Getting There: AK2008 Day 1

We flew to Anchorage by way of Seattle, flying on one of my favorite airlines, Alaska Airlines, and its smaller cousin, Horizon. Horizon Air is now transitioning to a fleet comprised entirely of Bombardier Q400s, phasing out their Q200s and CRJ-700s for better fuel efficiency. This is the first time I've flown on Horizon rather than Alaska between Reno and Seattle in a very long time - the views aren't quite as good except, perhaps, way in the front or back. (And the plane can be a little louder!) Beer is free on Horizon, though, somewhat making up for the view, and the plane seats two on each side of the aisle, so there isn't that uncomfortable middle seat.

Upon arriving in Anchorage, MOH and I, along with my parents, immediately proceeded to the famed Moose's Tooth, where some people had beer with lunch, and others had beer for lunch. The beer in question was their Fairweather IPA. There has been some recent interest in beer in the geoblogosphere - Alaska is a great place to check out different kinds of beers for anyone if you get a chance.

Below - a couple photos from inside the Moose's Tooth.

After reaching satiation at The Tooth, we made the one (and only one this time) obligatory stroll through downtown Anchorage, where we conducted some business and did a bit of window shopping.

Above, the "yellow mall" with an example of the ever-present Alaskan-summer, hanging baskets of flowers.

T-shirt shops and cocktail lounges...

Bookstores, more flowers, and gold nugget shops...

Street scenes (the yellow mall, again, next to some blue building)...

Reflections of window shoppers in an artistic, Alaskan window...

And finally, we make our way eastward, past mid-town to our not-so-final destination, under cloudy skies, with fog or sprinkles hanging over the Chugach Range.

The question is, is it summer or fall? The answer is barely visible in that last picture: some barely blooming fireweed stalks on the side of the road.

1981 OCS Drilling Moratorium Links

Brian at Clastic Detritus has recently had an article about petroleum resources on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). I'm providing a few links for further reference, mostly in order to flesh out the history of the moratorium itself.

A brief history of the moratorium and bans on drilling: first, the initial moratoriums were passed as part of certain fiscal year (FY) budgets for the Department of Interior (DOI). The history and much more can be read here, and is summarized as follows:

1. The 1981 moratorium only covered California.
2. In 1983, a ban on "pre-leasing" was extended to the North Atlantic.
3. In 1988 Congress enacted the first OCS drilling ban, as part of the FY 1989 DOI appropriations - this ban covered leases in the eastern Gulf of Mexico (GOM), south of 26 degrees North.
4. Other extensions were passed in 1990 under the Outer Banks Protection Act, which included "moratorium language" for North Carolina offshore areas.

The Minerals Management Service (MMS) summarizes the history the OCS Lands Act and more, going back to the 1800's.

Marathon Oil sues the U.S. in 1997 over part of the OCS ban and certain leases it had been awarded in 1981 prior to the moratorium.

A 2000 update on OCS royalties, and more, by AGI.

A 2004 Geotimes article compares the way we manage OCS leasing and drilling with the way Norway does it, and goes into some of the root causes for our current ban (environmental, primarily).

MMS lists some U.S. Offshore Milestones as of 2006.

Environment: a couple links to 2006 arguments by the Sierra Club for keeping the ban, including 2005 testimony before the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

A 2006 Power Point presentation by a coalition for maintaining the current OCS bans, has some history and definitions.

A 2006 letter from the County of Los Angeles opposes the ban.

A CSN News article from 2006, wherein Bush says yes to nuclear energy, quoted in part below:

More Nuclear Power, Bush Says; No Oil Drilling, Pelosi Insists
By Susan Jones
CNSNews.com Senior Editor
May 19, 2006
(CNSNews.com)

Politicians of all stripes agree that the United States would benefit from a reduced dependence on foreign oil. But that's where the agreement ends.

On Thursday, President George W. Bush said the nation "must start building nuclear power plants." He described them as a "key part of a clean, secure energy future."

Bush spoke on the same day that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi warned, "We cannot drill our way to energy independence."

June 18, 2008 news from Energy Daily.

June 18, 2008 news from Poynter Online.

The Congressional Record online only goes back to 1983, but some information possibly could be found there, if you know how to look for it. I found it a little cumbersome.

Some Recent Energy News

Alaska again rejects Exxon's plan to drill Point Thompson on the North Slope.

Gasoline usage is going down!

Bush tells Congress to open ANWR to oil exploration.

Juneau is using a lot less electricity (and a lot more energy-efficient lightbulbs - and clothespins!) in the aftermath of recent avalanches, which knocked out power lines.

Also, see Clastic Detritus for some news and discussion about suspending the federal gasoline (fuel?) tax.