Analysis of the permitting processes associated with exploration of Federal OCS leases. Final report. Volume II. Appendices Page: 245 of 282
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that support subsistence economies. They also hope to obtain lease stipulations
preventing oil personnel from hunting and fishing while in the area.
Efforts, such as those mentioned above, to protect subsistence resources will continue
as new lease areas are announced. The use of lease stipulations and possibly local
hunting/fishing permitting processes are two potential mechanisms designed to protect
subsistence resources.
F.1.2 Fisheries Resources
The protection of Alaskan fisheries is a critical OCS issue. Alaska's.outer continental
shelf area contains some of the most productive fisheries in the world. Commercial
fishing in these areas supports a significant portion of Alaska's nonpetroleum-related
economy and is the mainstay of numerous local coastal economies.
Three large and extremely productive fisheries are found off Alaska's coasts: 1) the
Bering Sea (noted for king crab, bottomfish, salmon); 2) the waters around Kodiak
(noted for king and tanner crab, salmon and bottomfish); and 3) Bristol Bay (noted for
red salmon). The waters around Kodiak and the Bering Sea each rank in the top three or
four fishery areas in the United States. Several other areas, such as Southeast Alaska,
the lower Cook Inlet and parts of the Gulf of Alaska are also sites of important fishing
activity.
Many of the planned OCS sale areas are located within these high-value fishery areas.
The sales planned for the St. George Basin, Aleutian Shelf, and Navarin Basin
encompass parts of the large Bering Sea and Bristol Bay fisheries. The sales areas
planned for Kodiak overlap an important segment of the Kodiak fishery. The main issue
focuses on whether it is prudent to have sales in these uniquely rich fishery areas, and if
sales are allowed whether adequate protection of the fish resources can be provided.
The perceived principal threat to fishery resources arising from OCS development is the
fear of oil spills destroying the fish and their habitat. The oil spill problem is especially
acute if it affects shoreline* waters of less than sixty meters in depth. These waters
provide habitat for crab, halibut, salmon, and other species during their most vulnerable
stages of development. Oil spills in open water near fish resources can damage aF-5
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Analysis of the permitting processes associated with exploration of Federal OCS leases. Final report. Volume II. Appendices, report, November 1, 1980; United States. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1184664/m1/245/: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.