 Industry, Coastal Communities, Citizens Benefit from Improved Process August 01, 2002
"This regulations package maintains the close working relationship between state and local governments while providing a coherent, efficient and predictable review process for projects proposed in the coastal zone," said Patrick Galvin, director of the Division of Governmental Coordination and Co-Chair of the Alaska Coastal Policy Council. Under the Alaska Coastal Management Program (ACMP), projects that affect coastal uses or resources must be reviewed for compliance with local, state and federal coastal policies before development permits can be issued. The goal of this coordinated review process is to make sure that Alaska's coast is managed as a whole (to sustain coastal communities and ecosystems from the local level up), rather than fragmented into multiple jurisdictions and management philosophies. The coordinated coastal review process was first set out in regulation at 6 AAC 50 almost two decades ago, in 1984. As these regulations were implemented over the last eighteen years, it became clear that improvements were needed. The roles and authorities of review participants - state agencies, local governments and the public - were unclear. Project proponents found they couldn't easily predict when a project would need to undergo a coastal consistency review and, in some cases, how long this process would take. To improve the process, the Division of Governmental Coordination (DGC, which is housed within the Office of the Governor) began to revise the review regulations in 1999. Since then, DGC has held numerous public meetings, solicited and accepted substantial oral and written testimony, and worked closely with the state resource agencies, coastal communities, regulated industries, and the environmental community to develop this regulation package. "These regulations are an important first step in the permit streamlining process," said Judy Brady, Executive Director of the Alaska Oil and Gas Association. Brady said a diverse group of stakeholders worked through three years of hearings and comments to craft the new regulatory package. "We believe the Coastal Policy Council has made significant strides in clarifying the key elements of the coastal zone program by approving these new regulations," said Brady. The revised regulations meet two goals voiced by all participants in the ACMP:
The revised regulations clearly identify the roles, responsibilities and procedural requirements of the coastal review process, fostering a coordinated work environment for the project proponent, state permitting agencies, the coastal district, and the public. "This regulations package clarifies how state resource agency permitting processes are meant to be coordinated for a streamlined review of development proposals. It provides a model for regulatory reform in Alaska," said Robert Fagerstrom, public co-chair of the Alaska Coastal Policy Council. He added that "the involvement and input of each of the stakeholder groups -- industry, environmental community, state agencies, and local governments -- allowed the CPC to approve a well-rounded package." The approved regulations have now been forwarded to the Alaska Department of Law. Following Dept. of Law review, the regulations will be sent to the Federal Office of Ocean and Resource Management for review and incorporation into the ACMP. Upon incorporation into the ACMP, the regulations will automatically be signed by the Lieutenant Governor and will go into effect 30 days later. These
regulations were developed through a three-year public process
that involved all stakeholders. The Alaska Coastal Policy Council
(comprised of the Commissioners of the Department of Natural
Resources, Fish and Game, Environmental Conservation, Commerce
and Economic Development, and Transportation and Public Facilities,
the Director of the Division of Governmental Coordination, and
elected public officials from nine coastal regions) heard testimony
most recently at public hearings on June 20 and 21, 2002, and
again on July 23 and 24, 2002. After considering the testimony
offered at these recent hearings, as well as public comments
and testimony offered over the course of the three year effort,
the Council approved the regulations with 18 amendments on July
24, 2002.
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