 Program. Some were incurred as a result of related, but "non-1002", oil and gas exploration activities. Under this arrangement the permittees reimburse the FWS for costs incurred. Approximately $697,000 were spent on reimbursable oil and gas related work during FY 1985. Including these reimbursable funds, the Arctic NWR spent approximately 2.1 million dollars during FY 1985. 6. Safety Monthly safety meetings are coordinated with the other FWS offices in Fairbanks. Safety training was conducted during several of the meetings early in the year, and after a lull in formal meetings during the summer the schedule was resumed in the fall. Informal training was conducted on firearms, bears, aircraft and other safety topics for seasonal employees and volunteers when in the field. Personnel from the Office of Aircraft Services (OAS) presented a "Pinch Hitter" course for non-pilots on March 12. Several staff members attended. 35

A safety inspection of the refuge's warehouse, hanger, and office facilities was conducted in March by Regional Safety Officer Ginny Hyatt. Several minor problems were identified which were subsequently corrected. A Defensive Driving Course was presented by the Regional Safety Officer in March for Fairbanks FWS and was attended by a number of refuge staff. Aviation safety training was presented for the staff by a representative of OAS on May 8 and June 3. First Aid training was conducted by Tim Maynard of the Regional Safety Office on May 29 and 30. Tim also provided CPR training on May 24. Regional Safety Officer Hyatt and WO Safety Officer Freeman Walker visited the refuge as part of a safety program review in September.

On March 11 a Twin otter aircraft belonging to Seairmotive that was on contract to Geophysical Service Inc. for equipment and personnel movement, crashed on the coastal plain near one of the seismic camps. Both pilots and one of the passengers received serious injuries and the other passenger received minor injuries. No service personnel were aboard the aircraft. This accident is described in more detail in Section J.2.

On March 27 Wildlife Biologist Dan LaPlant suffered a back injury while moving propane tanks at the Barter Island field station. An added cause of the problem was suspected to be the long hours spent riding in a Bombardier snow machine while performing seismic exploration monitoring duties on the coastal plain. Forty-eight hours of sick leave were expended because of the injury. Dan received physical therapy several times and returned to work with no recurrence during the year. On April 16 the body of a Kaktovik resident, 41 year old Billy Soplu, was found on the refuge. He was apparently run over by a sled being pulled behind his snowmobile. According to the Alaska State Trooper report, Soplu had been camping in the mountains south of Kaktovik with his family on the 13th and 14th of April. On the evening of the 14th he left the mountains to return to Kaktovik. The snowmachine he was driving apparently side-swiped a snow drift which caused Soplu to be thrown from the machine. He fell into the path of a 12-foot fully-loaded sled being pulled by his snowmachine and was pinned under the sled. The snowmachine continued running until out of gas. Soplu was found two days later by another Kaktovik resident hunting in the same area, approximately 10 miles west of Barter Island.

On August 3 an Audi Air Cessna 185 on floats struck a navigation tower at Barter island upon approach for landing. The airplane was returning from Brownlow Point with WB Russ Oates and VL's Terry Maxwell and John Rider on board. The aircraft knocked off part of the tower and sustained considerable damage but was able to land with no problems. No injuries occurred. Weather was below visual flight rule minimum conditions at Barter Island when the accident occurred. The refuge personnel had been camped at Brownlow Point making waterfowl migration observations during the previous week and were picked up on schedule by previous arrangement with Audi Air. Weather was good at Brownlow Point when they departed for the return flight; however, ARM/P Roger Kaye had been delaying departure from Barter Island on that day through the time of the accident because of marginal weather conditicns. 36

On August 10 temporary BT Brain Lance suffered a back strain believed to be caused by lifting heavy soil probes in the field. No lost time resulted, but Lance did undergo chiropractic treatment prior to the end of his tour of duty. On September 20 WB Russell Oates suffered a back strain while moving desks which had been acquired from another department. The injury required treatment in late November. No lost time was reported as a result of the injury. On December 19, at approximately 8:30 AM an Audi Air Cessna 207 commercial flight from Barter Island to Deadhorse with one passenger aboard crashed approximately 12 miles from the coast along Marsh Creek. The crash site was at approximately 1000 feet elevation. The pilot was reportedly making a VFR flight without ground lights or any other ground reference available. The heading, however, was incorrect and instead of being 1,000 feet above sea level along the coast, he was at that same elevation in the Marsh Creek foothills which also happened to be the same elevation he was flying. The aircraft actually flew into the ground. Luckily there were no injuries, and the pilot and passenger were rescued in short order. By the end of the year the company was making plans to remove the aircraft with a Rolligon to make repairs and return it to service. Red and brown stripes were painted on the wings of the refuge Cessna 185 aircraft to aid other aircraft or search parties to spot the plane should the need arise. Assistant Refuge Manager/Pilot Roger Kaye completed training for his commercial and float ratings during the year. Checkrides were conducted by OAS throughout the year for the annual, off-field and ski checkouts. 7. Technical Assistance Refuge Manager Glenn Elison gave guest lectures for two seminar classes at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. One lecture was on ANILCA and the other was on recreational management on the Arctic NWR. Botanist Nancy Felix presented a lecture on botanical field methods to a wildlife management class at the university.

F. HABITAT MANAGEMENT 1. General There are no habitat management manipulation practices utilized on the Arctic Refuge. Efforts are directed towards preserving and maintaining a natural ecosystem and in gathering baseline information on the plant communities and animal populations. Habitat types vary widely within the 19.5 million acres of the refuge. Nowhere else in North America is the transition of biotic communities from the arctic coastal plain to the mountains so contracted.

The distance between mountains and sea varies from 8 miles to 45 miles along the north slope of the refuge~ DPG 07-84

The rugged chain of peaks forming the Brooks Range stretches across the refuge forming the continental divide through northern Alaska. JL 07-82 A narrow reef of gravel protects much of the marshy shoreline from the Arctic ocean ice pack. Arey Lagoon, west of Barter Island, looking north. DPG 08-84

River valley's such as that of the Wind River, are dotted with lakes, sloughs, wetlands and forests on the south slope of the Brooks Range. 37

In April 1983 the FWS and the u.s. Geological Survey's Earth Resources Observation Satellite (EIOS) Field Office in Anchorage entered into an interagency support agreement for completion of a cooperative landcover mapping project on the Arctic NWR. The purposes of the project were to produce a digital landcover/terrain classification for the refuge, to provide registered LANDSAT data for the refuge, and to provide image processing and derivative products as required to meet FWS information needs. The refuge staff, the regional office Wildlife Resources staff and the Research Division Caribou Project Office are involved in this effort on the part of the PWS. Conpletion of the project was to be by April 15, 1984. Due to technical difficulties with some of the I.ANOOAT imagery data and over commitments in workload for the PWS offices involved, the deadline for completed products was not met. Digital data sets and final landcover maps were completed in June 1985. Field work to assess the accuracy of the landoover map was corrpleted by Septenber 1985.

2. Wetlands

The FWS 's National Wetland Inventory mapping effort was oonpleted for the north slope of the refuge during 1985. Various types of wetland habitats occur on the coastal plain.

The greatest variety of wetland types on the refuge prcbably occurs in the Canning River delta. Photog. unk. 1623F, 1971 38

Coastal plain wetlands provide breeding, resting, and migration staging habitat for numerous waterfowl species. This included an estimated 300,000 lesser snow geese during 1985. MM 09-85

9. Fire Management

The Alaska Interagency Fire Management Plan for the Arctic Slope Planning Area was c:orrpleted in April and has been adopted by participating agencies. This plan was prepared under the direction of the Bureau of Land Management by that agency, the u.s. Fish and Wildlife Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Alaska Department of Natural Resources and the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation. It covers the refuge area from the continental divide north to the arctic coast. Because of the extremely low occurrence of wildfire in the region and minimal am:mnt of private land, almost the entire region was placed in the limited action category. This category limits suppression actions to those necessary to prevent fire from spreading to fire management units with higher protection standards, or to protect specific critical sites within the area. The exception within the planning area is the Kaktovik Village Corporation lands, which are designated as critical protection areas.

'l'No wildfires occurred on the refuge in 1985. Both began in July and are believed to have been lightning-caused. Neither fire is believed to have caused any long-term resource damage. 39

several relatively small fires occurred on the refuge during 1985, such as this one along the Porcupine River. NF 86 6 08-09-85

Fire B085 was reported on July 18 as a 3-acre fire in the hills south of Canyon Village on the Porcupine River. The fire occurred in a limited protection area within the approved upper Yukon-Tanana Planning Area but was attacked by fire crews on July 22 in order to protect nearby native allotments. The fire crew was demobilized on August 13, after the fire burned 3,100 acres. Fire BlOB occurred along Boulder Creek west of the Coleen River. The area was classified as limited protection and the fire received no suppression action. Its smoke obscured the regioo and restricted FWS aerial survey work on the north slope. It grew to 45,000 acres and burned out in late August. 11. Water Rights In 1984 the regional office (Habitat Resources as lead program) initiated a process to prioritize streams within the state for instream flow quantification study. Late in the year the refuge was requested to provide input to this process by analyzing streams on the refuge according to criteria that had been developed. This analysis was completed early in 1985. Later in the year (October) we were asked to comment on the prioritization criteria. These comments were provided in November. The refuge's main concern was that the criteria did not give enough weight to streams that are threatened by development. The prioritization procedure was later modified as a result of the cormnents. In December we were again requested to provide comments on the prioritization process and provide initial informatioo for beginning the process of asserting federal reserve water rights. 40

12. Wilderness and Special Areas The Arctic NWR contains almost one-half of all the Congressionally-designated wilderness on refuges in Alaska. There is more designated wilderness in the Arctic NWR than in all refuges in the lower 48 combined. In that respect, the Arctic NWR can be considered the premier wilderness refuge. The Arctic Refuge Wilderness covers approximately 8,000,000 acres and includes north slope arctic tundra, mountain peaks, glaciers, alpine valleys, spruce forest, and a host of subhabitats in these areas. Since the entire refuge is managed as de facto wilderness, the wilderness designation has, so far, not made a significant difference in management. As in years past, surficial geology studies by oil corrpanies were allowed in 1985 via helicopter access in the Sadlerochit Mountains and Brooks Range portions of the Arctic Refuge Wilderness. After the Arctic Refuge Wilderness was established in 1980 by ANILCA the refuge manager had attempted to prevent helicopter access for this work by denying issuance of the required special use permits. Following appeals of this decision by several oil companies, a solicitor's opinion was issued stating that helicopter use for such activities in wilderness areas could be allowed if such use had been established prior to creation of the wilderness area. The refuge was directed by the washington and regional offices to issue the permits for this work. This year the refuge staff again regulated helicopter traffic in the wilderness area by establishing helicopter use zones and assigning use areas so that helicopter activity would not be concentrated in time and space. An upper limitation of six simultaneously-operating helicopters in any one zone was established. So far, only limited complaints have been received from recreational users concerning disturbance by helicopters (see Section J.2). In August Alaska Regional Director for the Wilderness Society, Susan Alexander and Defenders of Wildlife's Alaska Lands and Refuge Specialist, Amy Skilbred accompanied Doug Fruge on a ground examination of the coastal plain from the Sadlerochit Mountains to the coast. The primary purpose of the 10-day walk was to provide knowledge and experience from which the report to Congress (ANILCA Section 1002(h)) section dealing with wilderness and recreation will be prepared. A secondary purpose was to document, from a visitors point of view, the impact that winter seismic exploration has had on the wilderness and esthetic qualities of the refuge's coastal plain. Fruge's report concluded that in spite of visible evidence of seismic exploration, the coastal plain provides for a very high-quality wilderness experience. G. WILDLIFE The Arctic NWR is home to all wildlife species currently extant in arctic Alaska from montane habitats to the coastal lagoons. No non-indigenous or introduced species are known to inhabit the area. Almost all of the wildlife-related work was done on the north slope of the refuge again this year in concluding the baseline studies required by ANILCA Section 1002. A comprehensive account of those studies is contained in Garner and Reynolds (in prep.). It is expected that more work will occur on the south side of the refuge next year. At the present time we have very little information concerning wildlife populations south of the Brooks Range. 41

Data analyses for many of the wildlife studies have not yet been completed. For that reason this section is not comprehensive. Available data are summarized in the appropriate sections. 1. Wildlife Diversity Due to the pristine nature of the Arctic NWR, wildlife species exist in their natural diversity. The relatively low hunting pressure and lack of developnent allow for natural ecosystem functioning over the majority of the refuge. It is suspected that the wolf population on the refuge, at least on the north slope, is low in comparison to the historic wolf population on the area. Extensive aerial wolf hunting was conducted by the FWS during previous decades in an attempt to increase ungulate populations, and the wolves have probably not yet returned to pre-existing levels. There are currently no active efforts to increase the wolf population other than law enforcement. Illegal aerial hunting is probably continuing but the extent, if any, is not known. 2. Endangered Species

Unfavorable ice conditions precluded any subsistence harvest of bowhead whales by the village of Kaktovik during 1985. A proposal by Shell Oil Company to drill an offshore stratigraphic test well met stiff opposition by Kaktovik whalers who expressed concern for the welfare of the whales and possible disruption of whale movements and the village whale harvest. Plans for the well are currently on hold. Peregrine Falcons The seventh consecutive inventory and banding of the endangered peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus anatum) on the Porcupine River was completed by Boo Ritchie, Alaska Biological Research during July 14-19, 1985. Fourteen pairs and a single peregrine were observed. Ten pairs produced 23 nestlings (1.64 young/observed pair, 2.3 young/successful pair). These data are consistent with levels of productivity documented during the past 5 years. Seventeen nestlings were banded. Observations of five previously banded adult peregrines were recorded at four nest sites. Prey items identified fran 9 nest sites included: waterfowl (8.2%), shorebirds and gulls (54.1%), passerines and other terrestrial birds (36.1%), and mammals (1.6%). This pattern of prey utilization was very similar to that of 1984. Threatened arctic peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus tundrius) were reported incubating at a site on the Aichilik River and at one on the Canning River, by Mike Amaral (SE, Anchorage). Several sightings of peregrine falcons were reported throughout the summer on the coastal plain of the refuge. Apparently non-breeding peregrines hunt in this area. Arctic peregrines migrate eastward in late summer along the refuge coastline. 42

The blanket toss is still a traditional activity during the whale festival or •Naliqutaq• which is held around July 4 in Kaktovik. BP 07-85

Plants Field investigations were conducted for three plant species which are candidates for listing as threatened and endangered species. Salix ovalifolia var. glacialis. This low-growing willow, known only from a few coastal sites in northern Alaska, had previously been reported at Collinson Point on the refuge. We visited this site in August, and collected s. ovalifolia to send to G.W. Argus, an expert on willows in the area. Dr. Argus identified our collections as the more common var. ovalifolia, and we no longer believe that var. glacialis occurs on the refuge. Erigeron muirii. One population of this fleabane is known to occur on the refuge in the Shublik Mountains. we visited this site and found a stable population of over 1000 plants covering approximately 30 ha (75 a). After describing the habitat at this site, we searched similar areas in the Shublik and Sadlerochit Mountains, but did not find any new populations. 43

A fleabane, Erigeron muirii, is a candidate threatened/endangered species on the refuge. A population has been discovered on Mt. Copleston. However, it hasn't been found in what appears to be suitable habitat in other parts of the Sadlerochit Mountains. NF 81 1 07-26-85

Thla§ei arcticum. Three new locations for this tiny white mustard were found in 1985. Plants were reported at two field camps on Marsh Creek and at one site north of the known populations on the Katakturuk River. We also visited the Okpilak Lake population which had been reported in 1984. Habitat information and rough estimates of population were gathered at each site. T. arcticum blooms for a short period in June before most other tundra plants, and 1t is difficult to estimate population size after that period due to its tiny stature. This mustard may be more common than previously thought, especially along the Marsh Creek and Katakturuk River drainages. More work on this species is planned for next year. 44

Arctic penny cress, Thlaspi arcticum, is another candidate threatened/endangered species on the refuge. Several small scattered populations are known. This one is near Okpilak Lake. RL 85B2 07-07-85

3. Waterfowl Data analyses for 1985 are not yet complete. 4. Marsh and water Birds Data analyses for 1985 are not yet complete. 5. Shorebirds, Gulls, Terns, and Allied species Data analyses for 1985 are not yet complete. 45

Parasitic jaeger chick. DP 08-85

6. Raptors

Snowy owls, short-eared owls and rough-legged hawks were very abundant on the roastal plain during the SUI'I1Tler breeding season. Their abundance coincided with a peak of the lerrrni.ng cycle. Golden eagles were abundant on the calving and post-calving areas of the Porcupine caribou herd where a preponderance of sub-adult birds was noted.

Mike Amaral (SE, Anchorage) and Dan James (SE, WOC) conducted rapt or surveys on the north slope of the refuge during June 7-20. Rivers surveyed included the Aichilik, Jago, Sadlerochit, Kekiktat, Katakturuk, Ignek, and Canning. Active nesting territories for golden eagles (8), roughlegged hawk (5), gyrfalcon ( 4), peregrine falcon (2), and raven (2) were identified. Refuge staff reported additional active raptor nest sites on the north slope of the refuge as follows: golden eagle (3), rough-legged hawk (9), and gyrfalcon (1). surveys conducted by Alaska Biological Research (under contract with SE, Anchorage) on the Porcupine River found golden eagles present at 8 cliffs. Four pairs produced a total of 4 young (1.0 young/successful pair). This is the same level of productivity reported in 1984. Other raptors <±>served on the Porcupine River were merlins, Harlan's hawk, American Ke.strels, and northern harriers. Bald eagles were <±>served for the second consecutive year on the Kongakut River, suggesting their occurrence on this north slope river may be a fairly regular event .

7. Other Migratory Birds

Data analyses for 1985 are not yet complete. 46

8. Game Mammals The winter of 1984-85 was the second consecutive year of deep snow oonditions and late breakup on the Alaskan winter ranges of the Porcupine caribou herd (PCH). In spite of these conditions, most of the Alaskan wintering oontingent arrived on the traditional calving grounds at the time of calving.

'i • I

I I

I I jl I 1 l I r j l. \ J I H 1 I .t ' ~ 'L I I f 'L l ' I · II f=

A portion of the Porcupine caribou herd on spring migration. FJM 05-85 The 1985 PCH calving distribution extended on the coastal plain and foothills from the Hulahula River to the international border. A major concentration of calving activity centered on the Jago River uplands and extended eastward to the Kongakut River. Nine years of data collected between 1972 and 1985 suggest that this area is the •core• calving grounds for the PCH (see Figure 5). A secondary calving concentration also ocrurred in Canada, on the coastal plain east of the Firth River. A portion of the central Arctic herd calved in the Canning River delta region of the refuge. Following calving, a majority of the PCH drifted southwestward to as far as the Sadlerochit River. On June 18 there was a reversal of direction and the entire herd moved rapidly eastward. There was a correspondingly rapid movement westward by caribou on the calving area in Canada as well as a large influx of bulls and yearlings. These movements merged in the foothills of the Clarence River on June 26. A division of the herd took place on June 27, with approximately 60% moving southeastward into Canada while the remainder moved south into the mountains. A major movement went up the Leffingwell Fork of the Aichilik River and quickly crossed the continental divide, reaching Table Mountain by July 13. This group continued southwestward to the vicinity of PORCUPINE CARIBOU HERD MA10R CALVING ACTMTY AREAS 1972-85

=··-·-- -.-·---.e::::::l • -·-.=·

} 'heP 1 r.,I.O

U.'t. "'" - NLIK.If[ 3DWltt ..U ftUI• 7 - e.¥tcx til' IM

Figures. Porcupine Caribou herd major calving activity areas, 1972-1985. Areas of heaviest shading indicate areas most commonly used for calving. 47

Old John Lake before dispersing eastward. They entered Canada during late August. A residual group of awroximately 2,000 caribou remained on the coastal plain, north of the Brooks Range until early September when they moved south through the mO\mtains towards traditional winter ranges. A smaller contingent, including one radio-collared female remained to winter on the coastal plain in the vicinity of the Sadlerochit River. During late September portions of the PCH re-entered the refuge from Canada, and moved northeastward to the vicinity of the upper Firth River. These caribou gradually moved southwest during October and November to traditional winter ranges. Large numbers of caribou also wintered in the Ogilvie Basin-Eagle Plains regioo of central Yukon Territory. Because of the early exodus of the PCH fran the coastal plain which occurred prior to breakup of ice in the coastal lagoons, essentially none of the herd was harvested by residents of Kaktovik. Residents of Arctic Village were able to harvest caribou during spring, SUJTI'Iler, and fall movements which passed by the village. Very few caribou of the PCH were harvested by Alaskan sport hunters this year because the herd had moved into Canada prior to the fall season when sport hunters are active.

No data were gathered on sheep during 1985. Data analyses for muskox, moose, and bears have not yet been completed.

9. Marine Mammals Of the various marine marrrnals that occur within the Beaufort Sea region, the polar bear is most directly associated with habitats within the refuge. Radio-telemetry studies conducted by Research Division, Anchorage have identified an average of 2-3 polar bear maternity dens on the refuge over the past 3 years. In late 1985 two dens were found southeast of Barter Island, one near Pokok Bluff and one on the Niguanak River • ....;.._-~

Polar bears are occasional visitors to Barter Island during sunmer and fall. These were feeding on seal carcasses. MM 09-85 48

An apparent premature emergence by a female from a den on the refuge was documented in January 1985. Circumstantial evidence indicated that the bear may have been disturbed by vehicles associated with oil and gas exploration activities. It is not known if this bear produced any young. None accompanied her after emergence from the den. Three polar bears were taken by residents of Kaktovik during 1985. 10. Other Resident Wildlife Data analyses for 1985 are not yet complete.

Rock ptarmigan. RMO 07-85

11. Fisheries Resources Fishery investigations were conducted throughout the year on the refuge by Fairbanks Fishery Resources personnel. Aerial tracking of last year's radio-tagged arctic grayling continued. Thirty-nine new transmitters were surgically implanted in grayling during the sumner of 1985. These fish will be tracked through the spring of 1986. Fall movements and over-wintering areas for the grayling are being determined for the Tamayariak, Sadlerochit, and Okpilak Rivers. Major movements, often into different river systems, are being discovered. summer Arctic char distribution was investigated on the Kongakut River in 1985. The river was accessed by helicopter and floated from the headwaters to the mouth during late June and early July. Only juvenile char and large spawning adult char were found; apparently adult non-spawners in this system migrate to the coastal lagoons for feeding during the sumner. This may have 49 special management implications as the Kongakut River becomes increasingly :popular with boaters. The large spawning fish are concentrated in the areas being floated and are easy to catch. Fisheries studies at Beaufort Lagoon continued in 1985 with over 5,000 fish of nine species being handled. Arctic char were the most numerous species and 1,267 of the 2,161 fish caught were tagged with numbered floy tags. Tag returns from this year and previous years by Kaktovik residents and oil industry-related personnel near Prudhoe Bay are providing useful movement information. Other studies at Beaufort Lagoon included feeding habits, migrational timing, and fish health. A multi-year fisheries investigation was initiated in October 1985 to determine stock separation characteristics of Arctic char from the north slope. This is a Minerals Management Service (MMS) funded project and involves cooperative work between the Fairbanks Fishery Resources Office and Fishery Research in Anchorage. All refuge rivers that contain anadromous arctic char will be sampled by the end of next year and electrophoresis and mitochondrial DNA techniques will be employed. Currently three of the eight fisheries biological staff in Fairbanks are assigned full-time to Arctic NWR work, primarily with 1002(c) and 1002(h) programs. Two of the remaining biologists are involved in the planning process presently drafting fisheries portions of the CCP. The office aircraft, a Cessna 185, is used approximately 25 percent of its flight time on the refuge. 14. Scientific Collection Birds. A total of 75 lesser snow geese were collected in September for whole bOdY composition, food habits and energetics determinations. Between July 16 and August 16, 100 oldsquaw were collected for determining body condition, food habits and energetics. A total of 17 birds of 8 species were collected for the purpose of assembling a reference collection at the refuge office. Study skins were prepared, but ground squirrels destroyed 16 of the skins at the field camp. The one remaining specimen (clay-colored sparrow) was de:posited in the University of Alaska Museum. The following specimens were collected: Clay-colored sparrow 1 male Rock ptarmigan 2 males, 2 females Willow ptarmigan 1 male Lesser golden plover 1 male, 1 female Red:poll 3 males, 2 females Lapland longspur 2 males Violet-green swallow 1 sex unknown Stilt sandpiper 1 sex unknown 50

Mammals. A number of small mammal specimens were collected for ongoing food habits and taxonomic studies by University of Alaska personnel. Study skins were prepared but were destroyed by ground squirrels. The following were collected: Tundra vole 3 males, 3 females Brown lerraning 4 males, 2 females Collared lemming 2 males 16. Marking and Banding Activities described here were part of the studies reported under Research and Investigations, Section D.5. Birds. Individuals of the bird species listed below were banded during 1985. Total numbers banded are listed to the right of each entry.

Oldsquaw 2 Lesser golden plover 4 Red-necked phalarope 2 Red phalarope 9 Buff-breasted sandpiper 6 Barid's sandpiper 12 Semipalmated sandpiper 18 Stilt sandpiper 5 Long-billed dowitcher 3 Pectoral sandpiper 21 Yellow wagtail 4 American tree sparrow 5 Savannah sparrow 10 White-crowned sparrow 1 Lapland longspur 247 Redpoll 4 Muskox. Five muskox were captured and initially fitted with radio-collars. Four animals were recaptured for refitting of existing collars. Six adult bulls and 3 adult cows were handled and released. No mortality of radio collared muskox occurred during the year. Caribou. A total of 121 caribou were captured in 1985. Sixty-six calves (36 males, 30 females) were captured as part of the neonatal calf mortality study. Calves were fitted with mortality collars designed to emit a different signal if a calf died. Three of the calves died as a result of capture-induced abandonment. During spring, 7 adult males, 12 adult females and 14 yearlings (11 males, 3 females) were captured on the wintering grounds and fitted with radio collars in cooperation with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG). During June on the calving grounds an additional 2 adult males, 8 adult females and 12 yearlings (6 males, 6 females) were collared. The 66 calves, 7 bulls, and 12 cows were new captures. The rest were re-collars. One yearling male and 3 cows died from capture-related factors. 51

Brown bear. A total of 67 brown bears were captured, fitted with radio-collars, ear-marked and released. Of these, 24 (13 females, 11 males) were recaptures. Their radio-collars were replaced. Newly-captured bears totaled 43 (18 females, 25 males), of which 29 were radio-collared and released. One bear died of capture-related stress, one was killed by a Kaktovik resident in defense of life and property, and another was taken by a hunter in September. The bear studies are conducted in cooperation with the ADFG.

Wolf. The wolf study is also cooperative with the ADFG. A total of 16 wolves (11 males, 5 females) were radio-collared. Only one was a recapture. No capture-related mortalities occurred, although 3 were taken by Kaktovik residents, 4 died of rabies, and 2 apparently died of undetermined causes. Plants. Botanists Rob Lipkin and Martha Raynolds collected 350 vascular and non-vascular plants on the coastal plain of the refuge this summer while conducting seismic trail studies. Botanist Nancy Felix collected 250 plants in the Brooks Range and on the southside of the refuge while working on candidate plant surveys and the accuracy assessment of the Landsat vegetation map. Wildlife Biologist Gerald Garner collected approximately 400 plants while conducting bear den studies in 1982, 1984, and 1985. These collections will be added to the refuge herbarium, and duplicates will be donated to the University of Alaska herbarium. Many of the non-vascular species have been identified by Kay Holmes at the University of Alaska. Dr. Nancy Grulke of the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado, collected plants near Okpilak Lake for a study on seasonal nutrient and toxin production. 17. Disease Prevention and Control Five dead wolves were picked up on the refuge during May. All were confirmed by laboratory analyses to have died from rabies. other rabies-induced wolf mortalities were documented by the ADFG on other parts of the north slope during the spring. The incidence of rabies-related deaths appeared to be unusually high this year. Later in the year, in December, rabies was confirmed in an arctic fox that was killed by workers at the KIC tl Exploratory Well. That fox and at least one other were killed after they attacked workers at the site. No actions were taken to prevent or reduce the incidence of rabies in wildlife populations. Refuge personnel who would likely be handling wolf carcasses were vaccinated against the disease. H. PUBLIC USE

1. General Refuge Manager Glenn Elison, other refuge staff members, and regional office staff, including the regional director, met on several occasions throughout the year with representatives of various environmental groups, including the Wilderness Society, Northern Alaska Environmental Center, Sierra Club, National Audubon Society, Alaska Center for the Environment, Trustees for 52

Alaska and Defenders of Wildlife. These meetings concerned refuge operations, particularly in relation to the ANILCA Section 1002 oil and gas exploration program. While working out of Kaktovik and Arctic Village various times during the year Roger Kaye made several slide presentations at the schools. The subjects were the mission and activities of the Arctic Refuge and the FWS and general conservation and wildlife management principles. Biologist Dan LaPlant presented a program on the refuge to a North Pole Elementary School Class. Kaye regularly attended the Kaktovik Village Council meetings during the summer, updating the members on the refuge's research and other activities. Assistant Refuge Manager/Pilot Roger Kaye made a presentation on the upcoming comprehensive conservation planning prcx:ess at the Eastern Arctic Regional Council meeting held in Nome on February 28, 1985. The following day Kaye met with Alaska Board of Game Chairperson, Brenda Johnson to discuss the plan. On November 14 Kaye made a similar presentation to the Interior Regional Council in Anchorage. In July ARM/P Kaye made a presentation on the planning prcx:ess to the Kaktovik City Council. Either Glenn Elison or Doug Fruge attended most of the monthly meetings of the Fairbanks-based Land Managers Group held in Fairbanks. In response to reports of young people shooting peregrine falcons and other raptors at Little Diomede Island, Roger Kaye traveled to the Island in May to present progr~ to the school. Endangered Species and the refuge shared costs in the cooperative effort. In June ARM/P Kaye took Kaktovik Mayor Issac Akootchook and Fish and Game Advisory Committee Representative Nolan Soloman on a refuge overflight to acquaint them with field studies and other refuge programs. Their participation has great potential to help alleviate the misunderstanding and strong animosity the community holds toward our study programs. During the year, the refuge staff responded in writing to 21 written inquires of a general nature and 52 written inquires from potential visitors. In addition, the refuge handled numerous telephone requests for information. In April Trustees for Alaska filed a Freedom of Information Act request for information concerning the seismic exploration field monitoring, the KIC il Exploratory Well, impact assessments and the report to Congress. The refuge was in the news quite a bit again this year. A sampling of the numerous articles is attached to this report. 6. Inteqeretive Exhibits/Demonstrations For the second year the refuge coordinated a FWS display at the Tanana Valley Fair which ran from August 13-18. In the midst of planning efforts on two Fairbanks-based refuges (Yukon Flats and Kanuti) and about to begin the process on the Arctic, the display centered on that theme. OVer 136,000 people reportedly attended the fair. The planning prcx:ess was briefly 53 portrayed in the display with other general refuge information available. A number of requests for more information or to be put on the mailing lists were received in the regional planning office as a result of the contacts made at the fair. The Arctic and Yukon Flats Refuges provided staff for a display at the National Hunting and Fishing Day/Open House held at the ADFG headquarters in Fairbanks. After blizzard ponditions at the event in 1984 we opted for an indoor booth in 1985. Of course, that year turned out to be 65° and sunny (in early morning and late afternoon at least) so we thought we'd give it another chance outside this year. Even though most of our leaflets were rainsoaked by mid-day rains they were blown away by what seemed like gale force winds. However, by mid-afternoon the skies cleared and we were able to make a number of good contacts. It seems that either the number of people agitated over federal conservation units in Alaska has diminished, or they were never present in the numbers that the media would have had us believe back in the hayday of "d(2)". For the past two years we have had a fair amount of exposure at several events attended by a large segment of the Fairbanks area population. With an extremely rare exception the contacts made have been of a very positive nature. People are either very supportive of our program or sympathetic to the difficult position in which the Service is often placed. Anyone who has spent the past 5 years in Fairbanks can see a marked reduction in the public's opposition to our presence. This is a good time for the Service to gain a lot of good exposure to help us in the future on issues where we need support. 7. Other Interpretive Programs A new public information brochure was completed this year in cooperation with Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, titled "Your Arctic Adventure". The purpose of the brochure is to promote minimum impact camping techniques. The Fairbanks Alaska Public Lands Information Center (APLIC) was officially dedicated on July 27. Assistant Refuge Manager Doug Fruge participated in the ceremony. The refuge and FWS are participants in the interpretive center. The refuge maintains a limited educational film library and received numerous requests throughout the year for loan of material. Films were also loaned to the APLIC upon request. 8. Hunting

Sport hunting continues to be one of the more popular recreational activities on the refuge. The number of recreational users appears to have increased over last year. Audi Air, Inc. operating out of Kaktovik, provides the majority of the charter air service north of the Brooks Range in the refuge. Audi Air reported flying in 165 hunters, backpackers, floaters, and fishermen during 1985, compared to 147 in 1984. Approximately 25% of these were Dall's sheep, caribou, moose and/or brown bear hunters. An undetermined number of hunters not included in the total were flown in by Audi Air from Deadhorse, other charter services, and by privately-owned aircraft. 54

The sheep sport hunting season extended from August 10 to September 20. The Kaktovik registration hunt extended from October 1 to April 30, with 50 permits available and a bag limit of 3 sheep. Harvest during this season is unknown, but is estimated to be 30-40 sheep. The refuge is divided into guiding areas by state regulation. A guide is required for non-residents to hunt Dall sheep or brown bear, but non-residents can hunt other species without a guide. Twelve hunting guides were issued special use permits (SUP's) to hunt on the refuge in 1985. We require follow-up reports on these permits. Guides must submit a report· or they are not issued a SUP to guide on the refuge the following year. Permits issued were as follows: 85-Hl Fair Chase Hunts 9 Dall's sheep 85-H2 Alaska North Hunts 15 clients 8 Dall 's sheep 2 brown bear 5 moose 10 caribou 85-H3 Eugene M. and Patton Witt 8 clients 5 Dall 's sheep 85-H4 Alaska Sport and Recreation 6 clients 4 Dall's sheep 85-H5 RamGo Enterprise 8 clients 6 Dall 's sheep 85-H6 Howard Knutson 10 clients 10 Dall's sheep 85-H7 Jess Wassom 5 clients 1 Dall's sheep 85-H8 John Peterson 6 clients 2 Dall's sheep 2 caribou 1 brown bear 1 wolf 85-H9 Brooks Range Adventures Did not hunt 85-HlO Alaska Guide & OUtfitters 18 clients 18 Dall's sheep 85-Hll Joe want 3 clients 2 Dall 's sheep 2 moose 1 caribou 85-Hl2 Keith Koontz No report The preliminary ADFG estimate of sheep harvest for those game management units within the refuge are 17 sheep for Unit 25, 47 sheep for Unit 26B and 96 sheep for Unit 26C. The numbers include those taken on both guided and non-guided hunts. Caribou harvest estimate for the refuge was 400 animals. Approximately 100 were taken by residents of Kaktovik and an undetermined number were taken by residents of Arctic Village. In 1984, the Alaska Board of Game liberalized the bag limit from 5 to 10 caribou for those game management units which cover the Porcupine herd range within the refuge. The hunting season was open from July 1, 1984 to April 30, 1985. · Few, if any, caribou of the Porcupine herd were harvested by residents of Kaktovik due to the early exodus from the north slope prior to breakup of the coastal lagoons. Brown bear harvest in Unit 26 where permits are required was 5 animals plus one animal taken in defense of life and property. These figures include the number taken within Unit 26C according to ADFG records. An additional number were taken in Unit 25, but those figures are not available as of this writing. 55

Moose harvest within the refuge is estimated to be 68 for the regulatory year ending June 30, 1984. This is the reported legal harvest. Some biologists feel the figure could easily be doubled to arrive at the true harvest of moose. Three male muskox were taken in the March 1985 permit hunt on the refuge. Five permits were issued by the State of Alaska for this hunt. 9. Fishing Sport fishing for grayling, arctic char, lake trout, and northern pike occurs incidental to other recreational activities, particularly river float trips. There is little or no participation in fishing as a primary recreational activity. Subsistence fishing for grayling and arctic char is important to local residents. Fishing occurs in the coastal lagoons during summer and at a series of traditional fishing holes, primarily on the Hulahula River, in spring. Both freshwater and saltwater fish are sought. 10. Trapping Trapping is allowed on the refuge without a permit, but trapping cabins located on refuge lands do require permits. People from Arctic Village and Kaktovik run village-based traplines out of their communities. Arctic foxes are trapped by people of Kaktovik, and wolves, lynx, beaver and marten are the primary species trapped by the people of Arctic Village. In addition, trapping for the same species occurs on the refuge by trappers from Fort Yukon. At least eight trappers spend part or all of the season living on their refuge traplines. Some cabins located on private lands are occupied year-round. 11. Wildlife ():)servat ion Wildlife observation is an integral part of any wilderness trip on the refuge. Most visitors express an interest in seeing caribou, brown bear, wolves, and Dall's sheep. 12. other Wildlife Oriented Recreation All recreational activities on the refuge are related to wildlife. Since the entire refuge is either designated wilderness, or is de facto wilderness, public use of the area is rostly limited to those use5relating to wilderness and wildlife values. Backpacking, camping, and river running are popular activities. A majority of the refuge is normally accessible by aircraft only, and visitors are expected to be completely self-sufficient. Trails, signs and designated campsites are unnecessary and inappropriate in the wilderness of the Arctic Refuge. Opportunity for staff contact with visitors is limited to visitors seeking out our office in Fairbanks or contacting a staff person in Kaktovik. Nine special use permits were issued to cornmercial recreation guides to operate river floating and/or backpacking trips on the refuge. This is one less than was issued last year. A considerable number of non-commercial small group trips took place as well. Non-commercial trips do not require a permit. Permits issued for guided recreation during 1985 are described below: 56

85-Rl Hugh Glass Backpacking co. - Backpack trip on the Chandalar, Sheenjek and Hulahula Rivers. Permit not corrpleted. 85-R2 Sierra Club - Backpack trip from the Aichilik River to the Kongakut River. No report. 85-R3 Roger Rom - Backpacking trip into the Peters/Schrader Lakes area, 5 clients, 1 guide. 85-R4 Alaska River Expeditioos - Guided raft trips on the Kongakut and Hulahula Rivers, 19 persons. 85-R5 Mountain Travel - Day hikes from Schrader Lake, 4 clients and 1 guide. 85-R6 Wilderness Alaska - Backpack/float trips to the Shublik Mountains and the Jago River, 5 persons. 85-R7 Arctic Brotherhood Entertainment Committee - Guided recreation trip on the Hulahula River, 4 cl1ents, 2 gu1des. 85-R8 Wilderness: Alaska/Mexico- Float trip on the Sheenjek River. 6 persons 85-R9 Jim CamPbell and Carol Kasza - Hiking and rafting trips at Schrader Lake (3 clients, 1 guide) and the Kongakut River ( 5 clients, 2 guides).

Scenic Schrader-Peters Lakes area is popular with refuge recreational visitors. DJF-08-08 08-14-85 57

15. Off-Road Vehicling Under special provisions of ANILCA and 50 CFR 36.12, •snowmobiles, motorboats, dog teams and other means of surface transportation traditionally employed by local rural residents engaged in subsistence uses• are permitted on all Alaska NWR's. Restrictions can be imposed, however, if necessary to prevent •adverse impact on public health and safety, resource protection, protection of historic or scientific values, subsistence uses, conservation of endangered or threatened species, or other purposes and values for which the refuge was established ... All-terrain cycles (three-wheelers) and snowmachines are used by Kaktovik and Arctic Village residents on the refuge in connection with subsistence hunting. (The meaning of •traditional• as used in ANILCA or 50 CFR 36 has never been defined). On the north slope, Kaktovik residents make extensive trips into the foothills and mountains by snowmachine in search of sheep and wolves during spring. DUring summer they travel primarily along the coast to hunt caribou. Most off-road vehicle use occurs on KIC lands, where repeated use on Barter Island has begun to create permanent trails in the tundra. While these·are obvious aesthetic intrusions, their i:rrpact on habitat is, so far, very minimal.

At Arctic Village, snowmachines are used to hunt caribou during winter. As caribou are not present at Arctic Village during summer, three-wheeler use is restricted to in and very near the village.

So far, control of off-road vehicle use has not been exercised since it is occurring in conformance with the guidelines in ANILCA. What may be the ultimate off-road vehicles, seismic exploration vehicles, are covered -in Section J.2., wether Economic Uses ... 17. Law Enforcement Law enforcement activities by refuge staff were negligible again this year due to higher priorities. No violation notices were issued as a result of staff efforts. The Law Enforcement Division conducted patrol operations during hunting seasons, mainly in surveillance of guided hunting activities. These activities resulted in 2 violation notices. One was for an undersize sheep being taken in the Middle Fork of the Chandalar River valley. Robert N. Richardson of Anchorage pleaded guilty, forfeited the horns, cape and meat and paid a $525 fine. Another notice was issued for illegal use of the Junjik Lake Administrative cabin. The violator paid a $150 fine. Refuge staff monitored the activities of surface geology exploration permittees during the summer and seismic exploration permittees during winter. In addition, operations at the KIC tl Exploratory Well were monitored throughout the year. Over-ice rolligon travel associated with support of the exploratory well was also monitored. This involved two different permittees. These operations are discussed more completely in Section J.2., Other Economic Uses, of this report. 58

During March two Kaktovik residents, Herman and Norman Aishanna, pleaded guilty to charges of illegally taking two wolves and a wolverine (out of season) during May 1984. One of them was fined $250 and the other $150. In July several complaints were received from Kaktovik residents that aircraft were disturbing subsistence activities near Jago Delta. Investigation revealed that one of the complaints probably resulted from an Audi Air pilot practicing landings on Jago Lagoon. A helicopter servicing navigation towers on Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation lands near there was also suspected. The incident was discussed with Audi Air. The particular navigation tower site was not under FWS permit, though it should have been according to ANCSA Section 22( g).

An illegal helicopter incident involved an ERA Helicopter pilot in transit fran Deadhorse to Barter Island who was flying below the FAA reconunended elevation without apparent reason. The incident was discussed with the pilot that evening. A u.s. Arrr!Y Corps of Engineers reconnaissance crew landed by helicopter at the abandoned DEW Line sites on the refuge as part of the Defense Environmental Rel:!Loraliou AewunL (DERA) projecL Lo clean up Lhose facilities. They did not have a permit for this work. The requirement for a permit was discussed with the crew leader, and they were allowed to continue their work. They assured us that any future work would be under permit as appropriate. A previous conflict arose again in the spring between two trappers along the Coleen River. one of these, Richard Carroll Jr., accused the other, Gary Campbell, of building his cabin in an area other than as permitted, conducting illegal mining operations, cutting large trees right on the river bank and trying to take over the other's trapline. The allegations concerning illegal mining and tree cutting were investigated but no evidence concerning these· were obtained. The conflict over the trapline was considered to be strictly between the two individuals. As far as we could tell the FWS had no basis for taking action in that regard. In October Mr. Carroll again contacted the refuge office reiterating his allegations concerning Mr. Carrpbell. He also stated that Mr. Ca:rr[>bell was building a "lodge" rather than a cabin. In November ARM/Pilot Roger Kaye and SFWB Phil Garrett visited both parties and other individuals in the Ft. Yukon area who might have knowledge concerning the situation. In that visit, additional "heresay" evidence concerning Mr. campbell's mining operations was gathered, but nothing substantive. The refuge personnel did discover that Mr. Campbell had constructed an additional room onto his cabin making it 91 square feet larger than allowed by his special use permit. He was given the option of modifying his cabin to within allowable size by the end of June 1986 or having his permit revoked. Mr. Carroll has admitted that his intention in the matter is to run Mr. Campbell out of the country because he is interfering with his trapping. During the November visit another family of "trappers• was discovered occupying an old cabin site at Burnt Paw on the Porcupine River. They do not have a permit for their activity and are •non-local". They alledgedly were on their way up to Old Rampart but got frozen in at Burnt Paw. They were told by refuge personnel that they would be allowed to stay the winter at Burnt Paw but would have to move out of the cabin after breakup. 59

I. Equipment and Facilities 1. New Construction Bunkhouses--Kaktovik and Arctic Village. Included in the FY 1985 construction budget was approval to build two new bunkhouses for the refuge, one at Kaktovik and one at Arctic Village. Specific approval was for a 20-person facility at Kaktovik funded for construction at $702,000 and a 10-person facility at Arctic Village funded at $486,000. A high-level decision was made within the FWS to dedicate the new Kaktovik facility to the memory of the late Angus Gavin, who was a biologist working for the Atlantic Richfield Company (ARCO) during the early Prudhoe Bay days. The background and reasons for this decision are unclear. There is no evidence that Mr. Gavin was ever in any way associated with the refuge. Efforts were made by the regional realty office early in 1985 to secure land at Arctic Village for building a bunkhouse. However, severe problems with obtaining clear land title at that location (which is tied up by Native sovereignty and other political issues) within a reasonable period of time resulted in a Regional Office decision to reprogram these funds. Meanwhile, planning for the Kaktovik facility proceeded. It 'was decided that the facility would be placed adjacent to the present field station on the site that was originally selected for erection of a large radio antenna. Since the antenna was never conpleted, the change in plans could readily be made. The installed bases for the antenna will need to be removed to a different location nearby if permission can be secured from adjacent landowners.

A contract for design was awarded in early surrmer to Kumin Associates, Inc. of Anchorage. Preliminary designs were submitted to the FWS in early fall. These were reviewed by the FWS and comments were submitted to the contractor. A set of 70% design drawings were expected early in 1986. By year's end construction was projected to being in July 1986, with completion by August 1987. Joint NPS-FWS Facility--coldfoot Ongoing discussions between the refuge manager and the superintendent of Gates of the Arctic National Park concerning the possibility of sharing a facility at Coldfoot along the Dalton Highway became more formalized early in the year when a meeting was held at the National Park Service (NPS) regional office concerning this project. Refuge needs were identified as being a bunkhouse-type facility for up to six people with sleeping space, access to a communal kitchen and approximately 100 square feet each of office and storage space. The NPS arranged a site location with BIM and purchased a prefabricated building with plans to prepare a gravel pad and erect the facility in the summer of 1986. The NPS requested $60,000 from the FWS for participation in the facility. By year's end no funds were forthcoming from the FWS despite active refuge support for the idea. According to the NPS their conpletion of the project is contingent upon FWS participation. 60

Though Coldfoot is located 73 miles fran the refuge there would be numerous advantages to participation in the facility, such as:

1. Inexpensive and easily supported subheadquarters due to interagency sharing of the facility and access by all-weather road. 2. Excellent opportunity to contact visitors in an area of potentially increased resource use. 3. Association with NPS would help fcx;:us public attentioo on the refuge and the FWS. 4. Cooperation with local law enforcement authorities would be enhanced due to co-location at Coldfoot. 2. Rehabilitation

During the summer a u.s. ~ Corps of Engineers {CE) crew made a preliminary reconnaissance of the abandoned DEW Line stations on the refuge as part of a proposed program to remove the structures and materials and rehabilitate these sites. This program, referred to as the Defense Environmental Restoration Account {DERA) is currently scheduled for COJT1?letion in 1987. The reconnaissance team inventoried the equipment and facilities at the sites and sampled the areas for contaminants. Through the contaminants sampling, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) were detected in soil and liquid samples fran several of the sites. The biological significance, if any, of these contaminants is unknown at the present time. The sites have been used extensively in the past as camping areas for subsistence hunting and fishing activities, and the Beaufort Lagoon Site has been used as a camp by FWS personnel for conduct of caribou, fisheries and waterfowl studies. Additional contaminant sampling is planned for summer 1986.

The Beaufort Lagoon abandoned DEW Line site is one of several that may be cleaned up and restored under a u.s. Army, Corps of Engineers project. BP 08-85 61

During the fall discussions were held with the CE concerning plans for the sites being cleaned up. Preliminary plans were developed by the CE and submitted to the FWS for conment. At that time this office informed the CE that we desired to have one building at the Camden Bay site and two buildings at the Beaufort Lagoon site remain in place, but all other facilities, equipment and materials removed. We also requested that certain items at the Peters Lake facility (formerly under control of u.s. Navy) be removed under the program as well as certain items (mainly 55-gallon drums) found inland from the Camden Bay facility. 3. Major Maintenance Technical problems continued with the new pressurized water system at the Clarence Rhode Field Station at Kaktovik. The new system was installed during fall 1984. The problem apparently results because the water tank is too small for the pump and air gets sucked into the system with subsequent automatic switching problems. Several remedies were suggested by the regional engineering office, but without a maintenance worker on the staff we either need to hire expensive Kaktovik labor or have the problem go unfixed. So far the problem remains unfixed, as the system is marginally serviceable, albeit inconvenient. The refuge's Cessna 185 (N24164) was taken to The Office of Aircraft Services (OAS) in Anchorage on March 18 for its annual inspection. Metal was found in the engine oil indicating a major problem. A new engine was installed, and the aircraft was back in service by March 25. While enroute to Canada on March 27 the new engine began leaking oil from the front propeller seal. A landing was _made in Ft. Yukon and an. OAS technician flew up from Anchorage to repair the problem. 4. Equipment Utilization and Replacement The refuge's existing photocopy machine was replaced in January with a Xerox Model 1048. This new corrputerized model is still apparently in a semi-development phase and there are numerous bugs that need to be worked out. It seems to be unusually problematic. The older machine was more reliable and produced copies of comparable quality. Repair personnel averaged a visit to our office at least every other week during the new machine's first year in service. In addition to our office, the NAES office also relies quite heavily on the machine. Requests to a:;s for a more reliable replacement were never acted upon. After a temporary lull in action, the refuge's Cessna 185 (N24164) started back into service following new ARM/P Roger Kaye's checkout and authorization to fly it on February 13. At the end of April the refuge turned the one remaining Ford station wagon back in to GSA to avoid charges against the travel ceiling. That leaves two GSA pickup trucks assigned to us. Later in the year both of the pickup trucks were replaced--the Ford with a large Dodge and the Chevrolet Luv with a Chevrolet S-10. 62

The refuge again utilized numerous chartered aircraft during the year in support of refuge activities. This included hundreds of hours of light fixed-wing aircraft, a one-time BLM transport for equipment to Barter Island, a one-time DC-3 to transport field crews to the north slope and two Bell 206 helicopters during the summer. Major fixed-wing charter operators were Audi Air, Inc. and Caribou Air Service. The two helicopters were under contract from Trans-Alaska Helicopters and ERA Helicopters. One of the helicopters (Trans-Alaska) was in serv_ice from approximately mid-May until mid-September. the ERA ship was in service from approximately early July until mid-August.

Botany Crew helicopter pilot BOO Dunbar 1 also known as the •tundra shark• study leader. MTJ-85-09 07-29-85 During July the DEW Line maintenance personnel repaired one of the FWS 55-gallon drum crushers at Barter Island. In return we allowed their use of the machine to crush empty DEW Line drums for backhaul on the COOL Barge. The DEW Line personnel also crushed our (and Audi Air's) empty drums with minor assistance from our people. Our assistance was only minor because of an apparent DEW Line labor relations (i.e. 1 union) proolern which prevented more extensive FWS participation. 63

In late September the owner of the leased bunkhouse in Kaktovik requested that it be returned to him by the beginning of October. Storage space for FWS equipment and furniture in the building was obtained by temporarily leasing another building from a Kaktovik resident. This building will probably remain in use until additional storage space is made available through construction of the new Service-owned bunkhouse.

The flammable-materials storage building at the Fairbanks warehouse that had been crushed by snow during the previous winter was replaced with a new wooden building during the fall. The pre-fabricated structure was assembled by SFWB Phil Garrett and FWB Dan LaPlant. The two Kaktovik pickup trucks (Dodge 1979 and 1984) continued in service during the year. The 1979 model is marginally operable while the 1984 is already showing signs that the arctic climate and Barter Island are taking their toll. A replacement truck scheduled for F'i 1986 was cancelled by the R.O. The FWS currently has no facilities at Arctic Village other than an aviation fuel tank at the airstrip.

5. Communi cat ions Systems No significant changes were made in refuge communications equipment during the year. The antennae and tuners that were installed on the seismic cat trains were retrieved following completion of the seismic exploration program. Atmospheric conditions during most of the summer field season made for very poor HF radio conmunication. There were particularly severe proolems with the HF radio system on the refuge's Cessna 185. However, no serious attempt has yet been made to remedy it. The proolem apparently involves very weak transmission from the unit.

6. eonputer Systems The Wang word processor system continued providing our office and the other FWS offices in the federal building with excellent service throughout the year. No major proolerns requiring extended down-time occurred. cr Barbara Plaster served as system administrator for most of the year.

The refuge's Data General (DG) SP-10 microcomputer and printer were set up in January. WB Alan Brackney was assigned as primary system operator with ARM Doug Fruge as backup. Three terminals came with the computer. The computer and system monitor were installed in Room 236. The other two terminals were given to Yukon Flats and Kanuti NWR's. These terminals were hooked up later in the year after telephone lines were run between the rooms involved. However, by year's end these two offices had disengaged from the Arctic NWR computer. During mid-March the DG' s hard disk developed a proolem. A new one was installed at the end of the month. The DG is a very powerful, sophisticated computer system. However, it has so far been of very limited use to our station. One problem is that it requires considerable technical knowledge, ability and time to keep it running. The major proolem though, is the lack of 64 available software for applications required by this office. This, coupled with generally inadequate software support from the regional office, has made the system marginally useful at best.

Late in the year a modern was installed for the 00. This allows data inp:~t to other computer systems {University of Alaska, Fairbanks and DG MV8000 at the regional office). However, it has so far not been useable for data manipulation or statistical analyses which are our present needs. 8. other Space assignment changes among FWS offices in the Fairbanks federal building that were initiated during 1984 were completed during 1985. The Yukon Flats NWR staff vacated their second floor offices in January and moved into offices on the first floor. Arctic NWR Botanist Nancy Felix and her assistants moved into the area formerly occupied by Yukon Flats, Room 248. The refuge's biological sect ion {WB' s Garner, Reynolds, Mauer, Brackney, and oates) moved from their very cre>Vlded space in the basement to Room 236 following modifications in that space, a former conference room. Kanuti NWR staff moved into the basement space. During the fall, walls were constructed in Room 236 creating a private offi~~ area for Dr. Garner.

The FWS federal building project leaders held a meeting during October to discuss space matters and other areas of mutual concern. A major topic was alternatives for acquiring new warehouse space. During the sUimler the FWS was informed by the u.s. Postal Service that is would have to vacate its present warehouse space at the Fairbanks International Airport {FAI) in June 1986. A number of options are being investigated as possible replacements. A formal request for new space was submitted to GSA by a;s. Other items of discussion included the possibility of a joint library in the federal building and the possible need for formal assignment of airplane tiedown spaces at the hangar at FAI. No conclusive agreements were reached concerning either topic.

The refuge continued as the responsible office for the hangar facility at FAI despite the fact that other stations use the facility more than we do. This responsibility includes repair of the hangar door, which was necessitated once during the year, and making sure that the fuel tank is filled {fuel costs are pro-rated among stations).

J. O'lHER ITEMS 1. Cooperative Programs ANILCA Section 1002{h) Report

Work began in earnest this year on assembling the report to Congress required by ANILCA Section 1002(h). Work on the refuge since 1981 has been laying the ground work for this report. It will bring together the wildlife and fisheries resources and habitat data being gathered on the refuge's coastal plain under the ANILCA Section 1002(c) baseline studies and the oil and gas assessment data (surface geological and seismic) that were gathered pursuant to ANILCA Sections 1002(d) and (e). 65

This report is due to Congress no later than September 2, 1986 according to a legislatively-established deadline and is to contain: (1} the identification by means other than drilling of exploratory wells of those areas within the coastal plain that have oil and gas production potential and estimate of the volume of the oil and gas concerned; _(2} the description of the fish and wildlife, their habitats, and other resources that are within the areas identified under paragraph (1}: ( 3) an evaluation of the adverse effects that the carrying out of further exploration for, and the development and production of, oil and gas within such areas will have on the resources referred to in paragraph (2); (4} a description of how such oil and gas, if produced within such area, may be transported to processing facilities; (5} an evaluation of how such oil and gas relates to the national need for additional domestic sources of oil and gas; and (6) the recorranendations of. the Secretary with respect to whether further exploration for, and the development and production of, oil and gas within the coastal plain should be permitted and, if so, what additional legal authority is necessary to ensure that the adverse effects of such activities on fish and wildlife, their habitats, and other resources are avoided or minimized. Although the FWS has the lead in preparing the report, assistance in determining the oil and_gas potential and in formulating oil and gas exploration, development and production scenarios for the r~rt, is being provided by our sister agencies, the Bureau of Land Management and the Geological Survey. Under a memorandum of understanding signed in spring 1983, an interagency work group (IWG) composed of representatives from the three agencies is guiding preparation of the report. Refuge Manager Glenn Elison is a merrber of the group, which is co-chaired by Noreen Clough (RF Planning, ID) and Clay Hardy (Special Assistant to the Regional Director, Region 7).

Beginning preparation of the report was a major project for the refuge. An Environmental Assessment Team (EAT} conprised of RM Glenn Elison, FB Rin West (Fairbanks Fisheries Resources Station}, FWB Ann Rappaport (WR/RS, Oil, Gas and Minerals} and FWB Jerry Reid (BR/ES) was formed early in the year. The team's assignment was to assess the possible environmental impacts to the refuge's coastal plain in the event petroleum development is allowed to occur.

An extensive mapping effort was conducted using existing information. The refuge staff and Fisheries Resources staff produced numerous maps showing fish, wildlife, and habitat distribution. With the help of Information Resource Management ( IRM}, the maps were digitized. The process was integrated with BUM's task of preparing an assessment of the prospective subsurface resources and likely development scenario. The BLM' s projected development scenario was also digitized. By overlaying the development scenario on the wildlife maps, relatively precise projections of direct spatial conflicts between projected oil development and wildlife habitat could be made. The difficult part is predicting how many critters may actually be lost or displaced because of development. The predictions of 66

actual effects were developed using existing experience with the oil development at Prudhoe Bay and development elsewhere in the arctic, a review of the literature, scientific opinion, and best professional judgment. The conclusions are and will continue to be controversial. The report to Congress was assembled by the IWG in preliminary draft form in December. The Department of the Interior's position on completion of the report to Congress has been that it will not undergo any type of public review prior to submission to the Congress. This position has been held because the report is at least partially based on data that are proprietary in nature (i.e., collected at the expense of private enterprise) and because the report is likely to be the subject of numerous hearings, debate, and lObbying in Congress. However, numerous conservation and environmental groups have long been demanding open public involvement in preparing the report. On October 2 a civil action was filed against the Secretary, the FWS Director, and the FWS Region 7 Regional Director by Trustees for Alaska, the American Wilderness Alliance, Defenders of Wildlife, the Northern Alaska Environmental Center and the Wilderness Society. The action requested relief in two main areas. These were: to prepare an environmental impact statement and provide for public involvement in preparing the report to Congress: and to produce all documents that the plaintiffs claimed were improperly withheld by the FWS following the plaintiff's May 8, 1985 request under the Freedom of Information Act. No court decisions on the action were forthcoming prior to year's end.

The report to Congress is expected to continue to be very controversial, and once it reaches the Congressional forum it will be the subject of heated debate and lobbying. some claim that the decision concerning oil and gas leasing on the coastal plain will be the environmental battle of the decade. Other Cooperative Programs The refuge staff conducted numerous studies on the refuge this year cooperatively with other organizations and agencies. More detailed information on these studies can be found in Section D.5., Research and Investigations. The refuge continued providing office, administrative and field support to the FWS Denver Wildlife Research Center (DWRC) Fairbanks Field Office which is co-located with the refuge office. Project Leader is Larry Pank. Larry was assisted during the year by temporary BT's Peggy Kuropat and Cathy CUrby, and VL's Carl Benson, Cathryn Simon, Elizabeth Jozwiak, and Ben Zimont. Other support to the DWRC included field support for the study of polar bear movements, ecology and denning in the Beaufort Sea. Project Leader for that study is Steve Amstrup. The FWS Fairbanks Fisheries Resources office conducted numerous studies on refuge fish populations during the year. The refuge staff provides field support to fisheries personnel for these projects. Fisheries Biologist Patty Rost assisted the refuge with field monitoring seismic exploration during the winter. 67

BT Peggy Kuropat assisted WB Larry Pank (Research Division) during 1985. KRD 02-86

. The u.s. Air Force installation at Burnt Mountain is still in place. No additional construction or activities are known to have occurred. The refuge again issued a joint special use permit (YF/A 85-1) with the Yukon Flats NWR to the University of Alaska Geophysical Institute's Poker Flat Research Range for downrange rocket and payload retrieval. Most of the research range missions involve upper atmospheric studies. Extensive coordination and cooperation occurred between the Arctic NWR and the Northern Alaska Ecological Services (NAES) office. Much of this cooperation concerned oil and gas exploration activities on the refuge, primarily the KIC t1 exploratory well. That office's ECE Specialist, Elaine Snyder-conn, assisted with field monitoring for the seismic exploration. The refuge provided field logistical support for NAES nearshore reconnaissance of oil and gas exploration activities. Refuge personnel also at times took advantage of lodging at Deadhorse that was secured by the NAES Office. The two offices also share office equipment, notably the Wang Word Processing System and the Xerox copy machine.

The FWS Fairbanks Law Enforcement office continued conducting law enforcement patrols on the refuge during hunting seasons as has been done during the past.

The refuge is attempting to enter a cooperative venture with the NPS through a joint administrative facility at Coldfoot (See Section I.l., New Construction). The refuge also conpleted an informational brochure with the NPS (See Section H. 7., Other Interpretive Programs). 68

In May, ARM/P Roger Kaye assisted the PWS Endangered Species program in efforts to prevent shooting of peregrine falcons at Little Diomede Island by presenting an interpretive program at the school (See Sect ion H.1. , General). Refuge AD Paul Liedberg assisted the PWS Fairbanks Endangered Species office with a peregrine falcon nest survey along the YUkon River during May. 2. Other Economic Uses Coastal Plain Seismic Exploration The ANILCA Section 1002 seismic exploration program for 1985 actually began in late fall of 1984 with the approval of modifications to the Geophysical Service Inc. (GSI) exploration plan by the regional director. Approval was given on October 3, 1984 for GSI's proposal to switch from the drill-shothole technique to the vibrator technique, but a decision on number of miles of exploratioo to be allowed was delayed. That decisioo was announced on Decenber 12 to allow collection of 580 miles of seismic data on the coastal plain for the 1985 season. A mad scramble then began by both GSI and the FWS to prepare for the exploration to begin on January 2, 1985. Accurate maps of the 580 miles to be explored were not provided by GSI until well into the startup of the program because of the very short time frame between approval and projected startup. Figure 6 is· a composite map showing the 1984 and 1985 seismic lines.

Seismic vibrator trucks and vibrator tender of GSI Crew 1182 at work on a tussock slope near VP 249, Line AN 85-24. CSM-85-02-33 03-11-85 BEAUfORT S(A KIC #1 ~!oratory Well

( Figure 6. GSI Seismic Lines on the Arctic NWR coastal Pl.ain. 1984 Shothole Lines ------1985 Vibrator Lines 69

FWB Dan LaPlant and SFWB Phil Garrett spent the week before Christmas weathered in at Kaktovik while trying to conduct a snow depth survey to determine average snow depth across the coastal plain. An average of at least 6 inches snow depth was required by a special condition of GSI' s special use permit. The high winds blew snow throU

Phil Garrett and WB Alan Brackney returned to Kaktovik between Christmas and New Year's Day, accorrpanied by GSI's envirorunental consultant Phil Smith, and carpleted snow measurements on thirty-two randomly selected sites. Average snow depth was found to be 7. 4 inches.

Generally better snow conditions this winter on the coastal plain lowered field monitor frustration level somewhat • This canp move between GSI Crew 1182 Camps 52 and 53 occurred in very deep snow. ~R-07-13 03-27-85

Dan LaPlant traveled to the GSI canp at Deadhorse on January 2 to kick-off the 1985 seismic exploration season, which many hope will be the last ever on the refuge. Crew 1186 was delayed in departure for 24 hours due to lack of snow in the Deadhorse area (Prudhoe Bay). The State of Alaska \«>Uld not awrove equipment travel across state lands until Department of Natural Resources ( t'NR) personnel inspected irrpacts on a test area. The crew finally got approval to travel on January 3, and Dan presented the crew with an envirorunental briefing at 7:00 AM on January 4. Cat train 1186 departed that day about 4:00 in the afternoon. 70

Travel days on a cat train usually begin at 5:00 AM with a wake-up call and last until around midnight. Work days are roore reasonable, beginning at 6:00 AM and continuing until 11:00 PM. Work may oontinue into the wee hours of the rorning when conditions are right (calm and above -30°P). •weather days• are occasionally welcomed! A tractor (caterpillar D-7) pulling the fuel train fell through the ice on January 5 about ll: 30 ~ as it was nearing canp. The ice was 4 feet thick with 4 feet of water underneath. ~rently, a smw-covered lead devel~d, but no one was injured since the water was shallow.

Crew 1186 arrived on the refuge on January 6 and began testing their electronic equipment. Phil Garrett provided an environmental briefing to Crew 1182 at Deadhorse on January 7, and the crew departed during the afternoon. Crew ll82 worked on state land west of the refuge until January 19, when they crossed the Canning River onto the refuge.

Tracks left by vibrator trucks on seismic line AN 85-42 near VP 190. Note square irrpressions of vibrator pads. ~-08-04 03-30-85 on January 31, a gasoline spill of 50-100 gallons occurred at Crew ll86 camp 20. The spill was on sea ice in Pokok Bay and resulted from a valve not being closed prior to a tank-to-tank transfer. The transfer was done to permit repairs of a minor leak in the original tank. Absorbents were placed on the snow within minutes of the discovery of the spill. The affected snow was then bulldozed and shoveled into an incinerator and burned with the contaminated absorbents. The cleanup was conpleted to the satisfaction of Elaine snyder-conn, oontaminant specialist with Northern Alaska Ecological Services, who was serving as field roonitor at the time. 71

A female polar bear abandoned her den near the mouth of the Canning River sometime during January or early February. She had been radio-collared during the spring of 1984 and tracked to the densite in December 1984. She was a young bear and thought to be pregnant with her first litter. It is possible a disturbance from vehicular traffic associated with oil and gas exploration may have caused her to abandon her den and/or cubs (if she was actually pregnant and gave birth). An aerial survey of the area revealed vehicular traffic had occurred between 1/8 and 1/2 mile from the den site. Location of the lone female on the icepack near Barrow during early February prorrpted a search for her densite. Her abandonment of the densite, for whatever reason, gained front page coverage in several major newspapers in Alaska and created quite a stir for a couple of weeks. Dan LaPlant, field monitor on Crew 1186, overheard a conversation on March 12 at 3:00 am (no doubt while dutifully monitoring radio transmissions) discussing a missing aircraft. COordinates from an emergency locator transmitter (ELT) indicated a downed aircraft northeast of their campsite. A search was immediately begun at their last carrpsi te 8 miles to the north since a twin otter (N540N) belonging to Seair, Inc. was scheduled to land at the former carrpsite the previous evening to resupply the carrp. The aircraft had passed over the airstrip around midnight but did not land due to heavy fog conditions. The carrp attendant had waited at the airstrip until 1:00 AM for a possible landing. When he radioed in at that time he was told to return to carrp. He picked up the flarepots used to light the airstrip (on the ice of a frozen lake) and returned to carrp 8 miles to the south. Little djd he realize that N540N had crashed 1/2 mile east of the airstrip and a passenger was walking through the snow toward the lights of his •bomber•. The passenger found the airstrip but was disoriented and did not know the direction to the carrp or back to N540N. The party manager found him sitting in the middle.of the airstrip about 4:00AM. The terrperature was -l0°F and he had been sitting there for about 3-4 hours. He was in shock and a little cold, but otherwise okay. Quick action and a strong concern for the welfare of other crew members made the rescue of all four people from the downed aircraft possible without any fatalities. GSI requires an emergency medical technician (EMT) on each seismic crew. The crew's knowledge of first aid and having the right equipment available resulted in adequate treatment until a rescue helicopter arrived at 7:00 AM. Dan's assistance and first aid knowledge proved to be very valuable at the scene. One of the victims was not wearing a seat belt and had been thrown beneath the instrument panel. He was pinned there unconscious in the snow •for a long time•. Fortunately, a generator weighing several hundred pounds had just been offloaded from the aircraft at another camp. A report from GSI on 15 February described the following injuries: Charlie Christenson (Pilot), broken vertebrae, broken ankle, frozen foot, facial lacerations; Mike Quinn (Co-Pilot), broken vertebrae, small cuts; Randy Mayo, facial cuts and leg cuts; George Stanley, shock and hypothermia. The wreckage of N540N was removed from the refuge on April 9 using rolligons provided by Crowley All-Terrain Corporation (Catco). Phil Garrett provided assistance to the operators by directing them to the crash site, and helped dismantle and load the aircraft. Cockpit of Seair Twin Otter N540N following crash. The passenger not using a seatbelt was found in the snow beneath the instrument panel. He was reported as a fatality in the initial report, but was actually unconscious with facial and leg cuts. DPG 03-85

SFWB Phil Garrett assisted rolligon drivers and mechanics in removal of Twin Otter N540N from the crash site on the refuge. DPG 03-85 72

Crew 1186 completed work on the refuge an April 13 and moved camp outside the barrier islands near Angun Lagoon onto the sea ice. The crew 'l«>rked several more days on the sea ice before returning to Deadhorse. Crew 1182 conpleted work on the refuge on April 15 and roved onto sea ice at camden Bay. It also worked several more days on the ice before returning to Deadhorse.

Crew 1182 completed 283.46 miles of seismic line on land and 1.7 miles on the ooastal lagoons and spent a total of 90 days on the •1002 area•. Crew 1186 spent 102 days on the •1002 area• and oonpleted 276.13 miles on land and 4.9 miles on ooastal lagoons. Total mileage for both crews on the •1002 area• was 566.19 miles. The Arctic Slcpe Regional Corporatioo (ASRC) and Chevron USA oonducted another seismic program this year on Kaktovik Inupiat Corporation (KIC) lands and on refuge ooastal lagoons north of the KIC lands (SUP 85-<9). Data were collected by GSI Crew 1195 fran February 9 to April 6. The crew traveled to the area on lagoon and sea ice and maintained carrpsites on the lagoons. Field monitors housed at the Kaktovik Field Station visited the crew intermittently to check campsite conditioos and to provide assistance in locating bird study plots (to be avoided) on the tundra. Hydraulic fluid leaks fran ice saws were the only reported problem enoountered with Crew 1195. These saws were used to cut the ice parallel to the seismic lines in an attempt to irrprove data quality. Hydraulic saws were replaced with mechanical saws because of hydraulic leaks. Figure 7 shCMs the seismic program on the KIC Lands.

This giant ice saw was used by GSI in seismic data collection on lagoon and offshore ice. The saw was used to cut lines parallel to the seismic line in an effort to inprove data quality. oro 02-85 Figure?. Chevron USA Inc. 1985 Seismic exploration program on coastal lagoons and KI C La"'l.ds

8C! eo• • 8GI eoz ••• diS 1~5 • 8·6 193 •194 '?.~---- ...... __ --~~~,--········-·· ---2::...... -~.:~ . .-----··· ··. .--~·· ....--- ...... ~ .. -· .. - \·· ...... ~. ..----t-.__,..---+.::;-----he;;•,~---t;.e•;;;b---1 !fa•Sisrr--i;esid.---+;;:;-----L__ ... ·· !•~"-. ~~-~·-... e•• I ...... • J I ...... ··'···· ·········-.. .\. ___~1 -.----r.::--1 rr-;90<;;----+-:-----J.·······-~ ··. ~~c t!~· B: r::...... -... ·.. :...... I ····· .. 1 ...... ----· ···-··· ...... · ::------..:::-.::...- ···-...,-+----- 935'-· ·.~I(,

TBNAlSE T8NAl6E T8NAliE ~~~. !•_..._'.-.--..------ ___ ...... _.. ... ,·---·-1 _____.. __ ,_ .....,._,_ ~-- ·--- I E3 ------73

The GSI seismic lines were inspected via helicopter on July 8-10 by SFWB Phil Garrett, Hank Guttormson (GSI Project Manager) and Phil sndth (environmental consultant for GSI). There was an improvement in the appearance of the 1984 lines corrpared to those of 1985. Trash fran the 1985 lines was removed during the three days of inspection flights, whereas the 1984 lines required three weeks of helicopter time by GSI to clean up the lines. The areas of dead vegetation caused by fuel spills also were noticeably fewer for the 1985 season.

Intersection of seismic lines AN84-03 (shothole, 1984, lower left to upper right) and AN 85-21 (vibrator, 1985, lower right to upper left) near the Hulahula River. NAF A5 07-08-85

The 1985 seismic exploration season was generally regarded in various ways as an inprovement over the 1984 season. The field monitors were rore experienced and knew more about the seismic operation and the crews' abilities and limitations. The seismic crews consisted of many of the same people and were more familiar with the monitors and the regulations. They seemed more willing to cooperate in reducing impacts.

Several changes were made by GSI to reduce irrpacts. Changing from drills to vibrators reduced most of the oil drips. Further reductions were achieved by fitting vehicles with drip pans. Absorbents were placed in the pans and changed twice per week instead of placing absorbents beneath each vehicle at night. Orange absorbent pads were supplied this year instead of the white ones used in 1984. Visibility of the pads on the snow was significantly increased. The burn sleighs were equipped with solid bottoms and lids instead of only grates on the bottom and no tops. Also, two burn sleighs were provided to each cattrain. The errpty sleigh was parked outside the kitchen 74 after each move. Scattered boxes and paper were alroost conpletely eliminated by this inprovement. Drip pans were provided under each hose coupling for all carrp fuel tanks. That eliminated many of the small areas of dead vegetation that would have occurred, which were comnon during the previous year. The surveyors were given the task of removing all line stakes and pin flags, instead of •juggies• doing the pick up, as was the case last year. The surveyors knew the locations and stake numbers so therefore could do a more thorough clean-up. The chief surveyor on crew ll86 mentioned that only one pin flag was lost in one 35-mile stretch of line, a significant inprovement over 1984.

Trash pile left by 1984 drill shothole seismic crew near Itkilyariak Creek. one advantage of the vibrator seismic method used in 1985 was that it was cleaner than the drill shothole method. DJF-08-34 08-18-85

Changes made by the Service included inproved radio cotrmunicat ioos resulting from installation of tuners used in conjunction with the Motorola Micoms and whip antennas. Environmental briefings were inproved by using a slide show of the refuge resources and discussing the previous year's problems with the seismic operation. Photographs of inpacts to vegetation also helped. A greater awareness of the program goals by the crew members resulted from the briefings this year. Attendance by Phil Garrett at the weekly client representative/GSI meeting in Deadhorse also helped to solve many minor problems before they became major problems. The field monitoring tours on the cat trains were reduced from 16 days to 10 days, resulting in reduced burnout and stress among the monitors and more effective monitoring while they were on the cat trains. 75

Vibrator seismic line AN85-18 through tussock tundra near Katakturuk River. NAF 85 2 07-31-85

The following table shows the cuoount of field IOOnitoring time expended for the 1985 seismic season. The efforts of all the monitors was greatly appreciated. The level of environmental protection provided to the refuge resources was probably the highest for any seismdc exploration anywhere involving heavy equipment, even down to the banana peel Ann Rawaport requested the driller pick up at VP847 on line AN 85-18. The numbers below represent total days. Field IOOnitors were Arctic NWR personnel except where otherwise indicated.

Field Monitors Crew 1182 Crew 1186 Kaktovik

Kate Moitoret 40 11 Pam Miller 33 14 Nancy Felix 23 8 Dan LaPlant 43 13 Greg weiler 37 12 Larry Martin 7 2 Patty Rost ( FR) 8 Elaine Snyder-conn (ES) 6 9 Ann Rappaport (WR/RS) 6 4 2 Torre Jorgenson 21 Phil Garrett 3 4 26

Total Monitoring Days 111 112 109 76

Chevron /l>.SRC Exploratory Well- KIC I 1

The Arctic Sl~ Regiooal Corporatioo (ASRC) with Chevroo as operator, began drilling an exploratory well on the KIC Land early in the year. This is the first exploratory well ever drilled within the refuge outer boundaries and is the farthest east exploratory well ever drilled in the Alaskan Arctic. Work began in late December 1984 on the ice roads and airstrip for the KIC 11 Exploratory Well. The airstrip became operational for heavy transports in late January. Hercules C-130 aircraft began flying the drill rig and associated drilling equipment into the ice airstrip on January 27. Approximately 120 •here• loads were re:JUired to transport the rig to the site. An additional 40 •here• loads were required for other equipment. However, much of the equipnent otherwise oormally flown to isolated drill sites was transported over sea ice by Catro rolligons. Figure 8 shows the locat ioo of the exploratory well south of Tapkaurak Point.

KIC 11 Exploratory Well, a few days prior to start of drilling. DJF-06-01 02-15-85

Assi stant Refuge Manager Doug Fruge and SPWB Phil Garrett met Bob Ritchie (ARM, Kenai NWR) at Deadhorse on February 14. BOO acconpanied Doug and Phil on an inspection trip to the well to lend his expertise gained at Kenai NWR in dealing with environmental problems associated with oil wells. They departed Deadhorse on February 15 in clear, windy weather, although a little rold (-55°F), and arrived at KIC 11 at 12:30 PM to d:>serve the spudding of the well. The drilling crew was having prcblerns getting the ronductor pipe set in the ground, but it was finally set by early morning of February 16th and was cemented in place. Prchlems with boilers and other equipnent delayed the well spudding until February 18th. ------.....- , ', \ ' \ \

IAOO -"-13 'I l £AOOOII

·i ',, .. ~

__;_ ~-'- ·--··-- ... ,,

'6 ' 9' .·. ·• & " o.•~ ..... ·<:::::\ ;...... ,, Ci? ..~ tP B • ".:.G:I.~· "' .. .··· ... 1 . ... f,' I t~.~~"~··· ~ ~- .. .:· ·- ... ,, . i.e , . ·'--

Figure 8 .. Location of KIC #1 Exploratory Well and Rolligon support trail. 77

An innovative approach was used in constructing the KIC tl Exploratory Well drill pad. Referred to as a •thin• pad•, this method utilizes a thin foundation of soil material (1-2 ft. thick), a layer of insulating foam, and planking instead of the usual gravel pad construction. This approach allows a more complete site reclamation than does use of gravel, which permanently chanc;,as the character of the site. Chevron originally chose to use gravel, but the PWS insisted on this method which had been successfully used elsewhere in the Arctic. GlE 06-85

The delayed start-up date (originally January 1) and prd:>lems encountered during drilling resulted in Chevron's proposal to extend drilling beyond the originally proposed May 1 conpletion date. tGnerous meetings \111ere held with Chevron/ASRC, environmental organizations and regional office and refuge personnel. The refuge manager officially designated a caribou calving/post calving special area for the KIC land, thereby requiring drilling operations to cease when it was determined that caribou would be entering the area. A previous agreement with ASRC would have required the FWS to prove that wsignificant adverse effects• were occurring to the caribou before the well would be shut down. Chevron did not originally agree with this approach. When the issue appeared in the press it became somewhat blown out of proportion to its real significance. Chevron announced they had already planned to shut down by May 1 for technical reasons associated with the q>eration. The •special area• designation was rerooved, and the rig was shut down by May 1 and laid down by May 13. Plans were to resume drilling in early winter 1985-86. 78

KIC tl Exploratory Well site in early summer. Drilling rig has been lowered. FJM 06-85

Jerald Stroebel, Field Supervisor, Northern Alaska Ecological Services (NAES), reported that the Chevron/ASRC drilling mud reserve pit was overflowing onto the tundra on August 9 following a coastal inspection trip. The pit was inspected by refuge personnel later that day. Fluid from the pit had overflowed onto adjacent disturbed ground, but apparently had not escaped onto undisturbed tundra, nor was it apparent that it had drained into any streams. The well site personnel had constructed \I«Xlden berms at the sites where overflow had occurred. Less than one foot of freeboard was available, though the fluid was not escaping at the time the refuge personnel inspected it. Snowmelt and high winds apparently were the causes of the overflow. Chevron had planned to re-inject the fluids from the reserve pit back into the subsurface structure but no suitable formation was found.

The u.s. Army, Corps of Engineers (CE) had amended Chevron's permit in May to allow reserve pit expansion without notifying or soliciting comments from the FWS. That expansion was never acconplished, however. A ropy of an application for a second amendment to the CE permit requesting a second reserve pit was received during the fall and reviewed by the refuge staff. A letter of non-objection was submitted to the CE from the NAES office on october 8, 1985. The CE has tentatively agreed to use the Abbreviated Permitting Procedure (APP) for reviewing this type of amendment in the future, which would solicit comments from other agencies. 79

PARM Doug Fruge inspecting an overflow prcblem with the reserve pit at KIC tl Exploratory Well. GWE 08-12-85

The refuge received a copy of a request by Chevron/ASRC for an Environmental Protection Agency National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NDPES) permit to discharge wastewater from 6 desalinators and pre-packaged sewage treatment plants to be located near Kaktovik on KIC lands. These facilities would be in support of up to three additional exploratory wells to be located on the KIC Land. The six proposed outfalls corresponded to alternative locations for the three wells. Corrrnents were provided through the mES office on October 8, 1985. Phil Garrett and Kate Moitoret (NAES) conducted an inspection trip on OCtober 15 with Chevron representatives to look at three proposed sites for the next Chevron/ASRC exploratory well (KICt2) to be drilled this winter (or next summer depending on location). The drilling pad for the second well was proposed to be constructed near Kaktovik during the coming winter.

The second season of drilling at KIC 11 resumed early in December. Ice roads to the freshwater lake water source, Kaktovik, and the airstrip were completed, although the ice airstrip was not able to receive aircraft by the end of Decerrber.

Rabies was confirmed in an arctic fox that was killed at the KIC tl well. One other suspected rabid fox was killed at the well during early winter. Both foxes were killed after attacking drilling personnel who were walking between the crew quarters and the drilling rig. other foxes often appear around the wellsite, but have shown no evidence of being rabid. This is also discussed in Section G.l7, Disease Prevention and Control. 80

Chevron/ASRC Stratigraphic Test Wells on November 14, SWFB Phil Garrett attended a preliminary meeting with Chevron in Anchorage to discuss a proposal for drilling four stratigraphic wells on KIC Land during the winter. The planned depth of the four wells would be less than the KIC t1 well. They would all be drilled with a small portable drill rig, and all drilling fluids would be containerized. No reserve pits would be required. A Plan of Operations was submitted on December 30, 1985 for up to 4 shallow (6000 ft) stratigraphic test wells on KIC Land. Six alternative nearshore and barrier island sites were selected for the 4 proposed wells. other Oil and Gas Exploration Activity Phil Garrett met with Shell/Western Oil Company on April 18 concerning a proposed exploratory well to be drilled immediately offshore of the refuge near Griffin Point. Drilling was proposed to begin in August utilizing a submersible vessel as a drilling platform. The vessel would remain frozen in place with the drilling to be completed during the winter. The proposed drill site was less than three miles from the Chevron KIC il wellsite. The project was cancelled during the fall due to lack of funding and logistical difficulties.

An additional exploratory well project was attempted during the summer by Union Oil and Shell/Western Oil Companies in the Beaufort Sea immediately north of the refuge. The Union project, called "Hammerhead Prospect" was proposed to be located about 10 miles north of Flaxman Island, and the Shell site "Corona Prospect• was to be iocated about 21 miles due north of Marsh_ Creek. Both wells were to be drilled by the same drill ship during July and August. The drill ship experienced major difficulties reaching the first prospect due to large accumulations of ice even though the ship was serviced by three ice breakers. It was reported that drilling began on the Hammerhead Prospect but was ended prematurely by ice problems. We are not aware of any attempt to drill the Corona Prospect. Surface Geology Exploration Surface geology exploration activities occurred on the ANILCA Section 1002 coastal plain area during the summer. This exploration involved sampling, analyzing and mapping surface rock outcrops by helicopter-transported crews of two to four persons. Four oil companies held multi-year special use permits issued in 1983 for this work. Three of these had crews on the coastal plain in 1985; the other cancelled its summer field activities. Eight additional companies were issued SUP's in 1984 for surface geology exploration on the coastal plain during the summer of 1985. Four of the eight companies actually worked in the 1002 area this year. The other four companies cancelled their summer exploration programs on the refuge. Three other SUP's were issued for scientific geological work within the 1002 area. Two of the SUP's were issued to the u.s. Geological survey and one to the Bureau of Land Management. A total of 10 permittees and crews conducted surface geology studies on the coastal plain in 1985 (Table 2). 81

Surface geology exploration on the coastal plain was monitored by FWS personnel, though not as intensively as was the seismic work. Crews were given environmental briefings, and the field monitors were quartered at the Kavik River well pad canp Where most of the crews were based. The field monitors scheduled surface geology activities in zones designated on the coastal plain and other refuge areas in an attempt to prevent a concentration of helicopter activity in any one area. By regulation, no more than six helicopter crews were allowed on the coastal plain at any one time. The field monitors also acconpanied the crews on sane of their flights. Refuge personnel Phil Garrett, Dan LaPlant, and Doug Fruge worked as field monitors.

The field monitors at the Kavik camp prepared a briefing room for surface geology crews. This monitoring program helped rrdnirrdze adverse impacts from helicopter activity. DJF-06-32 07-08-85

Coastal plain exploration activity began about July 15. Peak activity was between July 15 and August 3. The last crew oonpleted its work on August 9. Incidentally, this date ended the special oil and gas exploration program established on the refuge's coastal plain by ANILCA Section 1002. Most surface geology crews were based at an abandoned drilling pad along the Kavik River about 15 miles west of the refuge. Other crews were based at Deadhorse or Kaktovik. Surface geology work was oonducted with rrdnimal problems. Major concerns were avoidance of disturbance to muskox herds and other large mamnals such as moose, bears, and isolated bands of caribou. Caribou were mostly off of the coastal plain by the time of peak exploration activity. Other areas of ooncern were disturbance to nesting waterfowl, raptors and subsistence hunting activities. Helicopter crews were also instructed to avoid recreationists (backpackers, rafters, boaters, and hunters) who invest considerable SlDI\S of JOOney in trips to the Arctic NWR because of its splendid wilderness qualities and opportunities for solitude. 82

On July 12 SFWB Garrett, while monitoring Union Oil Conpany surface geology crews, discovered an immature parasitic jaeger in a tar pit {natural oil seep). The bird was removed and flown to the field station in Kaktovik where as much tar was removed as possible. Union Oil Conpany officials volunteered to fly "tarbaby" back to the nesting area, but the offer was declined since the exact nest location was not known. "Tarbaby" was placed in a foster home near tQe Okpilak Lake bird camp with another nestling of the same species and age. Tarbaby was accepted and it fledged along with the nestmate. Twelve surface geology SUP's were also issued for surficial geology studies on refuge areas outside of the coastal plain. Most of the additional work was concentrated in the mountains south of the coastal plain. Most of the permit holders used the same crews to work the areas both within and outside the 1002 area. The State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources utilized two helicopters to service a crew of 18 geologists. Surface geological activities occurring outside the coastal plain are identified in Table 3. Scientific Studies A wide assortment of scientific research is usually conducted each year on the refuge by agencies and groups outside the FWS. Permits are generally required for such work, especially if helicopter access is required. This year proved to be typical with 10 permits being issued. Table 4 identifies the permittee and type of study for each SUP. Cabin Permits One special use permit was issued to Richard Carroll II for a trapping cabin on the Coleen River. Navigation Tower Permits Temporary navigation towers are established during the summer by oil and gas exploration companies for the purpose of precisely locating the positions of offshore seismic exploration vessels. Permits issued during 1984 are listed in Table 5. Towers are installed, serviced and periodically moved by helicopter. Locations are not necessarily all occupied at the same time. Several navigation towers are erected on KIC land immediately north of the refuge lands. Special use permits should be issued for these sites as well in accordance with ANCSA Section 22(g) though we have not been consistently doing this. We plan to start requiring permits for these towers beginning with the 1986 summer field season. In late summer, an Audi Air Cessna 206 returning refuge biologists from a field site to Kaktovik hit a navigation tower on final approach to landing at Kaktovik Lagoon. The tower was actually located on the DEW Line station lands. Fortunately, the pilot was able to safely land the aircraft. The tower was knocked down and the aircraft had a large dent in the right wing. This accident is further discussed in Section E.G., Safety. 83

Table 2. Coastal Plain surface Geology Exploration Permittees

Permittee Permit # Dates Base Enviromnental Active Carrp Briefing Conoco 85-cl Cancelled Amoco 85-c2 July 10-15 Kavik July 10 Aroo 85-c3 Cancelled Chanplin 85-c4 Cancelled Chevron 85-cS July 29-Aug 6 Deadhorse July 18 Gulf 85-c6 Cancelled Mcbil 85-c7 July 20-Aug 4 Kavik July 20 Shell/Western 85-c8 July 1-24 Kaktovik July 1 Kavik BP Alaska 83-c2 2 days in July Deadhorse Exxon 83-c3 July 20-28 Kavik July 19 Sohio 83-c6 Cancelled Union 83-c7 July 3-29 Kavik July 1 USGS 85-S3 July 5-31 Kaktovik July 2 USGS 85-S4 July 29-Aug 3 Kaktovik July 17 BI.M 85-S6 June 25-July 30 Kaktovik July 29

Table 3. Non-coastal Plain Surface Geology Exploration Permittees Permittee Permit # Dates Base Environmental Active Camp Briefing State of Alaska 85-Gl July 1-28 Kaktovik July 5 Kavik Dr. Raimond Below 85-G2 Permit not returned USGS 85-G3 Permit cancelled USGS 85-G4 July 1-Aug 3 Kaktovik July 2 Amoco 85-G5 July 12-Aug 7 Kavik July 10 Chevron 85-G6 July 18-Aug 6 Deadhorse July 18 Union 85-G7 July 1-28 Kavik July 1 Placid 85-G8 July 31-Aug 8 Kavik July 31 Arco 85-G9 Cancelled Exxon 85-GlO July 26-Aug 9 Kavik July 19 Mobil 85-Gll July 20-Aug 9 Kavik July 20 Shell/Western 85-Gl2 July 1-24 Kaktovik July 1 Kavik 84

Table 4. Scientific Study Special Use Permits Permittee Permit t Purpose Date of Use Earth Tech 85-Sl Environmental March 15-31 Study Univ. of Alaska, 85-S2 Permafrost study Indefinite Geophysical Institute USGS-GS canada 85-S3 Geology mapping July 29-Aug 3 USGS-coGeoMap 85-G4 Geology mapping July 5-31 Univ. of Washington 85-G5 Soil surveys May 15-Sept 15 BIM 85-G6 Surface geology June 25-July 30 State of Alaska (DNR-DGGS) 85-G7 Water quality April 14-Aug 30 Univ. of Alaska, 85-G8 Permafrost study Indefinite Geophysical Institute Univ. of Colorado 85-G9 Plant study May 15-Sept 15 Rice University 85-GlO Geology study July 15-31

Table !3. Navigation Tower Special Use Permits. Permittee Permit t Number of Locations

NCS International 85-Tl 11 Western Geophysical 85-T2 12 Oceaneering International 85-T3 6 Geophysical Service Inc. 85-T4 10 CoMap Geosurveys ·85-T5 11 International Technology 85-T6 6 85

Miscellaneous Permits Geophysical Service Inc. (GSI) was issued SUP 85-Ml to allow their surveyors/gravity personnel to tie into three identified triangulation stations located on the refuge. The purpose was to acconplish a survey of seismic lines offshore in Camden Bay.

Northern Technical Services, Inc. (Nortec) was issued SUP 85-M2 to allow a marine biological baseline data collection program. Data collection will support preparation of an Environmental Protection Agency required Ocean Discharge Criteria Evaluation for the proposed Shell/Western stratigraphic well off Griffin Point. However, the well was not begun in 1985.

The Crowley All-Terrain Corporation (Catco) was issued SUP 85-M3 to traverse the coastal lagoons with rolligon vehicles for supplying fuel to seismic exploration crews and the Chevron exploratory well, KIC U. 3. Items of Interest Five staff members attended the Alaska Bird Conference February 19-21. These were FWH Pran Mauer and WB's Alan Brackney, Pam Miller, Kate Moitoret, and Russ oates. Fran presented a paper entitled "Observations of golden eagles on the calving and post calving areas of the Porcupine caribou herd". other papers were presented by Pam ("Improving accuracy of tundra bird breeding bird population estimates through training in nest-finding skills•) and Kate (•Defining arctic tundra bird habitats: ask the birds, not the satellites•). Several staff members also attended the state meeting of the Alaska Chapter of the Wildlife Society on February 23. RM Glenn Elison and SWB Gerald Garner made a presentation on the "ANILCA Section 1002 Program.• on March 22 and 23 Susan Alexander, Regiooal Director for the Wilderness Society and Bob Adler, Staff Attorney with Trustees for Alaska toured the Coastal plain and visited the seismic exploration crews with RM Glenn Elison. on March 4 and 5 RM Glenn Elison hosted a visit to the refuge, particularly to view the on-going seismic exploration, for Deputy Regional Director Dave Olsen, BLM State Director Mike Penfold, Minerals Management Service State Director Al Powers, and BI.M Assistant District Manager for Mineral Assessment Jim callahan. Secretary of the Interior William Hodel visited the refuge on June 10 and 11 along with Deputy Under Secretary Bill Horn, Alaska Land Use Council Co-Chairman Vern Wiggins, and FWS Regional Director Bcb Gilmore. Numerous oil conpany representatives tailed the group on June 10. Also included on the tour was National Audubon Society Regional Director Dave Cline. 86

Interior Secretary William Hodel made a stop in the Marsh Creek Anticline area on a refuge visit in June. Departnental personnel are: Paul Gjelde, Counsel to the Secretary (blue parka); Secretary Hodel (red parka); Bill Horn, Deputy under secretary (green parka); and :RM Glenn Elison (behind Mr. Hodel). Other persons are oil industry representatives. GWE 06-85

The 1984 Annual Narrative Report was finally ronpleted on June 7. It was mostly done on rorrpensatory and donated time by ARM Doug Fruge. on August 9 the last company conducting oil exploration under the •1002 program• conpleted its work. This was surface geology explorat ioo. Also, on August 9 ARM Doug Fruge presented a briefing to members and staff of the House Merchant Marine and Fisheries Comndttee at refuge headquarters concerning the refuge and the ANILCA Sectioo 1002 Program. Regional Director Bob Gilmore provided opening remarks with Jim Callahan of BLM presenting a brief explanation of the results to date of the oil and gas exploration on the coastal plain. The group was given a tour of the refuge's roastal plain on August 10 along with members and staff of the House Interior and Insular Affairs Carmittee. The group stopped briefly at the Sadlerochit River vegetation study camp, and the botanists at the site explained their work. The group also got to see muskox, moose, caribou and brown bears. 87

The Wildlife Resources Program Evaluation Team visited the refuge on August 1. This group consisted of Don Minnich and Garland Pardue from the Washington office, Assistant Regional Director John Rogers and Refuge Supervisor (N) John Kurtz. The group was given an air tour of the coastal plain with an overnight stop at the Peters Lake Field Station. During August 13-20 Susan Alexander, Wilderness Society Regioo.al Director and ~ Skilbred of Defenders of Wildlife made a 60-rnile backpack trip from Peters Lake to the mouth of the Sadlerochit River. Assistant Refuge Manager Doug Fruge was also on the trip. Botanist Nancy Felix attended the International Society of Petroleum Industry Biologists Conference in Banff, Alberta during September and presented a paper entitled "Vegetational, thermal and visual inpacts of winter seismic exploration on the arctic coastal plain of northeast Alaska". Numerous staff persons attended the Arctic Science Conference held at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks during September. On September 27, three papers were presented by refuge staff in the Wildlife Telemetry Section. Ecologist Pat Reynolds presented "Muskox activity patterns and movements determined by experimental satellite telemetry: some preliminary results". WB Russ cates presented "Use of low-level aerial photography to supplement Landsat-derived habitat information for the ANILCA Section 1002 (c) tundra bird study" and SWB Gerald Garner presented "Use of telemetry in studying ecology of denning brown bears". The refuge sponsored a workshop November 19 and 20 to discuss the potential impacts of oil development on caribou on the Arctic NWR. The workshop, attended by biologists from the ADFG, Canadian -Wildlife Service, academia, private industry and professional consultants, was intended to help draft a discussion of potential inpacts on caribou for the ANILCA Section 1002(h) report. · December 6 marked the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Arctic National Wildlife Range. The Alaska Environmental Assembly highlighted the event at their annual meeting in Fairbanks on December 7 and 8. Held at Ryan Junior High School, the meeting had an overall theme of "Wilderness and People". Regional Director Bd:> Gilmore presented a keynote speech. Refuge Manager Glenn Elison and Refuge Planner Pete Jerome participated in panel discussions. Deputy Assistant Regional Director (WR) Joe Mazzoni also attended. A photographic exhibit depicting scenes from the refuge was coordinated by WB Fran Mauer and ARM Doug Fruge • Many staff members contributed photographs for the exhibit. One of the meeting's highlights was the attendance of Ms. Margaret Murie, who, with her late husband, Olaus, was instrumental in getting the wildlife range established in 1960. Ms. Murie gave a very inspiring address at the University of Alaska's Schaible Auditorium on the evening of December 7 following a slide presentation about the refuge by Debbie Miller. 88

Bull caribou captured against the first sunset after solstice near Tamayariak Creek. CB 07-27-85

4. Credits

D. 5. Research and Investigations - The staff persons resp:msible for research projects drafted their individual summaries as indicated in the report. Fishery Biologist David Wiswar drafted the fisheries study surrmaries.

E. ADMINIS'mATION - All sect ions drafted by AO Paul Liedberg except for E.5 Funding, which was drafted by RM Glenn Elison.

F. HABITAT MANAGEMENT - Sections F.l- F.8 were drafted by SFWB Phil Garrett. Sections F.9 Fire Management and F.l2 Wilderness and Special Areas were drafted by .ARM/PRoger Kaye. G. 2. Endangered and/or Threatened Species Drafted by FWB Fran Mauer and Botanist Nancy Felix. G. 6 Raptors - Drafted by FWB Fran Mauer.

G. 8. Game Manmals - Drafted by FWB ' s Fran Mauer and Phil Garrett. 89

G. 9. Marine Mammals - Drafted by FWB Fran Mauer.

G.ll. Fisheries Resources - Drafted by FB Roo in west • G.l4. Scientific Collections - Drafted in part by Botanist Nancy Felix. H. 1 (PUBLIC USE) General - Drafted by ARM/P Roger Kaye. H. 6. Interpretive Exhibits/Demonstrations Drafted by AO Paul Liedberg. H. 8 - H.l2 Sections - Drafted by SFWB Phil Garrett. H.l5 Off-Road Vehicling - Drafted by SFWB Phil Garrett. J. 2. Other Economic Uses - Drafted by SFWB Phil Garrett.

K. FEEDBACK - Drafted by RM Glenn Elison.

Other sections not specifically identified above were drafted by ARM Doug Fruge who edited, selected photographs and assembled the final version. Clerk/typists Kathy Kiser, Katrina Davis, Robyn Scott, and Jannifer Stoddard did the typing.

FEEDBACK Communications between senior management and field personnel has always been inportant. The current fiscal austerity makes it even more vital. Communication is an activity that we strive to perfect but never have and probably never will. Conmunication breakdowns waste time, cost money, and need to be minimized. Senior management may wonder why the people in the field are so provincial and can't understand the political, budgetary and other great realities that seem to be so apparent in Washington and regional offices. Field people wonder at and are often frustrated by senior management's apparent lack of understanding of field operations and a willingness to compromise too readily our resource stewardship responsibilities. This lack of empathy produces polarization within the agency which is unhealthy. Senior management at both the washington and regional levels needs to make an increased effort to visit field operations to keep in touch with the Service's roots. Visits should be as informal and leisurely as possible and function as orientation as opposed to formal inspection. Barriers to a free interchange of ideas need to be minimized. The scales need to be balanced by having field people visit the regional and washington offices to assist with specific assignments and become more cognizant of the types of problems and issues dealt with daily at the regional and national levels. My experience is that the field people who most frequently get called in for temporary assignments are the ones that need the exposure the least. An effort needs to be made to distribute these assignments as widely as possible. To allay the fear and trauma associated with these assignments, field people should always be provided round-trip tickets prior to leaving home. APPENDIX I - News and Magazine Articles . ~c•rt&:f scor«tiJtg letter,s .. ·, · .U d~ll iS. 3ngry

:u·· at.l3:nd lans~ · • , , , ' ' ' L f. ;. ( 1 ; ' ' " t ~ • > • j ,\e <' • -'" ' • • \ • ..." .Sy DAVID RAMSEUR eluding lJl~~ exchanges ,• ·.) not be News-Miner Bureau pursued fu~ther ad~ini;s~~a~ty.el!,'' WASHINGTON_;.;_A powerful. cor} he added. , , , ... , ..: 1 • t •• gressional conservationist has . ·"If it is believed that such substan scolded top federal officials for prop tial boundary adjustments or land ex- osed land swaps in Alaska that he . changes are warranted, then the claims violate the intent of Congress · proper course of action is for the re when it passed the 1980 Alaska lands sponsible secretary to submit formal act. .r legislative proposals to Congress for Arizona Rep. Morris Udall, in a let-· its consideration." ter to three cabinet secretaries; said Among the proposed swaps Udall proposed land exchanges involving targeted are those involving the Red several Alaska r:efuges,. monuments Dog mine near Kotzebue, Noranda and wUdlife areas are based on misin Mining Company's Greens Creek terpretations of the lands act. mining proj~ct on Admiralty Island, a And Udall "strongly urged" offi ·corridor across the Alaska Peninsula cials to halt the proposed land swaps National WUdlife Refuge and what he without first subQlitting them to Con- call~ "alarming reports., ol.a-land gress. . · ·exchangeinvolving the Arctic'NatJon ,. "Overall, the approach has been . ai Wildlife Refuge•.. , . . · . .. '· one of accommodating development . The letter was sent to out-going In interests by misinterpretation of the t~rior Secretary. William Clark, in exchange and boundary adjustment coming Interior Secretary Donald provisions rather than through the· Hodel and Agriculture Secretary use of Title XI and other appropriate John w})ose department in- procedures or by seeking congres .~'~'.:~· ..... -' . . sional action," Udall said in a four.! page letter sent earlier this week. ''. . . I strongly urge that the prop- · . osed Admiralty Island boundary ,adjustment and similar aCtions in-' i' · · .· !' had ·not the ~ but said YoUng plans to spon5or·Jeg" ' islation this year to permit several of : . the;land .exchanges including th~. Greens Creek and Red Dog proposals. . · Conservationi~is;, who have 'ob-. jected io)he land swaps, \velconied • 1 the Udall letter. , ,. l ~"We support it wholeheartedly," i said :Aniy Skilbred of Oefetiders of ; }VUdlife,.one Qf several grQups oppos-. ~ iQg ~e pr~posals~, .. :: .:"');~1 c;;r..u. . .Vciall, .a Democrat. anq. 24-year · Hoiise' veteran, chairs the House In.:.:. : terior Committee which largely WrOte theAlaska'lands·act. ~,·· ,:'>t1.:~;.· He cited the St .. Matthew. Island · land exchange, which was recently . nixed by a federal judge, as evidence ' of the ill-suited application of the 'lands act: vL ; ,.,, i',J /}:::,,;,,: ' Udall· said "a similar fate" awaits the proposed Greens Creek boundary ; adjustment. ; - Under that plan, the Forest Service proposes to exchange about 17,000 acres in the Admiralty Island Nation al Monument for land outside the . monument so Noranda can proeeed with a silver mine operation.,. ;;~- : ':

'•'. \J lit: VI Ull drills well (\i near refuge: Firm to delay exploration· if caribou calving impaired By PATTI EPLER Daily News business reporter Chevron USA has begun drilling the first explor atory well on Native lands near the Arctic National Josts another loss Wildlife Refuge, an area considered to be highly NEW YORK - The stock prospective by the oil industry. market posted Its third The well is expected to take several months to straight loss Tuesday · drill. Chevron officials said the well may have to with a modest decline In be shut down and drilling resumed next winter if the slowest trading in operations interfere with caribou calving in spring. more than six weeks. The Chevron began drilling this week on lands . Dow Jones average of 30 owned by the Kaktovik Inupiat Corp. and Arctic Industrials, down 15.90 Slope Regional Corp. The acreage is privately owned but surrounded by the federal refuge. points Thursday and The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, set aside as Friday before the long a protected area by Congress, has become a Washington's Birthday battleground for environmental and development weekend, slipped another interests. Conservationists want the refuge left .59. Volume on the New York alone whlle the oil industry sees it as one of the .ge came to 90.40 million best untapped areas for oil and gas discovery in the from 106.47 million last Friday u.s. ·tst total since an 86.19 million Congress has allowed seismic testing on the 1.4 Jan. 7. That broke a record million acre coastal plain of the refuge and is to ~onsecullve decide next year whether to allow exploration by sessions In which the industry. . •illlon shares changed hands. Chevron's work on the Native lands -·on the mf. coast at Kaktovik about 75 miles east of Prudhoe Bay - likely will influence Congress' decision. If >umes advances the company finds commercial quantities of oil and gas, industry and environmental factions believe, The dollar resumed Its Congress probably will be inclined to permit ;g advance Tuesday, surging exploration on the coastal plain. 1galnst the currencies of .. Ted Heuer, oil, gas and minerals coordinator for Vorway and Denmark. The the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service here, said ding from weakness late last permits granted to Chevron provide for the protec e to a 13·year high against·:'·; tion of caribou and other wildlife- by requiring the der and a 7·year high against company to suspend drilling if operations interfere c. Gold prices edged lower. with caribou calving or other wildlife migration. \ 1.nal Bank In New York quoted A wildilfe biologist will be monitoring move in .. EST at $303.75 a troy ments of the caribou herd, he said, and the service cents from Friday's late will decide if the drilling is disturbing the caribou. ?J;;;.4d't. Heuer said once breakup begins in the Arctic Slope region, access to the drill site will be by helicopter instead of the overland vehicles used during the winter months when the ground is frozen. ~~· Air traffic in the spring also·might affect the : "· caribou and snow geese populations, he said .. RallYJng around Old Glory Chevron exploraion manager Tom Cook said the Henry Pekala, a 34-year-old Weyerha&User E company intends to abide by whatever decision with about townspeople In Raymond, Wa. l~>deral wildlife officials make, even though shut 200 ting down the well and starting it again next discuss ru~ of Weyerhaeuser wage-cut pr; Winter would be costly. Federal Express· makes fr~e c :,~~~·' ' ' - ' -....., . .. " ,' ; 'I speeches;· befor~ .the AriCh~~age Ollve: said th•t F.C

I 1 Anchoragfl Daily News·· ,J..,~"'"t~:;t -~ i! """' ...... o', .. ' ''"""' '<• -.,.,_ ..... • "N • • ,...... ,_....,,. ! USF&\y bungles cattle Issue . ."·: . ..: The :·u.s. Fish & Wildlife Service' has ;). I . I · bungled it ·again. After years of appeasing .r everyb~ciY from Director Stevens (also Sena-.. j .l ·· tor) on·· 6own, it decided to hold a press conference four days before it was to begin destroying the cattle on Simeonof, Cherna bura, and Caton Islands. What any amateur J could have · told them would happen did · happen;, The phones started ringing off the hook and the USF&WS backed off yet another time. ·i · · ~Accor~ing to Dave Olsen, Act~g .Regional . .Directo~£~..:41''"':~ .. •purpose o_f t~e press fOnferen.·. Ce 1 was to {~p ·~e publlc mfonned;:.:Notwlth,- · standing·~th~ 'the ·public has been' kept iri-. · 1 formed -fo~ ~years ever since USF&WS/GSA·.-• 'firSt ~offeMd ·the -cattle !or sale, why doesn't ·i USF&WS hold press conferences when it signs ~ ....---- j) ~.-;::_ off on shady land exchanges like St. Mat- ;:::: thew's or when it allows the oil companies to . _ tear up the coastal plain of the Arctic Nation- ~ ~ ~ al Wildlife Refuge? ..- · · Meanwhile State Sen. Fred· (where's the -~ ~ .A_o beef?) Zharoff, Rep. Adelheid Herrmann, and 0, ·· () Mr. Bill have bumbled into the picture with- 0 " n " A (J out having the foggiest idea of the truth of the 11 ~0 ~ ~ W \c._ matter. They fail to appreciate that Simeonof, . Chernabura, and Caton are biological disaster 1. ~-~ c.__ areas, that USF&WS has spend hundreds of ·- ' \ - thousands of dollars in studying and attempt- r • f--\ ing to deal with the problem, that all efforts ,· ~ ~ _· Q.... to remove the cattle have failed, and that the - d Shumagin-Corporation and lacal Natives have.·.·~ o~ had ample opportunity to take what they 0 If wanted. Sen. Zharoff has stated that he is · ~ .. astounded" that "with so much starvation in ~0 the world" that USF&WS will leave the cattle 0 ~·to rot on the ground." What does he have in ~ ~? mind ·...... : shipping the cattle to· Ethiopia?., Furthermore, the cattle already are rotting on' , the ground owing t~ overgrazing and starva- · 1 tion, and I have the pictures to prove it. ~: The real culprits are the higher-ups at USFF&WS. Instead of protecting the National Wildlife Refuge Sysfem, obeying its own laws regulations, doing what is biologically sound, and sticking to some sense of professional integrity, they ·run for cover even when it involves getting rid of a some starving cattle from several remote islands which few people cared about until now. -David McCargo, Jr. -Alaska Representative, American Wilderness Alliance March 14, 1985, THE.ARCTIC DiSPATCH·- 13, North Slope exploration efforts disturb polar bear

By DISPATCH STAFF

Tbe Only denning polar bear on seeing the activities of the oU ly in the winter, and "was sus- plication of radio collar last fall. the federal government bas 1 the coastal plain within the Arctic crews in order to avoid such as pected of being pregnant," stated . Polar bears' numbers may be been responsible for the manage National Wildlife Refuge that is this, were unaware of the exist· Elison. Hit were pregnant, sever-, .. dewn in recent years due to in- ment of all marine mammals, in presently being explored for its oil enceoftheden,accordingtoGien al sources conf1rmed that the ,.creasing,bW).ting and indus-. cludingthepoiarbear.Thatman and gas potential was apparently Elison, refuge manager of the 18 female had lost its cubs. Polar '·, trialization preSsures on the north agement has been the subject of disturbed by vehicles associated millionacrenationalconservation bearsnormallyhavetwocubs,and ·slope.Polarsbearshavelongbeen some controversy in the recent with the exploration and pre unit located in extreme northeast the cubs stay wi~ the mother until · a part of native peoples' cultural . past, 'and ~ions centerell on maturely left its den. Fish and Alaska. Despite ongoing reserach they are two tothi:'eeyears of age to · and subsistence lifestyles though possible returning management Wildlife Service biologists say this of the bears by the same agency, learn h~ting ~Is ~rom he~. . populations have never~ high to the state are currently was the first year the bear was including this radio collared one, Tbe FlSh and Wildlife Serv1ce lS eaough for them to be a mainstay. underway. capable of reproducing and it is "a lack of communication" re- still investigating the incident to · · possible the vehicle disturbance suited in the mix up which allowed determine if the vehicles were caused the young bear to abort its the vehicles to come to close, said . actually the cause of the prema- young. Elison. ture emergence from the den. Po- The vehicles are traveling a This bear is one of three radio lar bears usually come out in mid route along the coast ice from collared on the refuge, and part of to late March. Fish and Wildlife Deadhorse to Village Corporation an extensive research project by Serviceisriotmonitoringthesupp lands within the refuge where an the Fish and Wildlife Service to ly route full time and it is not clear exploratory well is being drilled determine denning and migration when the vehicles passed near the this winter. Tbe vehicles, called habitsofthebears. This particular den. The bear is recorded as hav rollogons, came within four hun bear, however, is the only one of ing left during the middle of dred meters ofthedensite. Permit the three denning in the area February. stipulations require activities where the oil and gas operations Information passed to the re associated with the oil and gas are being conducted. Only female fuge manager from the research data collection to steerclearof den polar bears den for extended staff after the disturbance notes sites by a mile. periods, and fewer than 50 dens an unusually long recovery time Monitors for the Fish and Wild have been located in Alaska. when the bear was drugged for the life Service, in charge of over- Tbebearhadbeeninitsdenear- initial gathering of data and aP":. f '23;;

".V .s. ag~~, sugg~·tiqn ,., r: ,,.~ . . . sr'r"~~" -· P13~. ~iiderness~l~ands

, 1 ,>K~1 '~~~{,·::,',, 'ClltS,!i·j;J~< ',~,, '~;'':,~:<~~"\'~:' ,',\::,\t{~4~~,}~f:'s ~~~~(,,>"'') ' '' ,,, '' ,, ' ' ' ' :;\1 ,:;;>): :._, "'\(1,\ <'n h'f I n'',\" ','<,,'; Lands;eligiblefornewwilderness · e.:within.refuges;rt. Congress by December 1987.~ ;,t,l, vice,accordingtotheAlaskarepre- outstanding resource values' that Wilderness was defined,•fu!:the "We would not expect that addi.{, sentative of the Wilderness Society. may have been fuadvertently over~ 1964Wlldernes8 Act as an,~fUQttam;., · tionru large blocks of land ~oul~ be.' Susan Alexander, 'the Society's lookeddurfug.the.originru ... re~ meled'.' arearwhere man.is''Only·a 1 proposed'for.wilderness\review:m.' attorney based fu Anchorage, said view:·:·: by Congress'." ..·... visitor .•oevelopments:suQlnas tthe~.comp:t:ehensive(conservatiOJ11 the policy would coun~ the futent Alexander said the memo,r¢pre" highways~\ mines or. oilrdtillil:lglare ·:' plans,"· Jantzen wrote.:~~<, i ) 1• \ hli~ ' .. of Congress when it. passed the ·sents .a flagrantly. illegal inter- prohibited fu,wiJ.derness'areas,.lbut .~ .. v Top +Alaska· .offic:Hal,~:~ :ofsthe. Alaska National Interest Lands Act pretation of ANILCA. · · may be allowed in refuges in'some USFWS .. were .. in a meeting this :; fu 1980. · · In the memo, wtitten to former cases. Hunting and fishingza:t:e'not•'' morning and could not be. reached Thatactdirectedthesecretaryof Alaska·region director Bob.Putz, necessarilyprobibitedby a wilder~ for commenton.the.memo. Interior.to review·all nonwilder- Jantzenalsosaiditwasimportant · 1,;,.\ , nessrefugelandsinAlaskatosee'if to keep in mind· the ','no-~Ore" ,J · any were suitable. for wilderness clause of. ANILCA, ·which 'states status. that after the act's passage "Con- But the new policy, as~ gress believes that the need for:... . fu a March 12 memo from .USF'WS designatfug new conservation sys- ; , ..

~ 'rb:~~'1\;~:J{: ·. ·Q ,. ~:;: ·n~~·F'.' .~?. ' 'l1 . ~u r l '1 ~ tiJJ . . ttl{~ 'I'" ' ,. ;;~ Jr~/l~ r!!~ld.~~.,~:k!'k;. J . polar bear hibernating in .the · with a. ra(flo. collar, was · A· ptoba Arctic National WildJife Refuge pregnant wh~n it was trijcked to may have been disturbed by on ex- d~fi in DeCember by Fish and WJ ploration transport vehicles driv- life Service biologists. It has ~ ·Jng ~ear its den this winter, accoril- cubs with •t QQW, bQt Elis~n s•id ing .to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife·· was difficult to say why. . ~· ·.~· !::·Servi~. ·· ·· .. . · Susan Alexander, Alaska r~p . :.' .The agency ~ay~.the incident, se~tativ~oftheWildernessSocletyt r ~hich may have occurr~ ~a use Said the mcident demonstrates thq of~ mix-up in commurucatmg ·~ inadequacy of measures taken by l~tionofthebear'sden,isnotslg-: the USFWS .to ,protect the refuge . nlficant. ~ut environ~ental group8. 'J'rom oil exploration. . . t 1 say it is an example ot the effects • :.. The possible loss of two cubs WM l .that oil exploratio~ lrt 'tbe' refuge'·' atso significant, Aleximder·s~.> t can hav~ ?P .\Vlldl~;~.;':;> ·.· . ·;·>' •·.:·Elison said there are about S,~J~ Glen Ehson, manager of th~ re- . polar .. bears on Alaska's Nort fuge, said that thcreWL\8 no conelu~. iJ~lo~~About 000 wcreklllcd by N~ sive proof that the bear left its den bve hunters last year. ': . · · ' because of the vehicle traffic, 'but Thebearwasoneoftwokno\:mtd that it was a possible cause. Many be dennlng on the refuge. . . 1 polar bears live on the ice pack dur- Elison said that the bear was in. ing the winter without hibernating, den very near· the· coast VehicleS but it is unusual for a bear to leave traveling to the oil eiploration~a its den, he said. : . use the near-shore ice, whitb i$ · "While we're concerned very· generally fr~ of· upheavals and much about this . . . it would be ' cr~clts; as an access route. · I wrong too imply that we're· en~· · One tractor passed within 250 dangering the species (by explor- yards of the den and numerous ing for oil on the refuge,)" Elison transport vehicles were within 400 said. : . ·. · . yards, accordirig to a 111emo writ-

.~~-~~; ·which h~~ ilJ~~!5;Y~=- ~- -E..A,-R. l"~"'JU~t.~·-':·'f.-~~ B ' •. ;jJ-.:u. o~.G'.f;rifff1~v6; ·.•:. (Contin~lrontpage;J~;{-.:: ten by Steve Amstrup, a polar bear researcher, to Elison. : : ·: · The transport vehicles were sup posed to stay at least a half. mlle lrom the den, Elison said; ., -~ · . Drivers of the vehicles were BOt· informed of the den through an oversight on the part of the agency Elison said. . 'li: ' AJexandersaidshefoundit~c that the USFWS could not ade quately protect the one bear it had radio tagged in the refuge. · ,:..-,·:; Oil exploration in the refuge has beep opposed by numerous en v_ironmental groups. The explora tion program was authorized by Congress in the Alaska Nationalln- terest Lands Act of 1980. :'; ' This is the second winter of ex ploration on the refuge. __:z:::_ I 2 3 ~~~~. Dally News-Minef. F~rbanks, Alaska, Sut

l~~ •\' !!· ;.1 1{ f.'; :; Broad qutlook needed to judge ~~~ ,:>\ ,,it~ harmful environinental. effects By MIKE MATI: the 135,000 caribou of the lnterna- sources on that refuge. Tbe sum Fint of all, let's not minco Guest opinion tionally reltnowned Porcupine mer operation of this l!'ell will coin words. A pregnant polar· bear . Herd. cide with the most sensitive and aborted ber cubs and prematurely··. The Dally New ..MIDer welcolllea . · · The well operators contend that vulnerable period for the caribou- left ber cleo because oil and gas ei- ·· · guest oplnloas oa a Yllriety altoples the calving and put-calving ploration crewalllllmowingJy drove··· froiD readers who have ao111e: ex·:·· "the illlpacts of a single, explora period. In my opinion,lhen, this ex tbeir vehicles too near ber den on· perUae ia a partieular subjeet 111at- ·· tory well operating past break-up ploratory well is very significant. the Arctic National Wildlife Re- ter. Coataet editorial page editor · • · would be 'minor' and, tbere ,,_ All..._, _ _. __ .,_,__,..__ SueMaUaonat~ltodlaeulsa fore,notslgnlcant ... ''They base The biologists, atlemptlng an •....,.... ""'-~ ""'"""""' their claim on a description of objective approach, f:.nd a lack of gathered by the biologist studying spec:l.fte Idea. "minor" impacts to wildlife re- information on several ltey issues ~ ~ bear points to. sources that states, "Anilllpacttoa concerning magnitude of impact. Wben I asked the refuge mana- . adverse effect" fails to incorporate · wil~e resourc~!-S minor, tha.t ~ They simply don't bow whether ger if be though this was a "aignifi- the cumulative illlpacts. One lnci-·: .scnption ~tates, if a_group of indi the herd will move inti! tbe vicinity cant adverse effect," a terJil that dent, it may be rationalized, would . viduals m a localized a~ea is of the well this year as it has in pre pops up ·frequently wben conflicts not jeopardize the pOpulation -of a a_ffec~.ed ove~ a ~h~rt .penod. of vio~ years. They do lmow, howev between wildlife resources and in- species, but wben added to all other tillle. That de~!cnptJon IS fraught. er, that displacement from prefer du.strial activities arise, be told me Incidents, the population can besig- with subjectivity. How large is red habitat can result in increased no. nificantly affected. Where is the localized ~rea? How many ln~- calf mortallty. Would it be signifi Let's take a loolt at this incident line drawn? It's unfortunately a vidualiUllllmals makes a group· cant? in a broader perspective. This par- subjective judgment. . Now let's take a look at the other Without a clear idea of how the ticular bear is one of three who Another problem intrinsic to tbe side. The Porcupine herd has never well will affect the cari>ou and with were known to be pregnant and use of this phrase as a deterJillnlng before been disturbed by oil drill the burden of proof sitting on its wbolledensitesbadbeenlocatedon factor in placing limits on lndust- ing. The Canadians have never shoulders, the Fish .i!nd Wildlife tbe refuge. To assume that one- rial activity 1n order to protect allowed, andourCongressneverin Service must make a decision. De tbird of all pregnant polar bears wildlife resources is that the inter- tended for this type of activity to . spite obvious and pote:ltially signi are losing their cubs due to oil and pretatlon of the phrase varies. The compete with the caribou. Con-· ficant conflicts with vtildlife, deci gas activities probably distorts discrepancy between how 1, as an gress, when it enacted the 1002 seis : > *"',~· sions are often made to allow in > ,. :·!. reality, let's say in 10 of tbe environmentalist, would define sig- mic program, never envisioned · ;:.; ', .~ so one ex dustrial activity. Unfortunately, ... .> polar bears capable of reproducing nificant and what Industry would ploratory wells on the refuge with what will likely happen in the case is being disturbed. By my calcula- consider significant is significant. out congressional authorization. of tbe Porcupine Her:! is that the ")~ tiona, that means 285 polar bear But because former Interior Fish and Wildlife Se!"Tice will find .\{~.~~ cubs annually never make it out of For instance, an exploratory well Secretary Watt slid through a land what is a "signific.1nt adverse ,.;,. ' " { ~':.:4 • , •. ~· {. the den alive. being drilled on Native corporation exchange, the authority of Con- effect" after it occurs a.nd after it is Would this be considered a "slg- lands within the refuge is to be shut gress was sidestepped. too late to avoid. . When does harm to a polar bear become a "slgniftcant adver nificant adverse effect" to the po- down for the summer unless the enough, argues environmentalist Mike Mats. · lar bear population in Ala8lta? Sub- Fish and Wildlife Service deter- Still, for Congress to usurp the The phrase "&i!S'nificantly aiattnce hunter• statewide took minoa tbe operations will not "alg· normal authority of the Fish and. adversely effects" is mappropriate consider cumulative illlpacts. And appears the Fish and Wildlife Ser that many last year. nltleantly adversely affect" the WUdllleServlcetoauthorlzeoUand and lnadequato In trylnll protoot booauao It doala with populatlonA vice Ia stuck with it. Th<~ polar Obviou1ly, that extrapolation caribou whlletbey are calving. Tbe gas leasing demonstrates how wlldll!e populations :rom Indust instead of habitat, It is lmpoulble · bears and caribou-the 1'1!11()Urcet C!Ould IM!n~fuiAid. Dul whalll.~~Uinlll declalon hlngllll on what oo111tltutes ~~erloualy It• members felt about rial development. It ila impossible to Implement in the field. the Fish and Wildlife Service issup flllf l.ll lltlll fit~~ Jthrltlll' "AI!IIIIII~IIIII II ""llllllriP•III A4v•r.- llffll(lJ" IO proloollnl fiNh and wildlife ro· to qllllntlfy objectlvol)', It 11111• to l"or thu llmt btinl(, thoul(h, il po!M!d to protect-..an~ tho I-rs. • ""'u~~.aa a1uue \Jommls&lon of r~~~tl,;-g ....~"111lQUJ~ measure offering re~~~ue;·;;f the additional windfall profits are reduced, the bia-h: b:mu.l oil a~, Ruch ·magnitude deserves tax revenues accruing to the er wellhead value of tiw: oil Alasa&a." ,;.,rioua scrutiny by the Preai· f..deral government as a result would "provide the oil U:.dne- Ot:tner bends; U: dent and Congresa." · · of lifting the ban range from . "Your leadership in this mat- $200 to $1 billion per year," the terie essential to ensuring that Governor ~~aid. "I believe that it receives proper considers· anymeasureofferingrevenuea tion," the Governor said in a of such magnitude deserves letter delivered to President serious scrutiny by the Presi· Reagan's budget chief, David dent and Congress." Stockman. The increased federal reve- Sheffield planned to meet nue results from reducing with various administration . transportation costa. Now, officials while in Washington, roughly half of North Slope D.C.,inlateFebruarytoattend production, or 800,000 barrels the annual meeting of the a day, "must undergo an ex National Governors' Associa- pensive and inefficient journey tion. Removing the export ban to the U.S. Gulf and East Chevron starts drilling on the 1st exploratory well in Arctic Refuge Chevr~n U.S.A. has initiated Chevron's work on the No- drilling on the first explora· tive lands - near the coast at tory well on Native lands near Kaktovik about 75 miles east the Arctic National Wildlife of Prudhoe Bay - likely will Refuge, an area considered high· influence Congress' decision. ly prospective by the oil in· ii commercial quantities of oil dustry. and gas are found it likely oil The well is expected to take exploration will be permitted several months to drill. Chev· on the plain. ron says the well may have to Chevron exploration mana· be shut down and drilling re- ger Tom Cook said the com· sumed next win.terifoperations pany intends to abide by wha· Another large shipment of SumJ~oom:D:p!pe ..__,, interfere with caribou calving tever decision federal wildlife the MV World Diamond delll'S'M -ut 7,5111' in spring. . -officials make, even though lacllllles In Falrbanka, Alaska Ia .._ Pon ,., ·faido Chevron began drilling on shutting down the well and ceremony lor the World Diamond-..'kom ~ lands owned by the Kaktovik • starting it up next winter will Sumltomo Corp., Valdez Mayor JomT Devent..at VII InupiatCorp.andArcticSlope ·be costly.

Re~onalCorp.Thea~agei' 1 ------~------: privately owned by surrounded . ' I bythefederalrefuge. BOATEL Alaska, Inc. The Refuge, set aside by Con· gress, has become a bone of EKER NORTH ~MERI.~~ A Division of Boatel . ·r_ contention between environ- ·' -:·~ .. 't. ·. '· • • "~ • .. · 1111 F:~~~~~s,!:e:t':.1is~e !~!~s~ COMPLE.!~. CAMP S~PPORT SYSTEMS ~I refuge left alone while the in- OUR MAIN GOAL-- -To maintain the high morale of your &"npMOyee~ 1'1! Ill!: dustryseesitasoneofthebest uch ~eep11~ id untapped areas for oil and gaa serving quality meals, providing personal servi~es s _a~. . . __ • discovery in the u.s. laundry, commissary supplies and even recreatiOnal actrVJtieS. I Seismic testing has been al- OTHER SERVICES---Security and Complete Camp Life SupportSystel'l'li.

~·:;:!t;l!e o}·th!'~~~;e ~~ 26 YEARS ~F ALASKA R~~OTE SITE CAMP CATERJNCG. }~ -: · it is to be decided next year · -- - · · · • · - I ~ Ahether to allow exploration ' :.:·. ' · · •·· · . ·· • WORLDWIDEo • · z. ·· - ~-"·'·· ~ :y the industry. . . 10-Man camps to 2,500-Man camps • • ·•· :. - I ::":- ·::-:.. :o c ."'"": CALL (907) 243-5255-or TELEX illl90-iskc -t ·.& ~-£=--~:?:~;:-::"'- , ~ ,_'*..:._1:,:80.:,1.:_,~.:.:· ~..:.~:1;..C"!:_:.~;;,·~-,.;,;.~ ~;..·0 ~;,;.~.;;,·';;,:.··~;..·~-::__:_.~-~~·-BT_o:_:.;. 3-4,~;..- ..;~·91;....,~":' -':--~,_;_.;.._ c 0rro s i 0 ll. ;.:.:..::· ...... :.c.,:-___!.":':.._-.;.'·_,_.;_._ .. .. -·=:_=B Continued from Page 9 :·-:".;·~:·:-~:;";" ~AS-msU:nd~rdfo~ .. ;::'.;~:.: ~,:!.: quirementa for Accrediting Authorities and Personnel Re' ., · aponsible for Design and/or'. ;_~_:.;.;.: Certification of Personnel for: .-. ;"~.:.;.::~ Nuclear Coapng.Worlr,,~' cur-·,,:~:.'.,Y-'; -;_ rently being .. !l(!velope_d bi-·Jf:,., --·::'0t:~~:~;:~u~.5'~~!:i~p~~·f:/i · ,-:-·· • gram• involve llny traininte .:f~:~:: nrtl'I.P DT!3~; ...... ~ ...... ,_ ·' --··· .

I I I '""····

: !~~~~~~~~Jh~r~~-~~~Pr!l,p;,J~· ~~; 4 r~~t~J;}; ·a, ,,· ·s. ------. ~\J,': ," ,kL~,+:,,~>,',', ~',z,\:".' \') ,<,' ;:-\l:·,d'~~ '",J 5 'i~,"'·,Jf ,n"'" J1,r ,,:'.>/~',;·Hi::r,/,ilJ:: ',i:;i. N'me rep~ntatives from AlllS"·• :inMatz 1 said:envir!Jnme!l~!lli$tS ; ; ka-based conservation tgOups wj!IJ,,(rom. Alaska. want\ld. to. ma~e a' .• , ~Jobbying next week in Washing-, • ~tJ:l,l~sho\Ving at the.~ffltiljg.j!a!ld ·.· ·~~~()n,.~.C,..,()~.a varijlty,ofAl~a~,IIl,~h\l~ob!>y;e~fort:r.ls":nr. !·l ''''' .~ .;}!!SUes.• , .. ••:;,g; ,, ••. ·.;·: ,.,. ; .•ld ~~jts!mportantf()J:themto ·s . I'·•·.The Alaslui·~alttion,.!l,broad'; ,have cori~(lt.with:Pll9P,le)nA/a!l: ' · .based conservation tgOUp,that was'' ka," Matzsald. He said Pll9Plebere •l ~· ac:tiv(ldurmgfo~!ltion of~<:.Aia!l' '4:are ··more•famillar .wlth(;spe~i(l;•:i Vkalandsact, Wlllbeholdhlgseveral, ·probtemson public landsJcl·'l'h•t#;.i\ · ~ ni\l:' ",l'Y? ;'t>'"',: ·,,L;::::,;,:v",'' 2:. Matz \V.ill be .. traveling t.o'' .· .· ·"' · I'Wasblrigto!)~,a~.~elllee~~ • · ·. '• ; . i • . ~andlobby. . · I•'Iir,ansportabon ('\ "The Northern Center's ~lflc. ~i. ' ~ >•, ').~'/ , . · ·(concerns 81'4~Jqr the most p~, *(bSCUSSIODS set ; r'with the placer mining problem .'. ·i·; • . ~theRS. 24T7lssite,.and the super- ,Issues and problems in Alaska'S"' ''fluoull,arid wildlife-endangerlrig oil ansportaUon ~stems will he dis- . ~exploration now under way on the · · at the second annual Alaska: . Arctic:Natiomil Wildlife Refuge,"· Transportation Forum,AprillS-16 IMatzsaid. i!l;the,W,iY/1\I_I;lJ\• W~.Ce.nt.er. •k 10 '"' w,~,',,,,,i;,_\;_,,~wL;h/,,,,A, d;«d)q~c.,··""'-'"""""-'-.;,....,.,...,.,...,.,===...,.,==,.,.,...... , '""''''0%1!\: ~:%.<0,t,]L_,,,,J)h,~'ii'<,;,WJ;;.l• 'j,Ui., ·, ...

Anchor~Qe Dally News Friday. J..prill2. 1WE5 Groups try to stop drilling in EnvironmentaJists want new Chevron well ------refuge shut down to protect caribou, geese

B) Pt. Til EPLER "We vcill address It irr.mediately," he said. Da· f Ne~·s b..:si~e~ rc;>::>"1e· "We exp~t to r.ave E response prepr.red by Ei~l:.t e:-.dror.r..er,\.i w!?i!k." ft-oHa~ ro\·e:n:ne::: tc. shut oown oil-well Co~~erv&tion po;Jps ;;nc Natives in thE C:-ili!:1r v:ithir. tht J... r::-iic l\c~ionc.J \rildlift re-gior. han beer, cor.cernec tl-.< c::illinf ..:ill Ref~ft rj~):t mor.H·, tc· )::ote~t x:1irr.:ting carl· upse: th( cGribo:.>. which re\.:rr. there e;.:!. be'..: 1'tcC~ u .. C s:-Jov· fE-t:st. spring for ceh·in~. CLevror. t:SA be~aL cirillint; a well lit In ~ letter acted 'Ibul"Scay, the con~e:n·a:ior. KEl:tovil: two mo::Jths ago. Tne site near the gro.,ps asl: Robert Gilmore, regional director Arctic coast is on 1'\a~ive corporation lands for the U.S. Fish ;;nd Wildlife Sen·ice, to that are surrounclecl by the reluge. ~u~J.>eml dJ!Illur, !1 OIL :Mny 1 to Sept. 1. Tne oil industry sees the refuge as one of Tne letter is signed by Trustees for Alaska, the best un~appec &reas for onshore oil and The Wilderness Society, Sierra Club, 1'\ational gas discovery in the United States. Audubon Society, Northern Alask& En,·iron· Em·ironment6.l groups -..·ant the refuge left mental Center, Friends of the Er.rtb, Ameri· ;;lone. cs.n Wiloerness .Alli&Dce lind the .Alaska Cen Tne Chevron e.xploratory -..·ell is located ter for the Environment. about 75 miles east of Prodboe Bay, the The groups -..·ant the Kaktovik area de larfest oil field in the nation. The well is the clared a "special area" under provisions of a first for the 18 million-acre refuge. land exchange with the _federaJ government George Sura, a spokesman for the U.S. Fish that gave the acreage to the Arctic Slope and Wildlife Sen..·ice, said Thursday the agen Regional Corp. • cy bad just received the request and 'IJ:as Now, the fish and wildlife director can stnp gathering information on the drilling pro the drilling if be finds "significant harm" to gram. the caribou or snow geese. But the environ-

mental groups think that provision leaves the calving and post-calving before the well ca:c government and the oil company too· much be shut do-..'D." leeway. The letter urges the government to conside= "The person currently responsible for m&k n~ inr the decisions se,ems to be the (fish and the "great resource at stake here and the: -..·iJdlife) monitor at the well site, -..·ho ob· to adopt a conservative approach to the vious!y will be under incredible pre~sure to protection of that resource." allo-..· drilling to continue," the letter said. Congress is to decide n~ year -..·bether the "Second ... the current agreement is large coastal plaln of the refuge should be opene:! ly unworkable, for it contemplates making for exploration. A:n oil discovery by Che;·ro:o decisions -..·ithout sufficient time to protect could result in a decision by Congress to allo"" the caribou. That is, caribou may arrive in tb& further exploration. region of the ·well and suffer damage d~ring

-2-

I I i RECEIVED APR 2 2 1005

1"11.,. ' . . :1~ Caribou vs. oil and gas development. "(!·~ in the Arctic Wildlife Refuge. ., ' _., "~ By Jim Stratton .. ~. THE NEW regional director of the U.S. In a questionable land exchange, fa- · quire Chevron to begin closing down 11 Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in cilitated by former Interior Secretary plenty of time to be out ol there by May 1 Alaska is bltlklng at protecting the wildlife . James Watt, the Arctic Slope Regional as called for In the land exchange agree- reMJurces of the Arctic Nauonal Wildlife Corp. (ASRC) obtamed subsurface rights ment; , ·. ·;,;· . . . · ketu)(e. The most Significant of these re to 93,000 acres of the Arctic Range. Chev ,.Jurt·t's is the Porcupme caribou Herd. ron is now drilling a test well in that area, · UNFORTUNATELY, the decision 01 EClS that infest the more interior regions grounds as early as May 1. The land ex· USFWS's charge Is to provide maxi· or rile high arcuc. change agreement calls for the USFWS to mum protection lor the re:tuge's re.sourcea :·he canbou have been going there for ensure that no Significant adverse impact This includes ensuring that exploratior. tho~nas of years with subsistence hunt· will occur to the caribou herd. They have doesn't pose a significan: lmpect on calv· er~ and, now, occasional aircraft being the the authority to shut down drilling on May 1 ing and post and protect the refuge's resources. primary calving and post-calving habitat allow any development activity to affect These resources, and especially the car l>ecause.ol operation of the test well. the herd on Its side of the border. That the ibou, are threatened by oil and gas develop USFWS may allow Chevr.m to drill beyond ment. RESEARCHERS have suggested that May 1 rues in the face of il.s very chaner. ·displacement during calving causes higher We are not asking Chevron to shut down DURING THE Alaska Lands Act de calf mortality, but they can't predict the forever, just to be reasonable and take tbe bate, enVJronmemalists adamantly fought magnitude. Researchers have also in summer off while the caribou use the area. agamst any development activities in dicated that displacement from areas of Besides ... the oil Isn't going anywhere. A.'I;WR. Gtven that oil and gas develop low insect populations causes a greater ex· And it's more than a !lUI' trade: caribou '•. mt'nr can occur on 80 percent of the Arctic . pendlture of energy and possibly affects three months, oil company nine. The most ~horehne, environmemaltsts feel that the over-winter survival. The Chevron well compassionate move wowd be for Chevron Arcuc Nauonal Wildlife Refuge should be may displace the caribou from a preferred to voluntarily Jive up to iiS agreement and ldt alone. Penod. calving and low insect area. stop drilling. Unfortunatecy, compassion is However, in the spirit of compromise, The problem is one of timing. USFWS not an oil company vinue. enVJrorunentalists agreed that studies to has indicated it will onl shut down the well Our only hope for prots:ting the caribou tdenufy what oil and gas possibilmes lie after Ma 25 and onl if the caribou et lies with the USFWS and its new reg10na: wrthm the refuge was probably a reason WI! m two miles. evron says it w take director, Bob Gilmore, -not shut down, contends a coali migrating caribou and snow tion : cf eight environmental geese due to arrive in tbe area groups. in the spring. . But Chevron officials said . The ·environmentalists, who a May shutdown was part of fear the drilling may be another t.ht pl11.11 ail aluug. ~f!'Jl towArd opening tho Artltio Breakup in tbe arne is af. National Wildlife Refuge to oil fecting the company's use of . development, asked federal offi· an Ice road and airstrip, :. dals this week to stop all drilling among other things, said :~trom May I to Sept.IO. George Day, Chevron spokes- -:. A U.S. Flsh and Wildlife Ser man. · ' .'!lice spokesman said Thursday The well is being drilled at ")he agency will respond to the en -Kaktovik on Native-held Jvlronmentalists' .request early lands within the 18 JDilllon "-'nextweek. . acre refuge, which lies .in tbe :: Meanwhile, an official with northeast comer of the state. ... the ilrllling .comjllllly, Chevron ''I'he wildlife refuge 1ias ·.be-/·:. USA. Int.· said a iedeten:nmed ·. come a battleground forjmVi: . · shut&wii&telS~tneedeeets in tbe Jllltion. • : · 1lt any time, If the Porcu- Drl1ling operations might · .Caribou:herda.PJ?f08ches too · disrupt calving among carl- .. the well; '· · · ·. · :·· · · · bou in tbe Procupine herd;. eight environment&) croups "If oui operation In any way said last week in requesting · . see Drillln& page A-14 • tbe halt. . . Day said Chevron will start tbe shutdown about May 1 and should be finished by mid•May. The company will - resume drilling next winter, he said.

-3- DrilliT g may disrupt calving

Continued f!llm ~uotse A·l estimated to' contain at least Cook said the company wou1d 100,!ro caribou, migrates each require up to two weeks' I10!ice spring from wintering grounds in to shut down the well. By that interferes with the caribou calv· Canada's Yukon Territories to time, Adler said, the damage ing, we'll cease operation," he calving grounds on Alaska's arc· would be done. said. tic coastal plain. The environmental groups The well is located near Kak· The environmental groups are have fought the exploratory well tovic, a small coastal Eskimo vii·· concerned that the drilling will because an oil discovery there !age In Alaska's northeastern ·disrupt the herd during and im· would lead to more pressure to comer. The drilling area is on medlately after calving, perhaps open large areas of the wildiife private land surrounded by the causing the death of cows and refuge to oil development. Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. newborn calves. Congress is expected to de The Arctic Slope Regional "They're at their lowest en· cide in 1986 whether to open the native corporation has owned ergy level, and they need as refuge to exploration. The fed subsurface rights to the drilling much energy as possible to get eral government hal: conducted area since 1983, when the Fish tl;trough the calving season," seismic testing the last two win- and Wildlife Service gave it up in Adler said Thursday. · . ters to assess the area's oil and exchange for land in Gates of ~ The groups want the Fish and gas potential. Arctic National Park. The fed- Wildlife Service to declare the If Cl.evron is allowed to drill eral agency stiU regulates activi· land around the well a "special after May 1, "this would set: a ties in the area because it is sur· . area," thus boosting the agency's bad precedent for drilling during rounded by the wildlife refuge. authority to close the area to pro- the caribou's calving seasoo if Chevron started its explora- teet the caribou. The groups also they do open up the rest of the tory drilling this winter. Cook want special protection for snow coastal plain for oil develop said drilling won't be finished geese and other arctic bird popu ment," Adler said. this spring as originally ex- lations that use the area in late Joining the Trustees for pected, but it will be suspended summer. Alaska in the request for caribou for the summer because warm Adler criticized Chevron's protection were the Wilderness weather will destroy an ice air· suggestion of closing down the Society, the Sierra Club, the strip that serves the operation. well only if the can'bou approach. Northern Alaska Environmental But the ice breakup may come There probably would be a dis Center, Friends of the Earth, the after the can'bou arrive, said Ro- .. pute over whether the. drilling . r.;ational Audubon .Sciety, the bert Adler, a lawyer for Trustees was causing "significant" barm . American. Wilderness 'Alliance for Alaska, one of the environ- to the herd,· and ·a shutdown· and the Alaslta Center for the mental groups. · ·order might . come too late, be Environment. The Porcupine can'bou herd, said. · ·

-4-

iI Appeals Oppose Northland Three other parties besides the people of Tuluksak have now appealed BLM's decision approving Northland Gold Dredging's 1984 plan of operations on the Gold Plan To Dredge Tuluksak Tuluksak River. The company's plan calls ford'overting about a mile of the main channel and dredging for gold in the gravels of the riverbed. Two individuals, Jeffrey W. Sanders and Dr. John White, have appealed because of concerns about fisheries impacts. Another appeal was filed bY Mayor Joe Sullivan for the City of Bethel. Sullivan's appeal is based on a concern that the operation will affect the commercial fishery and in turn impact the economy of Bethel. The people of Tuluksak, represented by attorneys for the Trustees of Alaska. filed an appeal in March, asking the Interior Department Board of Land Appeals to halt mining until the appeal is resolved. Attorneys representing Tuluksak consider an environmental statement necessary. Villagers in the area are concerned that the operation will affect drinking water and fish, especially the salmon run. They also have concerns about access to areas used for hunting and fishing and about disturbance to old graves and battlegrounds. The BLM, however, had previously advised the villagers they should provide more details about the gravesites and battlegrounds, because an archeologist had cleared the area before the plan of operations was approved. BLM prepared an environmental assessment and added a number of stipulations to the amended 1984 Plan of Operations before finally approving it in February 1985. Miners in the past have previouslY diverted several stretches of the Tuluksak River. Past mining by others has also disturbed about 3500 acres. The Northland Gold plan of operations projects the disturbance of about 50 acres of ground annually. Habitat would also be altered on the part of the valley that was dredged. Among other things; the stipula!oons BLM attached to the plan require the company to: 'dewater the channels slowly to allow fish to leave them and avoid entrapment 'capture and move fish that ·are trapped during dewatering 'screen other channels to prevent fish from entering active dredging area 'maintain at least a 100-foot wide undisturbed buffer strip along the active main channel 'develop salmon spawning areas in existing tailing channels 'stabilize and revegetate tailings • stabif'lze and ma·ontain sed·omentaflon basons to prevent sediment from entering the discharge waters. ' , . The company filed the original 1984 plan of operations in December 1983.

'85 Selamlc Work This season's seismic work on the Arctic National Wiodlole Refuge is now nearing completion. Good snow cover this year has helped the work, so Winding Up On ANWR Geophysical Service, Inc., was able to collect 465 miles of line by March 21 and expected to collect another 50 moles during the last week of March. Jim Callahan, BLM Assistant District Manager for Minerals, commented. "They're well on schedule and had a good Reason. We're also starting to rec-·'ve the seismic records now." This year the company is using the seismic vibrator technique (not shot-hole explosives) on the project. BLM expects the work to be finished by mid·April. Work is also moving on schedule on the oil and gas evaluation report the BLM. the U.S. Geological Survey, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are jointly preparing on the refuge. This report is due for complet"lon by mid-fall.

ENERGY QUARTERLy summames news highltghts related to energy and minoraloxploratton and development m Alaska. It tS publtshod m January. April, July, and October by the Bureau of Land Management, Olftc'J of Public Affalfs, 701 C Stroot, Box 13, Anchorago. Alaska 99513. George Gurr, Chtef, Publtc Affa~rs: Paul Sawucool, Edttor·m·Chtel; Jane Mangus. Wntor!Edttor; Vateno Attuda. Typo!otttu. and Jtm Mroczek, IIJustrator.

iI I i BLM/F&WS Olflclala Tour On March 4 and 5, BLM Alaska State Director Mike Penfold visited the seismic operations on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge with Dave Olson, Acting Selamlc Operation• Regional Director of the Fish & Wildlife Service; AI Powers. Regional Director of the Minerals Management Service; and Jim Callahan, BLM Alaska Assistant District Manager for Minerals. The trip was made to acquaint Penfold with operating conditions on the North Slope during winter. The group stayed overnight at a camp in the central part of the refuge south of Barter Island, where Geophysical Service Inc.'s crew 1186 was collecting seismic vibrator data. The North Slope cooperated with a show of winter weather that included blowing snow and whiteout conditions. The group's Twin Otter was the last plane to get in that day. Then they were weathered in and unable to fly to the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska and Barrow as planned.

BLM Adjudicators Beat Goal BLM is conquering a huge backlog of oil and gas lease assignment applications that piled up during last year's five-month moratorium on processing the applications. BLM Director Robert Burford halted the work while a new rule was being considered. The rule was part of a long-range effort the government is making to stop abuses by a few unscrupulous lease filing companies. Meanwhile, more applications poured into BLM, even though none could be processed. More than a thousand new applications stacked up before the order was given in September to resume work. To grapple with the backlog, BLM set a stiff goal. Adjudicators were asked to process a total of 6500 assignment offers by October 1, 1985. That amounts to 1500 more than usual. Processing lease assignments takes painstaking care. Application forms have to be carefully researched. Rental accounting procedures are complex and time consuming. Legal documents must be checked and rechecked. Paperwork must be exact so it will hold up in court. Now, driving hard to get the job done, the adjudication staff has actually exceeded every month's goal since October. They have done this in spite of . worker turnover and major changes in processing methods. The bar graph below illustrates their accomplishment.

Number of lease Assignments 800 0 Monthly Go•l 711 8.TIIT) Monthly Achievement ¢:

600

400 iW w ~HH 208 200o~~~]'=,~~!~~··~··~~~···~·~~~~~···~·~ Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Oaly New. etatf and wire reportS T.le U.S. Supreme Court's refusal Monday to hear an appeal by Alaska :Sativea seeking title to wildlife re! u;Ie la.nd means that 100 to 150 Natives will have to take their land diillns to Congress, their lawyer !aid. "'lbh .s the end of the judicial road· fc,r these people," said Tred E~eriy o~ Alaska Legal Services. "We're looldng into the possibility of legislative relief.. That's our last opportunity to get this land as Na------~;··-...-...-----·-·-- --.-~ .. - -···-"" jr:;r::~l~~~!f~f"7~':~',.- .•....· .. · . I ---- %· Q~.•. ;:l>:J:,'":.Aoc~ora~~ .. O.~ily t:-Je.I,N,~ Sunday, May 26,.1985. :;~. ;,; ~t.~ .. ~'L:·.i" ,;,'-··· ,, .· ~ . ! I' ·' .. : • ~ ~~ }'\ r"'f'~~:)!

/ffl,;~"'' . . Anci'IOriiQ8 Daily~ lie photo,, ,':.::Wolves found dead from rabies ·.• · Rabies have killed four wolves In the Arctic National Wildlife · Refuge, according to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. The state agency Is warning hunters, anglers and backpackers ···. · venturing Into the area to be on the alert for dead animals or ·, animals behaving strangely. The discovery of'So many wolves , ,' killed by rabies In such a small area could Indicate a major · , rabies outbreak, a state official said. The wolves apparently • . : picked up the rabies from foxes. People finding dead animals. should avoid contact with the carcasses and notify fish and · game of the discovery. , . ·· .· : · -- ·· · ·" Pt; ~r~t ~~"': ',_ .. · t:'"/T )/ RECEiVED MAY 2 2 i 1985 Pagt~28 ALASKA OIL 6 GAS NEWS May 1985 , .. .:,·· ·chevr-on to quit refuge. a'ro·ii1n"d'Ma'y:~:1·-s··:· The FJ\.h and Wildlife Ser· operations continued after drillingactivitieowoulddiaturb fore the planned May 16 ohut- ._.tion.,,\1(· :; · -·. Yicehuannouncedthat,baoed. mid·May. ,· caribou during calving and down .date. However, should · · • · ··"· · · on information provided by The coastal plain ;., uoed by . poet-calving periods. Environ· conflicto arine, remedial mea· . The !ede~l 'WUdlife 'a&-~ru.'lt· Chevron Oil Company,drilling the 140,1)(J(l.animal Porcupine mentalist. asked the Service sures would be taken jointly · eilid it would not eotabliah a . oPeratiotl. on an exploratory · caribou herd aa a calving to close the area to all explora· with Chevron, an agency offi· "special area·~ thia year. Hilt- ---- well located in private and ground, according to previous . tory activities during the period cialaaid, that FWS hao torically; largt conce'ntrationa. within the coaotal plain of the studies made by biologisto.Ac- of May 1 to Aug. 31. had and t.u continuo of caribou have not moved inh ArcticNatioDAIWildlifeRefuge cording to a FWS spokesman,· The Service does not anticl· the vicinity of the well aito will cease on or about May 1. Chevron official• at the meet- until mid.June and, in some Thia will be followed by a ing stated that tho company . not at all. :, total shutdown of activities had already decided to shut ',1 around May 15. · down drilling by May 1 for ~ ~ The announcement follows technical reasor~• aaaociated ·.:;. a meeting of FWS Regional with the operation itoelf. ~ '·I~", Office officiall with repreoen·. They plan to resume drilling '' ,. ,, .. • ' ·. • ,' • ;:, tativ.. of Chevron and Arctic next winter. .·:,,. Fnendlrest .. Slope Regional Corporation. Prior to the meeting, eight The meeting waa called to dia- environmental groups- urged c:u.u plana for avoiding con· the Fish and Wildlife Service , •• , '. •· ., .: ! Hotel· . fficta that could arise becauoe to declare the coaetal plain a . of caribou movement. in the "caribou calving and post..:alv· . -~·Fi;.· Fairba~ks"''· · ~ n""'j Kaktovik if drilling ing apecial area," alleging that. ·.

'. t; ..• ; ~ ·~ ·-~ •'.;·: .: >' WBRIPLATE can provide · ;":rL;·.·.; : ·oFFERING:·.'~~~-~.:-:.. ;,· th~t Superior Lubricant ; Food & BilVerage Service • ~\ ....., . You Need. " Cable/Color TV's in All Rooms • .• Larfle Newly Refurbished Rooms : ., We Reimburse for Airport Limo.-.·-~··· • Happy Hour Weekdays 5-6 PM _.-:: '_': Most Drinks $1 .. , ·.•.. ; ...• >~' a Right Downtown ·~·-.:·• .• :~:.<; .. ·; -~- ... ' .•. -~ ; ..• · i. ~;.;- ... f.

; Exc:l~sive D~tnltator OTI=IUI.I=OI.IID....L..Q.II.DDI'"'V""'". I

··-~ RECiiOn 7 "--~

George Sura, Publlt Alfalfl Officer' North Slope Field Station Honors Naturalist A new Service field station, to be built at Kaktovik on Alaska's North Slope, will be dedicated to the memory of the late Angus Gavin In recognition of his pioneering en vironmental work In the Alaskan Arc Angus Gavin pf!Oto counesy ARCO Alaska tic. Gavin was an environmental ad· In 1969, Robert 0. Anderson, chair visor to Atlantic Richfield Co. during man of the Atlantic Richfield Co., per (· .. '.! ,. development of the Prudhoe Bay oil suaded Gavin, then 61, to join Atlan ... field. According to Hank Rosenthal, a tic Richfield as an advisor and spokesman for ARCO Alaska, Inc., surveyor of wildlife and vegetation on on Goose Management Gavin worked on the North Slope the the North Slope. last 13 summers of his life, studying Rosenthal said that when Gavin ar its fragile environment and devising rived on the North Slope, the Nation cont. from p. 5 ways to preserve it. was experiencing a groundswell of On another front, the Service is The field station at Kaktovik will concern for environmental protec working toward ratifying a protocol serve the needs of the Arctic National tion. Development of the Prudhoe Bay amendment to the 1916 U.S./Canada Wildlife Refuge. The building will be field was one of the focal points of migratory bird treaty to provide a designed to accommodate up to 20 this concern. Gavin's new role as en legal basis for regulating subsistence . ~ employees on a seasonal basis and vironmental ·consultant to the com harvest. Recognizing the validity of ' will provide office space and a pany was highly visible both Inside subsistence hunting would greatly storage area. The living area of the and outside the company. facilitate enforcing limits on the facility will display a plaque con Gavin Is quoted as once saying, harvest of waterfowl during the structed of natural materials "I've had newspeople ask me If work spring and summer. dedicating the building to Gavin's Ing for an oil company, I am not In Many persons in Alaska and memory. The remainder of the wall fluenced In their favor. My answer is elsewhere have criticized what they will be devoted to framed that I am a professional, and regard believe to be a lack of progress in photographs depicting Gavin at less of whether 1 work for an oil com managing Delta geese. These con various places and times in his life pany, a timber company, or the cerns are understandable, but the and to other available memorabilia. government, 1 call the shots as I see 1985 management plan reflects Gavin, both engineer and zoologist, them." substantial progress in just 2 years. was a native of Scotland. He began All who knew Gavin agree that his Subsistence hunting in Alaska has his career in 1929 as a zoologist with work was pioneering, the publication been occurring for thousands of the Hudson's Bay Co. in the Canadian says. This was particularly true with years. The emphasis on obtaining Arctic. He studied populations of fur his work on caribou and waterfowl cooperation from hunters to volun bearing animals to help the company migrations. No one had studied these tarily comply with harvest restrictions determine its trapping program and phenomena for as long or as con and the degree of commitment that the locations of its trading posts. tinuously as he. appears to be surfacing Is un In 1945, Gavin joined Ducks Gavin's influence earned him a na· precedented in waterfowl manage Unlimited, Inc., and spent 24 years tional conservation award in 1981. He ment. It sets the stage for wise use of with the organization formed to was invited to the White House, a resource as we collectively begin preserve North American waterfowl in where he was personally con the long task of rebuilding popula Canada and the U.S. gratulated by President Reagan. ""1'('" tions of geese. ""1'('" l page20 l

:~. B-8 Suodaf• September 8, 1885, Tbe Anchorage Tlmel . Keeping watch on wildlife,

bv.. ·J... satellite·-··' ··--·- ··-'· ~ ~ .... •.

by David fO&Ier -... . "They're gou1g out mUle worst environments to .... get data on animals. In doing so, people get killed," hen caribou No. 5871 beds down for a said David Beaty, a partner at Telonics Inc., which nap on the tundra, researcher Larry claims to be the world's largest manufaciurer or W P'.mk knows it, 400 miles away in the ' animal-tracking devices. . . comfon of his Fairbanks olfice. "Now they can sit back at their CRT (cathode A fiSt-Sized transmitter on the caribou's neck ray tube) and collect two to stx position fixes a day and a Jl!lir oflillteUites 510 miles overhead chan the -and we don'tlose any scientists." arumaJ s every movement as It migrates across nonheastem Alaska. Telonics, based ilJ Mesa, Ariz., designs satellite transmitters to fit ll!llmzda llround the world, ilj· ,"With some degree ot reliability, we can teU It he s Standing, . Iyin~ running or walking," said Pank, a btologJst WUh the U.S. Fish and Wildlife eluding humpback whales off Newfoundland, red Servtce. "The amowu ot data you can collect trom deer In New Zealand, manlltees in Florida, and thiS IS amazmg. It's son ot llke standing at the back polar bears llOd musk oxen in AlllSka. end of~ el~phant. It overwhelms you." Satellite tracking Is especially U~~etul on Al!iske's By diaJ"!g up a. compu«!r, Pank can pin down North Slope, where researchers are If! the canbou s locauon to wtlhln 1,600 feet. A ther hurcyms. mometer Ill the lrd.nSmitter tells him apprOXimate a1r temperature. A motion-sensing switch detects study the environmental. ~~~~s of oil and gas de how many Urnes, and to what degree the animal moves tts head each hour. • velopment. ~nd I~ . Satellite tracking has enabled Pank and re Since spring, Pank other scientists with searchers worldwide to study wildlife in ways Fish and Wildlife Semce and ~ Alaske Oepan never before (>OSSlble. Satellites can follow African ment of Fish and Game have monitored the 150,000. elephants across hostile borders closed to biolo giSts. Not Wlly can they chan a gray whale's WandennjlS 111 the Pacific, -they can tell how often and deep u dives. Satellites also make routine tracking tasks safer and less expenstve. B!ologists have long USed radio telemetry to track wtldlife, but a radio trarismitt er's hmued range forces researchers into the field to collect data. That often means flying over re more cowury, 10 ull seasons ~nrl \w~:.rh~r member Porcupine caribou herd, which migrates between the North Slope and Canada's Yukon Ter ritory. They captured 10 animals, fitted them with transmitter collars, and returned them to the herd. Now, about 25 times a day, one of two weather sa t~llites streaks overhead at 18,000 mph, picking up Signals. The messages are recorded, then dumped as the satellite passes over a ground receiver in interior Alaska. The data is relayed to Toulouse, France, where the French space agency CNES t!allSlates the encoded messages and stores them on comput ers for retrieval by researchers. Experiments with satellite tracking of animals began early last decade, Beaty said. The satellites qf3-/!6 were ready; the trick has been making t!allSmitt ers. powerful enough to reach into space :Yet smaU enough not to impede the animal. There have been setbacks. Fi!.h and Wildlife scientists last year tried solar-powered t!allSmitt ers on swans in Alaska. In the arctic cold, the transmitters died, the birds disappeared, and the scientists went back to the drawing board. But successes are starting to outnumber the fai lures. Telonics claims a three-year perlect record for transmitters used on terrestrial animals. And transmitters are shrinking both in size aod cost - the ones used on caribou now sen for $3,000, down from $12,000 two years ago. Th~t'• A htlrl!"i!l, Pank 'Oiid A comparable car ibou study using radio transmitters would cost the government five times more, mostly for aircraft chaners, he estimated. Of course, there is another cost of the new tech nology. Tracking animals from an office can cheat researchers of the romantic outdoor life that lured many of them into wildlife biology in the first place. But Pank said such romance is best savored a1ter the fact. "When you're in snow and wind on the North Slope and you're worried about your tent falling down, you think it sure would be Dice to be , sitting behind a television screen in an office."

-11-.

/ I Most grizzly bears won't ~ bothered in the winter by oil ex ploration on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, judging from recently completed studies of their den sites. " , ·_~: . . - - .·Gerald (;arrier and 'LaiTy Martin; .biologistS With the u.s. 'Fish and Wildlife SerVice, have spent the past three years plac ing radi~ c9llars-on 113l>Emrs in the refuge. ' . . . ·. . . /.. ~- . They fo~d that mostQeaiS settle doWn for the Winter 11\ the foothills and mountains~ SoUth of ~here oil development .W9u}d oc~ur ,;:··~jj!·<~~·::~~· ·~.~· ~ ~ .. . ·· ·. .. , ..., ·-: ··.· · >-:· & : ••• : •• ·\:.t·l:t.:. ·.... •' Th~ bear tracking iS part of the studies Congress t:equired when it p~ the Alaska Lands Act in 1980. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was asked to study the refuge's oil and· gas (potentilu.and the ;refuge's ftsh and wildlife resources.. . ·: .. · Bytracking$igna1s from radio collared bears dUring late· IS4~Dtlemlber and ~tpber, researchers have been able to pinpoirit . a!!ie d~ns ·· -~L:~:.s~~~~~~-~-~r. :~~n~~t~~~- . ..(Uti)()Ui[ll recenUy dug dens 'cOUld be' seen from . lli'!:>h'6'... .,,n to be loc4ted radio 'steeP' llliotJ_mtam valle~- ~»ec:am;e w~ w~d defl~t~signals~.Em~rs Garner0 S$1d. ·::~~:~,~Qxi:~,·ti?<~~~·~}·~-·~; ~- ~u8-.b:! Ioose"~ll·8nd wotild · · _...a.i)V~ Gm~et~.said. Dens are dug when the topsoil has frozen to· . inches. When summer thaws the ground, .the ,I;D,~ ~~,;;,_<' ~' ~ +~ -.~~,: 1 ' '. : ' r .;··. ,; ) ••• • •, / '1birteen rock caves were used by bears, Garner said. . . . · Three·dens O:n the coastal plain were "half dirt, half snow," . · .-.--.....,., .. 'fh.~ be~J ,Y~ul~ find a cutba~ alo~ a fl~ ~dig in~. a.snow.~t, ~said. · ··· .... '· ' , ·. "'~.. ,. · , ; , ·· .-'' ~o~fdlg up vegetation aro~.. ~heir dens and 'drag it ~ for tie¥inS>;·,t~r said. .· · _ ·, :. : :· · · :'!: ' ,,7 The IWOrtis scheduled to go to Con~ in september 1986, ~·.~.~~:,~. • .. ,. ''A > :,vr,%~ ~.~~:·~·:t~(!'/ .::C-12-3

. 2-Daily News-Miner, Fairbanks, Alaska Thursday, qctober 3, 1985 Five groups sue Feds over refuge repo~t ANCHORAGE

Thursday, October 17,.1985 • Ill for Peel Appraisers here to Studj

Appeal expected Arctic, refuge land ·swap i in Ketchikan case Several appraisers with the of their land and. sub-surface _,ltlaska U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rights with those managed t)y KETCHIKAN-A federal pro are touring the Arctic National the USFWS in Alaska, Sura satQ. ' Digest secutor says she expects a Ketch Wildlife Refuge this week to see The areas and acreages are riot ikan man to appeal his conviction how much private lands within it yet known. .1 on three counts of illegal fishing might be worth in a land swap ·~It has great potential in and one charge of tampering with a with several Alaska Native cor- terms of beefing up the (fish and ~j witness. porations. . wildlife) habitat," Sura said. Morgan Doubled~y, 38, was 'The appraisers are also inves Native corporation land inside ~n borough found guilty by a jury in U.S. Dis tigating inholdings on several some refuges would be obtained trict Court in Seattle last week. The other Alaskan refuges. by the USFWS in the exchanges. l census former owner of the Alaska Bar The land to be swapped may Sura said that there has been ;~-The faces up to 25 years in prison and be located within the Arctic re premature speculation that the Ketchikan fines totlaing $310,000. fuge, a pro};>Osal that promises to appraising activity is somehow . ' 'l has used 2-year- Doubleday was convicted of be the most controversial. En linked to a report being pre }figures to cloak a catching halibut in closed waters in vironmental groups have identi pared on the Arctic refuge. The ~tion decline and September of 1984. He told author fied the Arctic refuge as a prior report, which will be submitted 18 municipal assist ities he had been fishing in open wa ity for protection. to Congress next September, ~ue sharing funds, ters in the Gulf of Alaska, but inves Although a land swap has not will recommend whether oil and t: • tigators testified that Doubleday's been officially proposed for the gas development should occur 1has submitted fi boat could not have made it to Bel Arctic coastal plain, discussions on a portion of the refuge. · B there are 14,314 lingham, Wash., between the open~ · of what form such a swap would "It's not really related to the ~ts and 8,414 people ing day of the halibut season and take have been held. , Section 1002"report,'' Sura said. I of Ketchikan. The the time the Eastern arrived in George Sura, spokesman for Section 1002 of the Alaska om a November Washington to sell $35,000 worth of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Ser National Interest Lands Con" fish. . vice in Anchorage, said the land servation Act. r.e<{uir~d ~be . ~iation ~stimate Gustafson told -jurors that swap is still in an "elemental USFWS to complete· a _report on sing units and the Doubleday lied toW ashington state stage." . . the effects of oil and gas develop- ,.. ~ancy rate would fish buyers, faked calender notes, "I can't say what would be in ment on the refuge. · Jl of about 1,000 res~- had crewmembers sign affidavits volved in the Arctic, if any," Sixteen appraisers in four 1a planning depart lying about where they fished, told Sura said. "At this time, it's all teams have fanned out across jlum shows. investigators not to talk to his tentative." · the state's federal refuges tQ ·. crewmembers, and influenced Several Native corporations assess the value Of private in I" other witnesses to lie. have proposed exchanging some holdings. ''" l Doubleday was a.rrested for fpe c~ble tampering with a witness in Ketch ikan in June after crewmember :lnd time Roy Graham told authorities that 4' ~The he was beaten in a parking lot on cable tele St~man Street. Doubleday :serving Anchorage claimed Graham had been in the ',been sold for the Alaska Bar, tried to extort money Quota Club tss than a year, but ~s and the two had gotten into a shov say they don't ing match. presents ··'- ~banges·in the op- 26th Annual Cham Fashion-a) '~ili be bought by Teacher sentenced ations of Walnut "Skoal to Scandinavia"·. bject to approval for child abuse blic Utilities Com Sat., Oct. 19, 1985 . Is of both com ANCHORAGE-A teacher at the ay. Anchorage Christian School was 8:00p.m. at the Travelers Inn Inc. ofVancouv given a suspended sentence t MultiVisions 10 Wednesday for spanking a 2-year- For ticket info call Connie Kopf 457-4049 n.l~ urif.h on n1n..n.An.n .,...'"A'n"" ·~·• """'"" uca. .. ,r, i)Cl.fW¥ wt: }ILU1 cellli aacussea a harvest "la repugnant to most the Interested parties," Feder~ I appraisers tour Arctic refuge .. The Associaled Presa the state's federal refuges to · FAIRBANKS - Federal assess the· value of private· .• appra.laers ue touring the 'It has great inholdlngs, Sura said. • · · · Arctic Natlooal Wildlife Ref· potential in terms The Alaska National Inter uge this week as part of the est Lands Conservation Act of-' . ' 1980 authorizes the secretary ! U.S .. Fish and Wildlife Serv· of beefing up the ic:e . .effort to as.leSS the worth of the Interior to exchange • I fl!lieral lands in conservation THEWH '' of private lands within ref· habitat.' 1 t, ~ acroSii .Alaska. units for private lands on the l 'l'be assessments are neces- -:- George Sura basis of equal value. Cash . iar)'. before land exchanges may be used to equalize the r value. · ! ; ~·occur, but no fonnal rec- Sura said the appraisals In ··:;. endations have been the Arctic refuge are not reo ' for an exchange in the lated to a report the Fish and SHOOTIN' ------t .., · ic refuge, said George Wildlife Service la preparing . i ' ; ' SUra, FiSh and Wildlife Serv· for sub.ID.lasion to Congress ~ spok~Jn Ancb.orllge. · : . next year. The report will ' · "Atth.ls time it's all tenta- recommend whether oil and tiw.,'~; ~ said:: gas development should occur 1 · ~1 regional Native on the refuge's coastal plain. ~tions have proposed Sixteen· appraisers in four · ~ing.some of their land ieams have fanned out acroSii i i ··subsurface rights for $29! and those managed by the Fish .. 1 and Wildlife Service in Alas- ; QJNJCAL ka, Sura said. . : "It has great potential in terms of beefing up the (fish HYPNOSIS and wildlife) habitat," Sura said. Native corpot:ation land inside some refuges would be · ro· obtained by the agency in the LOSE WEIGHT exchanges. QUIT SMOKING

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,, . ' .. ..~ ·,~ ..."' ..,. ------"·~ A9er.dy;tlniSuslng .···~ land:,~exchan'_g·es;:.: ·.· .. _~ • ! • • ~ \ • •. ') ! I ; ... " ·. • • o" ·• , If. ;Monte . Hall' ever wan~s help · re!;UiTectlng the TV: ' show "Let~s Make,_a;.Deal," he should check with top_ ·. officials at . the .. u.s;· Fish and Wildlife Service. The .. agency is laying the groundwork for a mega-land. trade .. ·. that would open . the ·Arctic Wildlife Refuge to oil :' exploration before' Congress decides whether the area · should be off limits to oil activities. If the agency refuses .. to drop this. trade, Congrel?si>hould stop it. ·· ·In the Alaska Lands Act, Congress said it would delay. a decision on oil exploration in the coastal plain of the refuge until 1986. It wanted time for more studies of the area's oil potential and wildlife. That work is on track. "'J,'he act also .allows the. federal government to trade 'some ·of its, land for private holdings in parks and :.~ refuges. The idea was io consolidate parks and refuges :~ by swapping other federal lands. But under the Reagan · . . ·-administration, land -exchanges have become a tool to ·.~ · · ;: :allow resource development in wildlife refuges. · ; ·:~ , '\ : The fish and wildlife service's' high-priority work on ~~ : ~- · t"Project M". (for Mega-trade) is the latest chapter in the ~ · ·• · misuse of land exchanges. The agency has pulled land ·. . appraisers from offices across tlie country to Alaska to · • " set values on Native ;eotp'o;tdion in-holdings ·in several wildlife refuges. Once the appraisals are done, the ·. agency could accept .the in-holdings .in return for rights to federal.lands with oil potential in the arctic refuge's ··· coastal plain. ,The Native 'corporations could let oil companies use . those rights to drill for oil before Congress makes.lts final decision on oil exploration. President . Reagan's land. managers have used this · tactic once already in the· Arctic Wildlife Refuge, trading .. ··:; subsurface rights on lands near Kaktovik to the Arctic . ; Slope Regional Corporation for its holdings in a national ·~ park. _Chevron has already begun drilling on the Kakto vik lands. ,; , ~······ .• :., .... -~~l ;c.·. . . . . , · ·· : . ····: ;. Sue~ moveS' blatantly ,Violate the intent behind 'land . ·.~l exchanges and help put pressure on Congress to allow oil ] activities In the area. Congress has set a prudent course · for deciding on oil activities in the refuge's coastal plain. · . The Flsh and Wildlife Service should stop work on land exchanges that could dp the scales as Congress makes its decision. . . . , • , , ,. ,.• · Prealdent Jimmy·- Carter· The report also says that, i ·.:·Reagar1 ....fails· ... to .~;?~:;::::::: ~ ~:~!mf.1:~::~rdi~~. ~ · k lstratlon Ia pursuing a Ton· report says. "This extremelY · [ · t . · acres of new natlona1 par s, 1 gus logging program that "Is expensive pro~:ram baa result, . I ~!~~~~~~~rt:~~:Otnot~:! ::~f J::~:~~~~=n~;:::,r;t ~a1.0n~~ b~~CCU!ators !1. t . ys . \;.; . ·electlop to Reagan, sign the ' ...... · · .. who then subdivide ~d reaell.' ~ ~ ,. ,;.'.,·~¥.\.' • lands act as one of. his last ''baa pushed ahead with this · the leases at a profit.'.' : : 't .g ro U, :, · · Sa. , · . •<~ .;.. · ·major actions as preslde~~t.. 111 d 1 d timber program · f· · · ·. P.":or' ' · :·. ·.. · , . , ~;~-:;'f;.. • Reagan was Inaugurated 1 ·a V se $40 Easley said the IIQClety Ia .; 1 By C~ M~~I;P ... \!.'·;·~: ~· ,,'l•: ..t\lf 11.114 t~ 1!;:~ report just over ·a month later, : =~~n f': ;~~ ~drel~~~ting just continuing effort~ 10 i. ~~~H~1 . :::•·it~i}'··• ;.aayp, "Unf9';tr:QIItoly, tile named Watt as his fnterlori tblsmoneyandotherfundsln block any developmen n .: ·~ • 'fl!ll Jleii~IIAil~attflllllf }~4111.111111. aqll?ji{ ~tr11Uoll bas secretary antt began under- timbering tha~ Is !'eturning to Al:'.'okca. • The·wnclerni=u ;': •ja not ··prppflrl)' pf<11~tlng · s~ttllo act Jl t ~~ flv~ 7ears . mining the act, the Wilderness the' u.s. Treasury only seven cour>c, that "abe ! ; ,M.aika'a natlon•l ·~ul.diJcll',~.tryln!J to thtQW ~4Will'; that ; Society charges. It says the cents on the dollar," the re- ~lety docsn t 11 ke ... ·( \! refligeli, The Wild~~ ~lo< •, ~JnCQ. -••. ,.1. · · • administration has s1owly port says. "'The Forest Serv· satd. . . • .t -----·-. ty'cbargt::J 'Ill an· '18-pase ··re. '; ''The admllll~tre.tlon's de- ·1 chipped away at the protec- Ice must stop chasing Its Easley smd the group tails! I! tporttQbereleasi!4'Monday}·.'i' •, tilnnlpatlon to' JUt the' act ;,tiona Congress Intended to dream of a vibrant Alaska 'to recognize the needs of tbe: J 1 Thll national envirozimeJ• .': b~e clea~ II' won lis lnte- 1 ( give national parks and ref- timber Industry running at Alaska economy and the peo. \ :.:tal group fl!YS the culmtnbU.·/ · •r!pr_ll~flltaQI Jpmes Watt be- : ' uges In the act. full throttle.'' pie who live in Alaska. ' ; 1 tton ~ enco11raglnJ · cjevel9.{"rV. ·~ J~s lilt first orde~," . ! As an example, the society; Southeast loggers say the . . :. · · · • ~ Plent ot'the land• It b "•tiP. ·~· antt tile situation )lasn't . e!tes such actions as the U.~.~ Forest Service Is heavily sub- nn... .t •;., p""t...... :.1 . '· ll..II·,<:~J~ll.l'llofficl~l• ·1"Nothlng Is being done.about . ronmental groups during the ·--- ~r, .··(~ !:1111's debate describing Kan· lions to follow·:.}; :. '· ofcjjlebl'lj:,. tJ)ese studies, so It puts develop ('J.;, ,,~ : ."l'jual got':i.;~ ~·~;;.. ~! '.;_;;,~ · · · ·. P\81lt at a huge disadvantage," tlshna (where placer claims had J J · e r.ii\Iaska) pipeline, without running there. bOard feet to be cut from 'the . .' jttto, the same situation. So, : Preliminary studies pick Ulis cOastal area as the most promis !Dngass National Forest over 11 · • y_ou ve just cut off two key trans- 11)-year period, slle said. ·. (lllrlatlon routes." Ing or all the nation's ~ Also, the state was given man- . ! -~ Environmentalism was the big undeveloped oil and gas reser 1,1gement over fish and game fll- •· W~nner at ANILCA's passage, as v~irs, said Easley, '!'}0~ 011 tll· .. "',' :;·: ";/'· .; ·! • ,., •.( Al'lll.CA does contain compro But ANILCA as asingle docu· Va., and I only nolicetl the namei Cc)n.enr~fiODJff ,/. ment (alll56 pages or It) may, In t, bM·pr8JIIe 1 ·mlses to ensure the state's eco/1- afler we signed in: The Anchor· t•: &. '' L: · • '., 1 oDQ'.·J· '. · .• f': · t' 1 .l,~- omywlllnotbeundulystlfled. Cline's view, even surpMS that age Hote.l. I also remember it t. presidential acclaim he heard 'Ia!! f:J~-r ~~·t~~Q,{~~· .;.~~~fi.~c)~ :·e:,~:~~.t~nd~:~ ~~~- lots of little red bu~~~ runnill8'~ .. heaped on It five years ago Mon- ~:· ~~~- ~~ ~~~.{~·! ·.'.r~·' ~ts were excluded from the con around all over and 1 couldn't'l ..... ,,. ·.,: .' .. ;1 ... : day. . keep them out or my boots." ·~ : !.~ ~ · · · · · · •. '' '' •\ " .. , •· · ~., ,. aeJVatlon units," he said. noting "In my view, It's one or the ... , i· :.- .· Pave Cllf!O wu lllllOilg tha' etaool~fqj)m-on!Y,'f~ · that some did fall inside, ror ex- greatest pieces or conservation crowd In !jle White JlOIIII!l ~-~.It~.~;~'~~; ;am.ple,theA.rtlcNatlonaiWiltllife legislation In the history of this · . Two more stories on ANILCI.t,';i . 1 Will be published in Monday'.t:• i .:· .~~'i:~ ~<;;::C:.';;!;d 1u.t aj~ 'lnto'lawfi;; :.~tetuge, Tongass National Forest country - If not the world," he :~ I· LIIJI(ie·~r.vlltiont~ said. "In terms of the magnitude · newspaper. . I •: .... Alaska "'allonallnte"""t ,and Admiralty Island National J •~·;·.Act, ""' <:~~II " - •..., IJilPO~· · · PI~· · f ·, Monument. t in& ltl'Ofl!l or the IOOIIt o. i:.. However, the conseJVatlonlsts of land ~ wllcillfe resources It -·:.~lion le~ill'-4tloll1Jl the bllli!IQ',~!. pyr ~i-· : q~adti major concessions too. 1 put within conseJVation boliiJda. ::try." · . : . •· · · · ·· · '· · • ' • • ·• " · • i\mong these, Cline tisted ex- ~ p~djlnl 1'11111~1 ries, well, this was really on an .· Clltlll, 1\ vice of tha 1\'lfll!bon . panslon of the game preseJVe unprecedented scale." fc ~J~r!f"sc: ~~~· ;::t·lhe C.pl!ol ili11 ~ren4· portion of Wrangell-St. Elias Na- However, development Inter against ,:~ll~r lobbies of d~, · spot~~:~.;!~~ =JVgeopposo:~ ests are correct that Cline and his -----·- 1 th!l !PJ:II;IIIIry qlld co~leagues yejopment · · ' · · ·, ,.. · are mounting cam ;: : ANILCA·he~ Cl\tved buge'chunka for the eopse;.;. ·. nitles on more than 80 percent of paigns to alter and adjust the act !t':VAtlon rnap; and all the whlki Cline hl!d heard hill:' the Dall sheep population there. "It's a very complex piece of 1e: • Ill cllarglng:. '!Wl\y w~a fJaslla belli& llllllill . As to outright losses on the «!!h gislatlon and, therefore, lmper- ·

< pPilOOOI\1f lha -•·takes of'lhe I nWAf .f,S?" . , c · ;· .· vifOIUIIentallSI Slae Of the ledger, feet," he conceded. I p pay or '"' ...... ,_.::.aM .MI>4l tn ' . be claimed the act's protections Atop that environmental ;>.l~tllql~'!!!~~~th~. --'"Y~-~·railed to Include nationally slg· agenda are efforts to ban further '-!· ·• ·. · · · ·, \ tills !)lllt!l,'~ conseJV{ilion fi>'Slelllf.. lllflcant wildlife areas." ~...,. 110~ 1 oil and gas exploration allowed by ...,;_.• only . tripled Alaska lands · i And among these he listed the . the act on the coastal plain of the under protected status. They dolt<. Copper River delta with its spe- 1 f~;~r Arctic National Wlltlllfe Retuge 1 bled the country'll total lands . ·, j;les wealth in salmon runs; along with the act's aru1Ual cui '· · national parks and triple!! lhelll · i pllgratory waterfowl such as ~.5 •.: ~ allowance of million boa,rd for federal wlltlllfe refuges. .. · trumpeter swans, the only known feet for the timber industry ''In the early 1970s, many peer·· 'pealing grounds of dusky Canada within the Tongass National For .. I pie ,chose to getll!volved because i F · · . .. -.. est in Southeast Alaska. IIMlY wanted to make sure we [.: 8~· and "a very healthy brown ! Yet the conservationists won't didn't repeal what lll.ld happened !!ear population." be able to muster the forces they 1~ the 111arch 1\CI'OSI! the country_ · Adequate protections also led during the original bill's de with the settlement and deveiQP- -~· were not put In place for the calv bate, when their fighting host In ment or the West,'' Cline said. · ., !ng grounds or tile Western Arctic · "With rare exceptions, moat .j:jlribou herd and the Teshekpuk cluded organizations from the patiOnal parks and refugetl below I Lake area hebitats of fish, water- Garden Club of America to sev- erallahor unions. . I 1 welll not big enough. and many .f birds and caribou, he added. l \' were heavily overused," he said, , One or the biggest tllsappolnt· . "The &.lory days are gone," ad I' matted Chne. "The activists have \ dUng. the examples of the Yt;l· ..;ments In the act for Cline was its 1. gone on to other issues." 1 lowstone, Yosemite and Shenan- . failure to protect a population of ~ , doah scenic and recreational ·some 3,500 held eagles about 90 . he probably won't be · lands. "People were just loving miles north or Juneau. 1. seeing the same lobbying rigors thlim to death." Although the state stepped In undergone during his string of ·i Congress also had come to un- .!here with the 1982 establishment Audubon assignments on Capitol ' derstand how the problems or air- of the Alaska Chilkat Bald Eagle Hill. ' borne and runoff pollution could · PreseJVe, he said it has never "I remember once I was as 1, be allevtsted If adjacent develop- ·supplied funding for safe highway signed for five weeks, so we ~ ment sites were set behind wider turnoffs, Informational signs, a packed up the family and wound ·buffers, he said. seasonal ranger or trasl: dump up staying for five months In a ' Yet, according to Cline, · sters. motel room with a kitchenette,'' he recalled. "It was in Fairfax, \. '. ·.. · .. :q?l_li;er\TaQoU. act illustrates .lands dif;l,Glllte/ i ·;···,;Those~~~~ with resources·.;, .. - "Oneoflheblpt sUccesses_,- tionat Forest '!be gr_lli!P sauJ the ~~-~rn- y-·rL~~~~- -... , . ... ,.... ·..-"' ... ' :~strylngtosubstdizeaf<~iliuglimberlndu8tryl''!; ·,-·::·,.-.·.:r ~f!enjtlll!tareormi&JUbemarketable I of ANILCA was lhatlt settled'.'. ~e .·!fw~t .Afaski._.,.... 375 miDkiii Acrell are lllo :l!llme ones that land ~;strucllvenessdisputes, just put an end to.'i . f ~~etheast Alaska. Forest Service 1s IISidna f never lllll!mB lllle enougl). ~w.·..."/;: 've lmPQrfallt animal habitats , lhll of long dJs. 'i ; or than ret~g$40 ml_lhon to continue a timber l1fO" ! I... Or; pot: enough lt:l.llfttl,sfy beaulltul· ·ilcenery," Leask ' pule, said Oavldge, who Is now\• i gram lhatls to the u.s. Tfea!1UrY:OIIIY7. ! ~.I'YbodY ~.lrisUI\Jie ~n s<~id. 1 who Wllllta lllllllce of jt; .·. · dd_ed_.!~Unlv9fii!IYOf Is cOI)neC_ ted. l special assistant to the Ass.. Is. tant ; : Cef)ts~alloggers the dollar, the n:pon . · · : ·' There'll no better I!XI'mPle of·.·. Alaska. • ·, ; Secret,ary of Fish, Wtl4ftfe and .i. ( 10 have satd u,. government wouJcJ ·!his 'Iandi «UviSIOI\ f Social al\11 EC0119mlc Q®Sii~ ll.~t finallyse!tied \ they·were released all at; .. \ ·J::Is forwlldernessdesigualmu · , · 1U\ 'Sllllrcll helps e1q>I&IQ wliy · • which lands ·the • ;. once and only thl' spring, lhlllr 1 : that may be been overlo.•kL' l petWilt .Clf ~~to Ill ~VIlred ).:!y:!. l!llle k!JO:Wiedge aboul. the re- could occur within refuges "on a case-by-c&sll l lIglscle,r WIJII~ It ~· pqrtlllll ,Qf' ,: &O!Jrcc;;' ·CJ!nltllned wlthm ~bile basis" rather than by determining esrly In the plan- r· - lfle ~mslrid{lr !a msl'!lb ~- ' !! , ·JI!qds. J~ ad<_!_ ed, refem_ ng to \ nlng process whether a refuge Is suitable tor that l.:;.... I.J{I$' · .. 'fl:Jeni a.re ,nwiy: and :V!lrie;lita he!'l!t a~cording · ·: Jllllri(lii~ Qf} federal lands. Such I The society said such a policy goes against the 1. f~to ~ study.' Yet llllly 11bout !l-' .. &ludlell mi&Ul find mineral depo-: intent of, C'!"gress to balance oil development l ~ ~ mi&IJI 14J'Il0 qr V!'lllllblll·:4 alii! Wl)rthy of development per-J against wildlife resources. It "will allow oil and gas · r:":· ::··: ·- · · :··. .'' ' ·~- ;~, • milS bill ~rch progress had activity on the Alaska refuges far In excess of that i. !!lllOUgb tQ l)evelop wllell wl!lghlid , ·· been slow. · · . envisioned by Congress,'' the report said. ' ;Jlgalpst . productlQII lllffl<:ultl~ i Ric Davidge served as an aide • Using land exchanges to open national parks i ' used b)'. !he state's c;okl ell·. ~ 1!1 Sen. Ted Stevens, R·Alsska, at and refuges to developers. _The group cited an q{triUJsport'obSI!IC!.~ ~~- ~>f Jllii!Cl, .il: Ule time ANILCA's passage aborted attempt to tl!lde refuge land on St. Mat- ~ltJ'&ll98lllllhl111MilP!l:; "••• ~d lind said ho shared Stevens• as- · thew Island in tbe Benng Sea for lsnd on mainland r sessm81Jt !Mt ~ct's passage after I Alaska owned by a native corporation. The natives ' 1 -! tour YMI'li of legislstive debate : wanted to lesse tbe land to oil companies for use as f.· . .~ ll~.ln ll~lt. ~ stagmg area In offshore oil exploration. A federal ,•._. Judge blocked the land swap la~t December. • Overharvesting timber In the Tongass Na· I b_Mar:d~'· Murie defenclmg '"f)\\ri~ii~'s wildem~- r . ' ~--. - . .. ·--- ...... - . . . . j >~.i'< t ... ;*IJ. ~ sp:jrataflll (h.t ~ qf ~ has.~-.' : J110ftHhan a backpack, campfire~ te~t. ··. . ·: __ .. Mardy':t contributions to that movement a~!·:. 1 f·i; ' • llltWolfWffJt.~t!Jiiw,~I.Ji'~ ~-' . "I had thought that our llfe would be one tong·l well docllment_t.'~ r ·~ ~~··beef!.~!( ~~j~ iflkle~\·1· Jlllng •. Nineteen years later,. they purclla~ y71 ' i For he~ efforts to.. cull attent~?~ to the "nati~l· .. •'I>" Jill~~ liP.011!t'fpfffl!II(Wl9m~K'.~ll(,~ acres In the shadow of the Grand Tetons., Mardy !1 l~res of Alaska and her l!le-lung contJ1bu·,: < . (_; J;llleell~. JtiQ'(eJI!C"lli~.···.. =•·~·;; :_·. r.,i~.''tf,r; sold the land to the National Park Silrvice in 1966 11~ lion to ~~rvauon efforts, ~unc was uwarden!'lu.:1Jili.-•. Qil the land which "oughtto see me through.,. , , was similarly honor~d by the _Sierna Club, whfc~, 1 -~·, !lltttlo· IQ !IIIVO lhe ~ ~14·of Am~riC~J'•·· · At her cabin she receives many vi4itora They ' presentedherwnlut sJohn Mu1r Awaad. . . J .;:;_.:. ,; \vlJ4e,l'JlOA; Al age 83, llb0.14 .illl' ap (ll;ljve fQrccl"l•r :.: illclude foreign ·~ountaln climbers, visiting. dignt- ~ ' · Despite the conservation naovoJmcul's victoftl!a '?' ·~)~:\1 · !lefepse·(!l ~; ~-llllrvl!!l on The W~~:· :· taries, environmental leaders and students trom -~ I M~?e WallllS that the battle is far frun, uvcr.:· .. ( · '.<'-~ .pe.tlll SQciely c:Oiulcl1.141m 11lliiY!I'liiiiJl4llltal Cl/lliillll' , the Teton Science School,'an eqvironmental-educa·· · · What bothers me 1s that so muuy people teer ·:.~l. am" IIOOlobl:!y~jllld I~ lllJ'QU/91!?Ut t)le~. ·t uon islstitution. . . · . · ~ •: complaceat now that (former s~crctary of the llh t 1 • • ·~ · \. ':" ~· •. . • · . : ... ·~ ·: • • ... ' ·"·. •. "·. • •·· • +. :. Her favorite guests are decades younger than \ terior James) Wuu 1s gone,'' she say: .. We have 10 · · ;"--'···!· . Jyl!lniy bet4mo jJellply lllvol\'tldln j;QnsefVI!Iklrf.) she Is. · . ; ., remain a!e:rt. I bcheve that nothing b g•>ing 10 ~ ·' • ~ ~1!1 her~ ...,..-f~J'Illl4f th1s.c~ntry_ ~ver unles~~ · . • •, ·W afteJ: tllcl pt · "Most of my connections these days are with pen in the next four yt:ars • .II ~.' natllfallsl Ola111 "'Ufl@ ... ~p·l9fll. P\11 her to~ fQr• •young people,''· she says. "As many of my contel)'l· th~ people do It -Its gomg to have t~> come out pt i-• .';: ·. _tbQ Wi~ 4Ui ~ociety; ill'• ; 1.s1Qn At lj)e village of ~vlk, on Uv;l Yukon River. ways, Mardy Is kJnd of the spiritual godmother of; · celebraucnolus50thalmlversary. · · :. :·Tiley went their''~" In tile wi!dell1* !If the enviromental movement. People admire and Reserwations cun hll made by coulacting the'. ~ of~ Ala~ .~ l Biooks Ran8fl, J!0:1111 ArcUC Circle, ., .'; 1 revere her as a kJnd of guru. She is the last link be- Ct=nter for the Environmeut at 279-8315, ·j adventure.''··~ .,.1 It was the stan of· ''ll greel tween the great conservation tradition of John Donauoru::of$20arercqueswd. . · says. For more than 30 years, Manly shared l)er Muir-, Robert Marshall and Olaus Murie and the en- The VISIJ!ll Arts Center is located atti15Wafi)T I i .Qusbanftf:J,FS~_':ple~g~s developments. won't har•n rer~~:.;e~··;) 'O~l~n~gill!dev~lop!De~fw~m·~~ ~·compatibility 1f' .. , .., .l. out a determina- system. Project leaders will con- and Lhe last piece of arctic coastal i.T .~;:.-r~,;~l\ow~opn,atltmlll wtldhfe~fuges." tion'' is a misrepresentation. . tinue to suggest effects of develop- wilderness, according to conserva.., :{ .. ;: :/( ; U\t. wquld b~ ha~mful to them, tJle · "I suspect the root of the frustra- ment and decide from their point of tion groups. ., -~ f ~._, 1 A}~s~~ d~rector early~ ! ,,:: (· Reg1pn of tile lJ.S. tion is that we will not handle com- , view if it's compatible, he said. "'I would say it's still in the l ~·~ :} 1~ ;: JfJsh {U"I4 Wild~ife·~r~icc ~al~ ~~,r~ paUbility on a t>lanket basis for) aU Conservation organizations have discussion stage a~ to how this.' ·~.: ~ill~rdfly: I t+' :1 · :. · ; •. . refuges. When such comments been keeping close watch on prop- coult.l be done,"(; iluwrc said ofthe'· i•~ jl' .'·:· •:.v ~o~rt GiJtn~r~; \)'ho ll!;'S \}eep Jp ilppear in the -press, environmen- osed tratles between the federal proposed land lradt·. ' ·· ' i ;,~~~ku ~live [·:, :11,: fQr {tbQUt a y!!ar, i wid the talists stand to lose credibility with .government and several N When Congress pa:-:!.ed the Alas.:, 1:>_: "~;~~.·AJ11*'~ Epyironp'leptill A~.~erp~ly.. people who knpw differently," ~il- · corporations, which seek subsur- ka Nalional lnlt~re!>t Lands Con-: I t\.~>!.·\.. t;~@~urd~y ~h.at a. f~cent re~rHn•b· more said. · · face rights in the Arct~c National scrvation Act five y<·ars ag~; it , L.. h:i;~>Y JiP,bed ~y ttto. eqvJrOJlmept~l,~«,lm· .· , H~ sai~ hi~ ~gency has pu_rposely Wildlife Refuge in the northeast ordered the coastal pta in analyzed :· ~ /:: _;t;::h"IH'J!ty ~ll~glf!g ,~b~t ~ef~ges ar~-~ . avmd~d defm~ng c?mpatJblltty b~- corner of Alask~.'l'he coastal plane for impacts of oil awl gas dev.elop- ! :·.';;~{i,~l~~l!:~(). ~~ ({~~ ~ctlV\~!~w;tti- c~ribou QiJ_ ;. cause of the

~ Despite differences Ill opinion, f t GUillj)l'l! said envlroomentalista !. I l public plan:,: r ==tull!l. I I · "I applaud your dedlcatloq ,' I ' and drive, and I'~ sympathetic ,. I .: with many of your frustrations. : I • Time has caught up with Alaska. '• ! Time brings change. Atoo time ) I ! C2 Anchorage Daily News Tuesday, December 10, )985

state news t.!~use, sp:-Jroves addition to refu;e '-1. WASHINGTON- The House passed legislation Mondt:y providing for a 325,00(}-acre addition to the Arctic Nn!ional Wildllie Refuge In the northsastern corner of Alaska. The measure passed by voice vote without opposition. The lands to oo ~:~dd@d are part of a 1.3 million-acre str!p along the southern edga of the refuge that the state had sal::c~<~d as a posslbl& natural gas pipeline corridor. The other 911,800 acres ware automatically added to the refuge in 1983 when th(t s1ate relinquished its rights to the lands. The 325,000 acres could not be transferred without legislaHon, .but the Interior Department withdrew tham from op,..rati.o:>!'l cf mining laws 14nd assigned them to tho U.S. ;=-;,;,n ::.i¥c ~.'.::!c.t:~:o S;jmca ~c m~na!}e as par! of tt)e reb:-'•1. The lands then were transferred Into the refuge by a public land order, which by provisions of the Alaska National Interest lands Conservation Act would terminate without legislation making the change permanent. Kenai refuge closed to snowmobiles The Kenai National Wildlife Refuge remains closed to snowmobiles because of a lack of snow, according to refuge manager Rebert Delaney. Snowmobiling will not be · allowed until there Is more snow, he said. The refuge - Including frozen lakes and rivers - is permanently closed to the use of three wheelers and other all-terrain vehicles, Delaney added. For more information, call 262·7021.

Daily News staff and wire report$·. ··-·~--·---~ .~ .. --·-~---· ______,__..,. ______,. __ ···------·- ---~--- --~ ... -·~~:·~it:~'~·':~ -~.~.·~.:-~::Jt·:·.~~·;·l'~. ·.,·~~·-~·:~:·~.;~~~ :.:;·····-:. ·:·~: ·~·

.. ,· }' ;.·.::. .. ·. . .•,; .

Wednesday, December n, 198.'), The Anchorage Times A-3.

Coali~io.at ..works to p:rot~ct :refuge by David Foster Assodated Presa A. coalition of state and ria- ' . tionaJ environmental groups has 1 launched a special campaign to 1 congress .. ordered is ·due next'· protect part of the Arctic Na- ; September, and groups on. both tionaJ Wildlife Refuge from de- ; sides of the development-wilder velopment. , , ! ness issue are gearing their acti . The refuge's 1.5 million-acre vities toward that deadline. coastal plain, in AIaska 's north The arctic coastal plain is the. east corner, is the only area on North Slope's "hottest prospect the North Slope closed to oil and.. as far as oil ·is concerned," said gas development, the groups said Paula Easley, executive director Monday in a joint news release. of the Resource Development They want to keep it closed, Council of Alaska. saying development would "Oil development is such a threaten the welfare of the large small part of the whole plain," Porcupine caribou herd that uses she said. "We believe that if they · the. coastal plain. to calve and do decide to go ahead with oil de nurse young. The coastal plain · velopment, the environmental also is a "treasure house" of concerns can be ameliorated." wildlife, including musk oxen;. But the environmental groups wolves, bears and waterfowl, the say other, less-sensitive areas groups said. . .· :i around the country are available "Nothing less than wilderness: ; for oil and gas exploration and d~ignation ... will be accepta- ; development. ble,." sai

--.---~~-~,.... -..:....-~.,.,...... ,..------· ~-- -·--:------...---- ·-,--··--··-. ---·- ----.-- TAKlEDNE! flrMI1l3floc11rU '·\: ' ~cPaRTS FI\):E: Fairbanks. Alaska December 30, 1985 'e • .. I.. ~ ·§~.···.··"'' .. __.. ;:::::,.;,:i;;'. W:HEELING:-A'ND DEALING WITH NATIVE LANDS. ·• -~· ··~. · ~~i·t~·~io;~i~orpo;a'lions have been involved in negotiations ~ith:1hi-U.S. ~]fish and..Wiidlife.~ervice tq t~de lands within the Arctic National Wildlifettefule in · the ri.oZ:.t):{east po~tio~·otthe State. The regional corporations are Koniak. Brlstol Bay• .A..rctid:iicip_e~·aiid.Doyon· Limited. What lands do they want to trade for, and wh"at.is. goirig ~9 :hapjl~ri'~~-~h~se lands once they are out of the corporations hands? . . Tll~:Jlep;i~t!/~lll:jmly try. to deal with Doyon Ltd., since this is the re!l'ion of distrib\ltion· for"the paper. Doyon represents among the twelve regions-the largest land fiase \v}lich is located in the Interior. On the other hand the Arctic WiidU.fe Refuge •. js lo~ated on "the east side of the Northslope. The refuge is near Prudhoe :iJay which makes1i close to one of the worlds leading oil fields. It's like having a banker for a , fr~nd; :There is vast potential for oil and gas to be found there. , · ·It is important to the shareholders in the Doyon region that they .know if any selectio"ns will be traded offto'the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service around their villages. Reside'p.~s living in Indian Country know the best hunting places, spawning grounds fot fi~h; ·anc! the cal.ving grounds for moose and caribou herds . . ~::o ·:.;;' ·).' ,'. .. • ' . . ·. : ... ,.,, .. . lfthe t~p;de becqmes a. reality. the villages could very well have'.to star;.t,dealing with ne·-d'l o1l.,and·'(l1.s' deveJopments like the U.S. Fish :and Wildlife:' Se;vi.ce has 11uggoh~oil Col- U1o AruUc Nntiuunl Wildlife Rofu~o. •. I The. basis for the negotiations is for oil and gas drilling rights in the preserve. The iandsl.n the Doyon region could possibly be the regional deficiency withdrawal areas for other lands. This trade could also have an impact on those villages who may want to tum'.theil-ian~soverjo atril)algovernment after the magic year 1991. The size ofthe ·settl~m~ntici'r1ii.nifs lliei received in 1971 would mean nothing if some ofthe land w:as ttaded'i\\9-ay:: - · · ~ · ·· . • t..• .. T~~f:ci~rib~pt fof National In~er~st Lan:ds i~ preservation and to lt1ow vilY'age r~side'ri'ts't!l~:use.ofsubsistence activities to col'np\lnsate for lands lost when codgress passed' the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Law in 1971. Just recently the US F.W.S. · p'olicy.. h~s. ciianged to devel()pment of other resources; mainly that of getting to the ·subsurface ofthose lli.nds. · ~- · _ I t~i~:(;i io: 99nt.aCt Doyon but was unable to... President Morris Thompsiih b1.d gone ~ to HaW;_&l(~and the ·Attorney was either out of the office or someplace E!Jlse in the ~:~ldi~!.~;~~.:~~ .. :i ~: ., . .. * * •. ~ • * • • * -~~ST NEWS: Colossians 3:12-17

(1)

I I ! ~Nw.tl I B-/~1I cJ.j • • State t J 1n r f r ti ti s Potential royalty_ income at stake

By RONNIE CHAPPELL nary talks with regional cor Daily News reporter porations that could result in The f~deral governxnent trading th'e oil and gas in the has agreed to include the arctic refuge for Native in· state in land trade negotia· holdings in national parks tions that threaten to transfei;" and wildlife refuges across huge quantities of oil and gas Alaska. If that happens, the in the Arctic National Wild· state would . lose. its royalty. life Refuge to several regional interest in the oil and gas · Native corporations. involved. · · . Alas"ka officials said they For that reason.- Gov. Bill asked to join the talks be Sheffield has told the Fish cause they want to protect and Wildlife Service the state tens of billions of dollars in must be involved in any land state royalty income which trade negotiations involving could be at stake if the 3 the Arctic National Wildlife million-acre coastal plain of Refuge, said John Katz, direc the refuge contains as m.uch tor of state-federal relations oil and gas as geologists pre for the Sheffi~d administra· · dict. tion. The area, located just 70 Sheffield has not taken a miles from the trans-Alaska position on the proposed qil pipeline, has been identi trade, Katz said. fled as the state's last hope "It's difficult to say 'hell for a another field the size of no' to a concept that hasn't Prudhoe Bay. · crystallized .yet," he said As long as the federal gov from his Washington, D.C., ernment retains ownership of office. "We haven't taken a the oil and gas, the state will position. At this point, there's . receive 90 percent of the roy nothing concrete for the .state alty income it yields if Con· to react to in terms of specific cress approves e."Cploration in tracts of land. I don't think the refuge. That royalty share we can make a final judgment is guaranteed by the Alaska until we know more about the Statehood Act. dimensions of the trade" and But the U.S. Fish and Wild· life Service has held prelimi· See Back Page._ ASFUGE

I:A. oil and cas potential of tha coastal plain and the effect of Refuge talks drilllnll and production on tha Porcupine caribou herd and other birds and animals that lts effect on state royalty live Ill the re!uae. J.ncome. "Some envlronmenial "There probably are some croups are sayinc thls is ways to accommodate (the · 1olnll to be the fillht of the state's 90 pen:ent royalty) decade." Kat:r. said. "It will share within the context of a be heavily debated over the trade," Katz sald. next year or two." Accordlnc to Katz. the De Smith ap-ees. Environmen· partment of the Interior has tal lobbyists Ill Washlllcton promised to Include the state alreldy are sportinl caribou Ill "substantive talks, once pins on their lapels, he said. they beclll." Katz expects The environmental commu· thole talks to beclll early Ill nlty ls suspicious of the pro 1988. pOSed land trade. Key mem· Representatives from a ben of the Wilderness Society half-dozen Native corpora· and of Trustees for Alaska tions also may take part Ill complallied Ill November that the necotiations. Which corpo it ls a conflict of Interest for rations will be Involved ls the Fish and Wildlife Service st1ll not clear. Koniac, Doyon, to dlsc:uss civinl away oU and Cook Inlet and Arctic Slope IU Ill the refuse while study· are amonc those mentioned IIlii the pros and cons of ex· by state officials. ploration and production for Althoullh a team of land the Concress. appraisers was rushed to The environmentalists said Alaska earlier this year to any deal llnkinll Native assess the value of Native croups with oU and gas rights !nholdincs. federal officfals - especially one c!vinC the say they are ~imply explorini federal government land Ill the possibillty of a trade at other parks and refUges - this time. Increases the pressure on Con· Informal talks have been cress to approve the drillllle. held with the representatives The oU and cas potential of of several recional Native cor the An:tic Wildlife Refuse porations, said Dan Smith, also will weillh heavily Ill deputy to Assistant Secretary that decision. Estimates pre of the Interior Bill Hom, but pared Ill 1980 for the U.S. they have not procressed be Geolocical S~rvey indicate yond "the Initial stages." the re!uce could contain 17 "We're nowhere near a pol· bUlion barrels of oU and 33 ley discussion, yet," Smith trUlion cubic feet of natural said. "We're just asklllc a lot ps. The odds of maklllC a of 'what If?' questions. If we discovery of that magnitude do decide to co forward with were placed at one-In· twenty, a trade, we will consult the said. state ceolocist Ross Interior and Appropriations Schaff. committees." "There ls a potential Pru· "This (trade) is so major dhoe Bay-type structure pre we'd want to co up and have dicted by ceolocistl." Schaff hearings and run it by the said. "Not just my ceolocistl Concress so that Concress but others" with national rep could pass it Into law," Smith utetions. Those with knowl· said. ''That would keep it edce of the area "are confi· from belnll tied up Ill the dent that the greatest poten courts for the next two dec tial for a major oU discovery ades." Ill the United .States 1s Ill the Any deal will be contlnllent Arctic National Wildlife Ref. upon Concress openinll the Ul&." Arct;!c Wildlife Refuce to oU State and federal officials and cas exploration. It is are now uslllc new seismic scheduled to take up the ques data coverinc hundreds of tion later this year after re miles within the refuge to ceivlllll a special report pre improve the 1980 estimate. pared by the Fish and Wild· The research 1s based, Ill part. life Service that details the on proprietary Information provided by the oU Industry, Schaff said. He declined to d1sc:uss the results.

I i APPENDIX II - Program, Alaska Environmental Assembly Meeting, 1985 "Wilderness and People"

25th Anniversary of the designation of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

CCCOCICICIOCI~..o""...CCCOOOCOOCOCIOOCOO Alaska Environmental Assembly Annual Meeting and Conference

Saturday and Sunday December 7 and 8

Ryan Junior High School Fairbanks, Alaska

9 A.M. - 5 P.M.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS Margaret Murie Lifetime wilderness advocate and author Robl rt Gilmore Alaska Regional Director U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Governor Bill Sheffield

WORKSHOPS

Wilderness Ethics Wilderness Review in the Planning Process Subsistence Porcupine Caribou Treaty Arctic National Wildlife Refuge 1002Report Oil and Gas Impacts of North Slope Wilderness management and legal development · concerns Wilderness concerns around the state Alaska's Wilderness Heritage

SPECIAL EVENT Lecture by Margaret Murie Presentation of the Celia Hunter Award Slide Show of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Saturday, December 7 8 P.M. Schaible Auditorium - University of Alaska

Registration: in advance and at the door contact the Northern Alaska Environmental Center 218 Driveway St.- Fairbanks 452-5021 Alaska Environmental Assembly os•scm•bly (a·'sam-bli) n, pi. bias 1: o gother1n9 of persons 2: the flttln<;l together of ports (os of o mo<:hine) 3: o SlgllOI for troops to assemble.

IINNURL MEET IN6 and CONFERENCE

"Wilderness and Peopte•

Saturday and Sunday, December 1 and 8 , 1985 Ryan Junior High School

Welcome to the 1985 annual meeting end conference. HER Is pleased to heue you from ell around the state, and some uery special guests at this gathering. We hope you will find the weekend e rewarding end enjogeble eaperlente.

Details about the conference are lntluded In tbls packet. Any lest mlnate changes will be announced ud po1ted.

1111 daytime euents ere at Ryan dr. High School. Saturday euenlng's talk by Margaret Murle, the presentation of the tella Hunter award end the INWR slide show will be at Schaible Rudltorlum In the Bunnell Building on tlle-Unluenlty of IIeske campus.

Lunda tickets are stiU auellallle - $6 each or bring your own lunch.

Please don't halltete to ask for more Information or help during the weetend. This 11 a time to strengthen contacts and networks.

BOARD Of DIRECTORS Of THE RLRSKII ENUIRONMENTRL ASSEMBLY: The Northern Rluka Enulronmental Center, Trustees for Alaska, Southea1t Rlasta Consaruatlon Council, The Wilderness Society Illata C1nter for the Enulronment, Slern Club Legal Defense Fund, Sierra Club, &reenpeace llaska, Katchemat Bay conservation Society, frleau ef the Earth, Denali Citizens Council, Juneau Rudubon Society

The Rleska Enuironmental assembly is sponsored by the Alaska Conseruation Foundatlon AGE NOR

SATURDAY

8:30 liM Registration 9:15 Opening Remarts - Jeff Bohman lntrodudlons- Cella Hunter 9:30 Reeding of 1 letter from George Collins by Debbie Miller 9:45 The Ethltolend Phllosoobltal BollS tor Wilderness 10:25 Break 11:30 Subsistence In Wlldemets Rreu 11:45 lunch and ICEYNmt SPEECH - Robert Gilmore, FWS Alaska Regional Director. ·Management of fish and game refuges In Rlasta, where we are and where we are headed.· 12:45 PM Break 1:08 Soetlol Uotues of the Brctlt Notional Wildlife Be{Up 1:55 I reek 2:00 Porcupine CtriHu Treaty 2:38 Stott and Envlmnmentol Penaectlve on the 1002 Be1ort 3:00 Break 3:15 Impacts ot Qllond &as QeueloDment on the North SIOPI 3:15 Wilderness Concerns omupd the State In Room 26

1:00PM lecture by Margaret Murle Celia Hunter Award Presentation and Arctic Refuge Slide Show. Scheible Auditorium, Bunnell Building, U.R.F. campus

SUNDRY

8:30 ftM Reglstnation 9:00 ftlasta Enuirenmental Assembly Business Meeting Film- •otgeste• In Room 26 11:00 Wilderness Review In the Plpmng process 12:00 PM Lunch and film- •Raasta Wildlife Refuge• (1959) 1:00 Wilderness Manegemant and Legal Considerations in lllosto 2:15 KEYN01I SPEECH: &ouemor IHI Sheffield •The state's role In preserving Rlasta's wildlands. • 3:00 Break 3:15 Blasko's Wilderness Heritage WORKSHOP D£SCRIPTIONS Saturday mE D]IICIIL IINQ PHILQSQPHitftl 88$1$ fQB WU.DEBNESS Cella Hunter and Bandg Snodgrass wm share some thoughts on the ualue of wilderness from a phllosophltal penpettlue.

SU8SimHCE IN UJILD£1N£SS ftB£8$ Moderator: Jeff Bohman Panel: To be announced Dis panel is tomposed of raprssantatluas of the natiue and anulronmentel communities who will discuss the posltlue and negatlue effects or Wilderness deslgnatum on subsistence resources and usen.

SrttlftL VftLUES Qf DIE ftBCJIC NftiiONRL.WILDIFE DEEUiiE Glen Elison will speak on biological uelues of the refuge, Sara dames wHI dhcu.s the importance of the refuge to Arctic Uillage residents, Carol Kasza will focus on recreational ualues, a member of the Yukon Conseruation Society will gwe an lntem~~tlonal perspectiua and Amy Stilbred will talk on wilderness character.

PtmtUPINE CORIBQU NE6QTI8IIONS The Portuplne Caribou herd of Northeast Rleste Is en International reaoune, and seuerel gouemment egeacles on both sides of the border ere working on an agreement. Margie Gibson, steff of tbe Friends of the Earth will discuss the status ef tbon negotiations.

STiflE fiND ENIURONMENDIL PEBSPECIIIJE Of mE I 002 REPOBI This report Is currently being prepered by the Fish end Wildlife Serutce for Congress. Ned Farqhuer of the Department of Natural Resourtes will comment on the state's uenlon of the 1002 report. The discussion will conclude with an nalysls of how uarious negotiations with the itate and with aetlue corporations may affect the 1002 report.

IMPRCTS OF OIL RNQ GAS DEUELOPMENT ON THE NORTH SLOPE . Moderator: Dr;. Dauld Klein Panelists: Ken Whitten. Steue Murphy, Larry Dietrick and Erich Follman This panel wll focus on enulromnentallmpatts on the ecosystems. Ken Whitten wll' discuss his research In tlte Central Rntlc Caribou Herd, Ste~re Murphy wm talk about his bini reseerch In the Lisburne deuelopment area, Larry Dietrick will discuss drilllngs muds and oil spills and £rich FoUmann will focus on bean, wolues end arctic foues on tbe North Slope and along the haul road corridor. WILHBH£$$ CINC£RN$ BBQUNI UK mrr£ Moderator: Jim Stratton PsneUIIs: Randy Rogan, Bart ICaahlar, CUff Eamas, Su1an Alauandar and Ginny wood. This discussion wm focus on speclnc areas around the state which h1ue outstanding Wilderness tharacterlstlts Which ment protection through fedenal er state leglsletloa. sunday

The Notko Enulronmentgl Bssembly Business Meetln·g This It for any members of Rlasllca anulmnmental organizations: the purpose Is to mu&ew the actlultles or the Rssemblg In 198~ and to plan for 1986.

WILDERNESS REUIEW IN 111£ PLftNNJN6 PROCESS MMerator: Tom GeHegher PSHUsts: Pete Jerome, Mite Penfold, Saady lablnowltch, Jact Hession, CUff tames and Ned ferqhuar This wortshop wm focus on the policies and processes currently being used or deueloped by uenous state and federal agencies concerning Wilderness or prtmltlue Band designations as deueloped through the plmmlng process.

WILDERNESS MANIJ&EMENI RNI LEGRL CONSIQEMIIONS IN 8L8SK8 Moderator: Randy Rogan Panelists: Laurie Rdams, Bart Koehler, end Erk Smith This discussion will focus oo the specific legal mandates for designated wilderness In Rlasta as denned by the Wilderness Ret of 1964 end the mute National I ntarest Lands Conservation Rtt of 1980. The panel wHI tete a detelled loot at the differences In the legal fremewort of wilderness manegement In Blaske u compered with the rest of the United States and eaplore uerlous management problems which blue or mag result from these differences. One-of the primary Issues of tbe discussion will be motorized access In dellgneted wilderness.

RLIIU:II'S WILQEBNESS HERIIBiiE Cella Hunter will conclude the conference with some thoughts on ftlestl's past and future. fiLMS Will H SHOWN C&NTINUOUSlY IN ROOM 26

·aayasta• was made by Partridge films for the IIC. This film depicts the seasonal progression of wildlife In Rlasta and much of It was filmed In the Rrctlc National Wildlife Refuge. 1 hour.

•tntlt Wildlife Refuge• was made In 1959 bg Bob Creer. It was filmed In a uertety of locations In Northern Alaska, lntludlng the Sheenjek RIDer · and Last Lalce. Margaret end Glaus Murte am In this film. 25 minutes.

'"Endle11 Journey • is a tontemporary film depleting the caribou migration. 1 hour.

•Northern Yukon• Is 1 slide show from the Yukon Conservation Socletg. 12 minutes.

CREDITS

We welcome and IPPreclate the p&rtlclpatlon of our keynote speakers; Robert Gilmore, Gouemor Sheffield and all the workshop partltlpents.

R uery special thank you to Margaret Murie.

Many thanks to the hard working uolunteen for their help: Cella Hunter, Dabble Miller, Leny llrigbt, Usa Daum, Dietl Heiser, Ron Yarnell and the numerous folks who proulded housing and transportation.

Moth appreciation for the photogreph display and slide. show to Debbie Miller, Doug Fruge, Fnm Mcur and Sutan Stelnacher.

Thanks to conference plannen; Randy Rogers, Mike Matz and Jim Stratton.

PLERSE TRKE II FEW MINUTES RND FILL OVl THE EDRLURTION FORM ON THE BACK Of THIS PRGE. THRNK YOU. EURUHITIIN lEA ANNURL MEETING AND CONFERENCE December 1 •nd 8, 1915·

Your comments wm assist us In follow up and In planning for future nems. Please tate a few minutes and fill out this form. Thank you.

What were your main reasons for attending this conference?

Were these goals satisfied? Why or why not?

What are your Impressions of the workshops?

Useful In your Issue wort?

Well conducted?

Too short, too long? ltller toplt~s you feel should hen been touered1

Comments on particular wortlbops or moderators?

What are your Impressions of the Keynote Speeken1

Impressions of the euenlng euent1

Did you enjoy the films and photo display?

Would you haue llted more time on workshops, speeches, films ort

Rny other suggestktns or comments?