LETTER: In Response to Sullivan’s optimism

To the Editor: In response to Senator Sullivan’s article (January 7): Among our challenges, which he fails to mention, is the impact that climate change is already having on us, and the fact that it is going to get much worse if we don’t stop pumping greenhouse gases into the air by burning fossil fuels. Locally, see what the Matanuska River is doing due to rapid glacial melting; further North, we have communities that need to be relocated, and all sorts of infrastructure threatened by permafrost melt. And is the Senator really unaware of the threat posed by ocean acidification to our salmon fisheries? So, his calling oil and gas production “responsible resource development” is a contradiction in terms: more oil pumped leads to more greenhouse gases. Nothing “responsible” about that. Since Senator Sullivan is especially concerned about national security, it’s worth noting that the U.S. military itself sees climate change as a global “threat multiplier.”

As for ANWR, Senator Sullivan writes as if all Alaskans want to open it to drilling, and it’s outsiders who oppose it. In fact, the Gwich’in people, who actually live in the region, have been fighting against this for a long time, as a matter of cultural survival. They are supported by many other Alaskans who love Alaska for its wildlife, untouched open spaces and natural beauty—things that make this place special—and appreciate the special importance of the coastal plain.

About all those jobs: alternative energy technologies produce a lot more jobs. Alaska is rich in alternative energy resources, wind, solar and geothermal. We need to transition to those (some communities have already begun) -- and be skeptical of promises by politicians and oil companies.

For one way to address climate change, I recommend the web site of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby. The URL for our web site is citizensclimatelobby.org. We have a new chapter here in the Valley. If you would like to know more, without going to the web site, and get updates on local meetings, our chapter’s e-mail address is matsuclimate@gmail.org.

— Phil Somervell

Palmer