An eye on the environment: development of natural resources is important to the economy, but not at the expense of the environment.

• Author: Orr, Vanessa
• Position: Alaska Business Montly's 2004 Environmental Issue

Leave it better than how you found it. It s a simple adage that Alaskans live by, and one that, fortunately, companies doing business in the state are beginning to understand. Gone are the days when, in exchange for jobs and revenue, businesses were not subject to stringent environmental standards or expected to clean up the messes they left behind. In today's economy, a company's effect on the environment is often as important as the products that they make, or the jobs that they produce. And while there are still many issues that need to be addressed, corporations, individuals and government leaders seem committed to ensuring that economic development is not done at the expense of the environment.

"We're definitely seeing corporate mandates that demand that as many waste byproducts as possible be recycled, reclaimed or reused," explained Paul Nielsen, sales manager-Alaska, PSC. "It's written into business contracts, and into the language of RFPs (requests for proposals). There is a much higher emphasis now on being environmentally responsible."

CLEARING THE AIR

Alaska is known for its crisp, clean air, and works to keep this well-earned reputation. To this end, the 23rd Legislature recently passed House Bill 160, the Emission Control Permit Program, which reforms the permit review process to make permitting "predictable, reliable and rational." According to Kurt Fredriksson, deputy commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation, this bill will allow DEC's air quality program to reflect national precedents and court decisions, and incorporate "best practices" from other states.

"We introduced the air bill last year to improve our air permitting process, mid we also added 13 new positions to beef up our air and water permitting staff," he said. "As is the norm in Alaska right now, we're belt-tightening, but we're also reprioritizing our focus and redirecting our resources. Now we can do a better job in permitting, inspecting, monitoring and enforcing compliance to air quality state standards."

In the past year, DEC also has up dated the state's pesticide regulations, in particular, the aerial spraying of herbicides. "While we don't have any applications in now, we expect to see permits applied for in the next year, probably by Native corporations looking to control alder growth," said Fredriksson. "For this reason, we've established pesticide-free zones and buffers, to keep those chemicals from coming in contact with surface water."

One success in the battle for better air quality shows in reports on cruise ship emissions, where Fredriksson says violations have significantly decreased. "Cruise ship legislation on the federal and state sides are now a couple of years old, and...