News from the Senate Majority
Alaska State Legislature

Wendy Lindskoog, Senate Majority Press Secretary
State Capitol
Juneau, AK 99801-1182
Phone: 907/465-4582
http://www.akrepublicans.org
Broadcast Actualities: 800/478-6540

Legislation Spurred Agreement Between DEC and Drillers

For Immediate Release: May 6, 1998 Contact: Senator Loren Leman at (907) 465-2095.

Juneau – Senator Loren Leman (R-Anchorage) announced Wednesday that the Legislature will not meet in joint session to consider an override of Governor Knowles’ veto of Senate Bill 299. An agreement reached last Friday between the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) and the Alaska Chapter of the International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC) regarding Alaska’s air quality program accomplishes the same goals called for in the legislation.

Leman said he introduced SB 299 because DEC and industry were unable to reach an agreement on regulatory definitions of non-road engines. After a five-year stalemate, Leman introduced SB 299 to clarify the differences between mobile and stationary sources of emissions and adopt clear standards that meet EPA clean air requirements.

"The Governor’s inflammatory language, exaggeration and misrepresentation in his veto message were a disservice to the legislators, industry and the Alaska public who worked in good faith to implement the Clean Air Act amendments in 1993. Knowles could have achieved the same results by allowing SB 299 to become law. He chose, instead to confuse and divide Alaskans," said Leman.

According to Leman, the problem with current state practices is that the DEC treats some mobile and stationary sources alike, even though federal rules and state statutes require the Department to consider the mobility of emission sources when regulating emissions. "Treating mobile and stationary sources alike results in additional, unnecessary regulations that end up costing the state and Alaska businesses administrative time and money," Leman said.

This current agreement with drillers appears to provide the same assurance of Alaska’s compliance with federal clean air standards as the approach defined in SB 299. Leman noted the following principles agreed upon by DEC and IADC include:

• Requires DEC to develop regulations incorporating the agreement.
  
• Adopts a "permit by rule" approach to address emissions from drilling rigs. This approach allows rigs that conform to the conditions of the regulations to operate in the state without any additional air emissions authorization.
  
• Control of sulfur oxides (SOx) emissions will be achieved by using reduced sulfur fuel on the North Slope when available.
  
• Requires each drilling rig to perform a Best Available Technology assessment of its equipment.

"I will be monitoring closely the implementation of this agreement during the final months of the Knowles Administration. The next Legislature may still need to revisit this issue," Leman said.

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