 August 02, 2002
The committee approved and cleared for Senate floor action the Cape Fox Land Entitlement Adjustment Act of 2002 (S. 2222). It will allow Cape Fox to select 99 acres of timber land adjacent to its existing holdings on Revilla Island in return for giving up 160 acres near Ketchikan. The bill also authorizes an exchange of up to 3,000 acres of corporation land near George Inlet on Revilla Island for approximately 2,600 acres of Forest Service land near Berners Bay, north of Juneau. The Forest Service has long wanted to acquire the George Inlet parcels for wildlife and recreation purposes. The land to be selected near Slate Lakes, north of Berners Bay, will enable the proposed Jualin and Kensington Gold Mines to operate totally on private land to simplify management and boost Juneau's economy, while helping Native shareholders throughout the region, according to a news release from Murkowski's office. Murkowski noted that the proposed land exchange also would benefit the public by solving a related subsurface land ownership issue. In the exchange Sealaska will be gaining land near the Jualin and Kensington mines in return for giving up subsurface rights on Revilla and Prince of Wales Islands. "Approximately 9,000 acres of the Tongass, where the subsurface rights are privately owned, would revert to full ownership by the United States. This is very important because by eliminating split ownership problems we improve land management in the Tongass which is helpful for both wildlife and recreation management," said Murkowski. The bill, revised following a June congressional hearing, adds a provision to govern the liability for hazardous substance releases, clarifies that the land exchanges must be of equal value and that normal valuation procedures will apply, and includes a provision to guarantee there will be no net loss of old growth reserve acreage in the Tongass as a result of the land trade. Murkowski proposed the bill since Cape Fox, unlike most ANCSA village corporations, was precluded form selecting its lands near Saxman because of the proximity of Ketchikan and the Annette Island Indian Reservation. Murkowski noted that the bill
in no way alters environmental protections for Juneau's Berners
Bay because it leaves all environmental regulations governing
the proposed gold mines in place.
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Source of News Release:
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