..- ,, Technical Report Number 5 ~ Alaska OCS ) Socioeconomic F–- Spionsor: Bureau of Land Management Alaska Outer ~- Continental Shelf L Off ice Baseline Studies: The Beaufort Sea Region ( . Interim Report i NOI’ICES 1. ThiS docmwnt is disseminated under the spmsorship of the U.S. Ikpartment of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management in the interest of information exchange. ‘The U.S. G3vern- mnt assms no liability for its content or use thereof. 2. fis is an interti report designed to provide preliminary comnunity and regional profile data to groups working on the Alaska OCS Socioemncmic Studies Program. The data in thiS documnt provides an incomplete inventory of selected baseline information on the physical and mm-made enviromt organized into four categories: land use, land status, transportation, and utilities. A separate documnt will provide detailed baseline information focusing upon an understanding of the current social, econcmic, physical, and demographic conditions of the 13eaufo&~ Sea Petroleum Development Region. The baselines studies will fom the basis of impact identification with and without CG develo-t. ALASKA OCS SOCIOECONOMIC STUDIES PROGRAM BASELINE STUDIES OF THE PHYSICAL AND MANMADE ENVIRONMENT THE BEAUFORT SEA REGION PREPARED FOR BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT ALASKA OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF OFFICE DECEMBER 1, 1977 CCC/HOK BASELINE STUDIES: THE BEAUFORT SEA REGION TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE INTRODUCTION i I. BEAUFORT SEA REGIONAL STUDY INTRODUCTION . 1 LAND USE . 6 LAND STATUS . 40 UTILITIES . 51 TRANSPORTATION . 61 COMMUNITY CONTACTS . 83 BIBLIOGRAPHY . 84 II. BARROW COMMUNITY STUDY I!iTRODUCTION . 88 LAND USE . 91 LAND STATUS . 107 UTILITIES . 112 TRANSPORTATION . 133 COMMUNITY CONTACTS . 151 BIBLIOGRAPHY . 152 111. KAKTOVIK COMMUNITY STUDY INTRODUCTION . 155 LAND USE . 160 LAND STATUS . 169 UTILITIES . 172 TRANSPORTATION . 178 BIBLIOGRAPHY . 184 BASELINE STUDIES: THE BEAUFORT SEA REGION LIST OF FIGURES PAGE INTRODUCTION A. BEAUFORT SEA PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT REGION BEAUFORT SEA REGIONAL STUDY Figure 1 DESCRIPTION OF THE REGION . z Figure2 SETTLEMENTS IN THE REGION . 8 Figure 3 REGIONAL LAND STATUS . , 41 Figure 4 REGIONAL TRANSPORTATION ROUTES . 63 Figure 5 AIRPORTS IN THE REGION . 66 BARROW COMMUNITY STUDY Figure 1 LOCATION MAP . 89 Figure 2 BARROW AREA LAND USE . 94 Figure 3 LAND USE . , ● . ● 100 Figure4 BARROW REGION LAND STATUS . 108 Figure5 BARROW AREA LAND STATUS . 110 Figure 6 PLANNED WATER AND SEWER IMPROVEMENTS . 119 Figure 7 PLANNED GAS AND ELECTRICAL INTERTIES . 127 KAKTOVIK COMMUNITY STUDY Figure 1 LOCATION MAP . ● . 156 Figure 2 AREA LAND USE . ● . ● ● 161 Figure 3 TOWNSITE LAND USE . ● . , , 162 Figure 4 KAKTOVIK VILLAGE CORPORATION LAND STATUS . 170 Figure 5 ROAD TRANSPORTATION . 182 BASELINE STUDIES: THE BEAUFORT SEA REGION LIST OF TABLES . PAGE BEAUFORT SEA REGIONAL STUDY Table 1 NORTH SLOPE BOROUGH POPULATION GROWTH . 3 Table 2 CURRENT NATIVE VILLAGE CONVEYANCES UNDER THE ANCSA (Sect. 12a) . 45 Table 3 SCHEDULE AND FARE STRUCTURE FOR NORTH SLOPE COMMUNITIES . 65 BARROW COMMUNITY STUDY Table 1 AERONAUTICAL ACTIVITY . 135 Table 2 CARGO DELIVERED TO BARROW VIA NORTHSTAR . 141 KAKTOVIK COMMUNITY STUDY None BEAUFORT SEA INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION This report is part of a more comprehensive baseline study of the Beaufort Sea Petroleum Development Region and its communities as of mid-1977. It provides an inventory of selected baseline information on the physical and manmade environment organized into four categories: land use, land status, transportation, and utilities. A separate document will provide baselineII ~ Ii information related to the socioeconomic—— environment. The area that comprises the Beaufort Sea Petroleum Development Region is coterminus with the corporate limits of the North Slope Borough. Its communities include Barrow, Kaktovik, Point Hope, Point Lay, Wainwright, Ataksook, Nuiqsut, Anaktuvuk Pass, and the petroleum development base camp at Prudhoe Bay/Deadhorse. The report is organized into three sections. The first section discusses land use and ownership patterns, transportation, and utilities service in the Region as a whole and in seven of its nine communities. The remaining two sections discuss aspects of the physical environment in greater detail for two communities that may receive some of the most significant impacts of OCS petroleum development in the Region: Barrow and Kaktovik. METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY Preparation of the baseline study involved two basic work components: ● Compilation and synthesis of the most recent secondary data, drawing together information from a variety of published and unpublished sources; and @ Corroboration and updating of this information through a field visit to Barrow. INTRODUCTION Compilation of Secondary Data Compilation of secondary data involved research on published and unpublished documents and reports related to land use, land status, utilities and trans- portation. The amount and quality of this data varied considerably. Current, reliable information was available for some study areas, but was completely lacking in others. Secondary sources utilized in this phase included land use plans, engineering and utilities studies, environmental impact statements, local newspapers and trade journals, inventories of archaeologic and historic sites and Native corporation publications. A bibliography of this material is included with each study. Field Visit A three-day visit to Barrow was made in May 1977 to corroborate and update information on the Region, Barrow, Kaktovik and other communities. No primary research or surveys were undertaken as a part of the field visit. No field visit was made to Kaktovik specifically for the purpose of gathering baseline data. Recent trips by members of the study team, combined with discussions with Borough representatives, provided current information. The sum of the information gathered from secondary sources and field visits was organized into descriptions of land use, land status, utilities and transportation in each community. In some cases, data gaps still exist for some components, and are noted in the studies. IDENTIFICATION OF CRITICAL ISSUES C#itical issues related to the physical environment were identified for the Region as a whole and the communities of Barrow and Kaktovik, in accordance with the study design for the Alaska OC$ Socioeconomic Studies Program. -ii- BEAUFORT SEA INTRODUCTION Certain of these issues were common to all communities throughout the Region. The following discussion summarizes some of the key issues, with particular reference to condit ons susceptible to change as a resu” t of OCS oil and gas development. Regional Issues Subsistence activities are the earliest use to which the land and coastal waters in the Beaufort Sea Region were put. Of the nine communities in the Region, six are Native villages whose subsistence patterns are primarily oriented to the sea. During the ice-free summer season, whales, seal, walrus and fish are taken along the coast. In winter, polar bear and seal are hunted on the ice pack. Caribou and small game, such as waterfowl and foxes, are hunted from coastal areas and rivers. Although snow machines and power boats have enabled Natives to hunt and fish within larger areas around their communities, many Natives perceive increas- ing difficulties in obtaining fish and game. A recent decrease in the size of the Western Arctic Caribou Herd has been followed by State restrictions on hunting, forcing greatw reliance on purchased meat. Similarly, the harvesting of the bowhead whale, a significant part of Eskimo subsistence culture for many thousands of years, has been limited by the International Whaling Commission. The North Slope Borough has expressed concern over potential long term conflicts between oil and gas development activities and the habitats on which subsistence hunters and fishermen depend. Subsistence areas and subsistence rights are likely to be impacted by prospective OCS development activities offshore and by on-shore operation and maintenance activities. The seasonal migration route of the bowhead whale in the Beaufort Sea, as well as the denning sites, population size and movement of terrestrial mammals, could all be affected by OCS petroleum development activities. The nature and extent of these impacts cannot be determined without more detailed information on the type and location of OCS facilities. -iii- BEAUFORT SEA INTRODUCTION Archaeology The Beaufort Sea Region contains materials that span at least 10,500 years of prehistory. Archaeological findings in the area have provided evidence of prehistoric migrations into North America, including occupations by prehistoric Eskimo and Indian groups. Two coastal areas have received major archaeological attention: Point Hope and Point Barrow. Extensive archaeological research at Point Hope has led to the identification of the important Ipuitak Eskimo culture that existed on the Alaskan Arctic coast from about 200 to 300 A.O., as well as several thousand years of Eskimo prehistory. The Point Barrow area, the focus of archaeological investigations since the early 1900’s, has revealed occupa- tion by prehistoric Eskimo groups at least one thousand years ago. Despite research that has been undertaken thus far in the Arctic, archaeo- logists believe that the known sites represent only a small portion of the total. Both known and unknown sites remain vulnerable to disruption from coastal erosion, overland transportation and any development a~tivities. Without adequate pre-development archaeological