[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1566 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1566
To create the American Arctic Adaptation Grant Program to prevent or
mitigate effects of Arctic climate change, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
August 3, 2009
Mr. Begich introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To create the American Arctic Adaptation Grant Program to prevent or
mitigate effects of Arctic climate change, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Arctic Climate Adaptation Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The United States is an Arctic Nation with--
(A) an approximately 700-mile border with the
Arctic Ocean;
(B) more than 100,000,000 acres of land above the
Arctic Circle; and
(C) a broader area within the Arctic isotherm that
encompasses most of the Bering Sea.
(2) The Arctic region of the United States--
(A) is home to an indigenous population which has
subsisted for millennia on the abundance in marine
mammals, fish, and wildlife, many of which are unique
to the region;
(B) is known to the indigenous population as
Inuvikput or the ``place where we live''; and
(C) has produced more than 16,000,000,000 barrels
of oil and, according to the United States Geological
Survey, may hold an additional 30,000,000,000 barrels
of oil and 220,000,000,000,000 cubic feet of natural
gas, making the region of fundamental importance to the
national interest of the United States.
(3) Temperatures in the United States Arctic region have
warmed by 3 to 4 degrees Celsius over the past half-century, a
rate of increase that is twice the global average.
(4) The Arctic ice pack is rapidly diminishing and
thinning, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration estimates the Arctic Ocean may be ice free
during summer months in as few as 30 years.
(5) Such changes to the Arctic region are having a
significant impact on the indigenous people of the Arctic,
their communities and ecosystems, as well as the marine
mammals, fish, and wildlife upon which they depend.
(6) Such changes are opening new portions of the United
States Arctic continental shelf to possible development for
offshore oil and gas, commercial fishing, marine shipping, and
tourism.
(7) Unprecedented storms over an area of Arctic waters that
are now ice-free are eroding sections of Alaska shoreline at
rates of 45 feet or more annually. Thawing permafrost is
causing roads and the foundations of public buildings and homes
to buckle. Entire Alaskan Arctic villages are at risk of
serious erosion or of being washed into the sea.
(8) As many as 4 of Alaska's coastal villages are at
immediate risk and will face overwhelming relocation costs in
the during the period from 2009 through 2014 as the lack of
winter ice pack allows increased wave energy to erode
beachfronts that are no longer held together by frozen soil.
The Government Accountability Office estimates that relocation
costs for those 4 villages will be $450,000,000 and that as
many as 30 additional Alaskan coastal villages will face
similar threats during the period from 2009 through 2019.
(9) A study conducted by the Government Accountability
Office published in June 2009, states that ``most of Alaska's
more than 200 Native villages were affected to some degree by
flooding and erosion,'' and recommends that ``Congress may wish
to consider designating or creating a lead Federal entity that
could work in conjunction with the lead state agency to
coordinate and oversee village relocation efforts''.
(10) A 2009 study by the University of Alaska's Institute
for Social and Economic Research concluded that the added
adaptation costs for Alaska's public infrastructure resulting
from climate change impacts will range up to $6,000,000,000 by
2030.
(11) Coastal erosion and thawing permafrost threaten the
public infrastructure, including airports which are often the
only link to the outside world, roadways, and other basic
utilities, of many of Alaska's 267 incorporated communities,
with an estimated adaptation cost in the tens of billions of
dollars during the several decades following the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(12) Additionally, rising ocean temperatures and increased
ocean acidification result in changes in fish habitats and
invasive fish species jeopardizing both Alaska's commercial
fisheries, which produce 60 percent of the United States
commercial catch, and the subsistence hunting, fishing, and
gathering that supplies as much as 90 percent of the protein
supply for as many as 214 economically disadvantaged Alaskan
Native villages from Metlakatla in the south to Point Barrow in
the north.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Denali commission.--The term ``Denali Commission''
means the Denali Commission established pursuant to section
303(a) of the Denali Commission Act of 1998 (42 U.S.C. 3121
note).
(2) Program.--The term ``Program'' means the American
Arctic Adaptation Grant Program established under section 4(a).
SEC. 4. AMERICAN ARCTIC ADAPTATION GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment.--There is a established in the Department of
Commerce a program to be known as the ``American Arctic Adaptation
Grant Program'' to award grants to eligible entities to carry out
eligible projects, as described in this section.
(b) Coordination.--
(1) In general.--The Denali Commission shall--
(A) be the Alaska Project Coordinator for the
Program; and
(B) select, administer, and coordinate projects
awarded grants under the Program.
(2) Consultation.--In carrying out its responsibilities as
the Alaska Project Coordinator, the Denali Commission shall
consult with affected communities, the State of Alaska, the
United States Army Corps of Engineers, the University of
Alaska, the Arctic Research Commission established pursuant to
section 103 of the Arctic Research and Policy Act of 1984 (15
U.S.C. 4102), and the Inuit Circumpolar Council and the
Northern Forum or successor organizations.
(3) Adaptation advisory committee.--
(A) Establishment.--The Denali Commission shall
establish an Adaptation Advisory Committee composed of
public and private members to advise the Denali
Commission on climate adaptation needs and investments
and on the award of grants under the Program.
(B) Membership.--The Adaptation Advisory Committee
shall include one representative of each of the
following:
(i) The Alaska Federation of Natives.
(ii) The Inter-Tribal Council.
(iii) The Alaska Native Science and
Engineering Program of the University of
Alaska.
(iv) The Alaska Associated General
Contractors Association.
(v) The Alaska Department of
Transportation.
(vi) The Alaska Department of Commerce,
Community, and Economic Development.
(vii) The United States Army Corps of
Engineers.
(viii) Organized labor.
(C) Meetings.--The Denali Commission shall meet
with the Adaptation Advisory Commission not less often
than once every 6 months.
(c) Other Funds for Grant Awards.--To the extent practicable and
appropriate, the Denali Commission may combine funds from the Program
with awards from other appropriate Federal or State infrastructure
development, construction, or maintenance programs to provide funds to
carry out an eligible project.
(d) Eligible Entity Defined.--In this section, the term ``eligible
entity'' means--
(1) the State of Alaska; or
(2) a borough and community organized under the
Constitution of the State of Alaska.
(e) Eligible Project Defined.--In this section, the term ``eligible
project'' means a project to repair, replace, or maintain an element of
public infrastructure in a coastal or remote Alaskan village damaged or
threatened by the effects of climate change, including flooding, storm
surge, coastal or riparian erosion, melting permafrost, and land
subsidence not associated with normal seasonal effects. An eligible
project--
(1) may be designed to address--
(A) damage to a public transportation system and
infrastructure or to a public or privately owned
building;
(B) negative impacts to human health;
(C) interruption of natural migration cycles or
disruption of habitats; or
(D) disruption of economic activities, including
projects to develop new northern sea routes; and
(2) shall be of a permanent nature, and designed, built,
and maintained to maximize sustainability and resiliency.
(f) Application.--An eligible entity seeking a grant under the
Program shall submit an application to the Denali Commission at such
time and in such manner as the Commission shall require. Each such
application shall, at a minimum, include a complete description of--
(1) the eligible project proposed to be carried out with
such grant; and
(2) the extent to which one or more effects of climate
change have necessitated, or given ongoing and cumulative
effects could necessitate, such eligible project.
(g) Selection Criteria.--In selecting an eligible project to be
carried out with a grant under the Program, the Denali Commission--
(1) may select the eligible project only if the eligible
entity agrees--
(A) to submit to a directed process in which the
staff of the Denali Commission provides technical
assistance and guidance through the planning phase,
design phase, and construction phase of the eligible
project; and
(B) that not more than 25 percent of the grant
funds may be used for administrative expenses; and
(2) shall give a preference to an eligible project that
will be carried out with non-Federal funds to match the amount
of the grant funds.
(h) Work Plan.--The Denali Commission shall publish an annual work
plan for the Program. Each such plan shall include--
(1) a description of each eligible project approved to
receive a grant under the Program during the previous year;
(2) updates on the planning, design, and construction of
each eligible project approved to receive such a grant in a
prior year; and
(3) guidance to eligible entities seeking to obtain such a
grant for the following year.
SEC. 5. ARCTIC RESEARCH.
(a) Requirement To Conduct Research.--During fiscal year 2010, and
in collaboration with the State of Alaska, the University of Alaska,
and relevant agencies of the United States, the Denali Commission shall
conduct research on the best practices for climate related adaption
that are being used or researched by other polar nations or foreign or
domestic research institutions or institutions of higher learning, and
which could be used by Arctic communities in Alaska. Such research
shall focus on--
(1) environmentally sensitive design;
(2) clean energy alternatives; and
(3) innovative transportation, telecommunications, and
other infrastructure solutions.
(b) Report.--Not later than December 31, 2010, the Denali
Commission shall submit to Congress, the Secretary of Commerce, the
Secretary of the Treasury, the Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil
Works), and the Governor of Alaska a report on the research carried out
under subsection (a).
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) American Arctic Adaptation Grant Program.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to the Secretary of Commerce such sums as may be
necessary to carry out the Program.
(b) Research.--There is authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000
for fiscal year 2010 to carry out section 5.
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