[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 105 (Tuesday, June 20, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3625-S3627]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
Requests for Authority for Committees to Meet
Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I have nine requests for committees to
meet during today's session of the Senate. They do not have the
approval of the Democratic leader; therefore, they will not be
permitted to meet.
I ask unanimous consent that a list of committees requesting
authority to meet be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Committee on Armed Services
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
Committee on Foreign Relations
Committee on the Judiciary
Committee on Intelligence
Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, Innovation, and
the Internet
Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining
Subcommittee on Multilateral International Development,
Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic,
Energy, and Environmental Policy
Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism
40th Anniversary of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System
Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I have come to the floor this afternoon
to mark the 40th anniversary of the first oil moving through the Trans-
Alaska Pipeline System. In Alaska, we call it TAPS. This is an 800-
mile-long engineering marvel that runs from the North Slope of Alaska
to tidewater in Valdez.
Forty years is a good, long history. I recognize that, and so this
afternoon, in the interest of time, I will abbreviate the history, but
I want to start the story of our pipeline in the late 1960s. Believe it
or not, this was a pretty bleak moment for oil exploration in Alaska.
Despite great promise, many companies had given up on exploration on
the North Slope. By some accounts, at that point in time, there were at
least 14 dry holes that had been drilled before ARCO and Humble Oil
Company decided they were going to sink just one last well. It was
actually an ARCO executive who described it ``more as a decision not to
cancel a well already scheduled to go ahead.''
That well, Prudhoe Bay State No. 1, would prove to be a game changer
for Alaska. We had discovered oil. We discovered oil on the North Slope
and a lot of it. We quickly learned that Prudhoe Bay would be one of
the largest oilfields in global history, by far the largest ever
discovered in the United States. Early estimates, at that time,
suggested as much as 9 billion barrels of oil could be recovered from
it. We have learned over these intervening 40 years that we so far
underestimated that.
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Yet it was not just the issue of discovering the oil. Prudhoe Bay is
located in a very remote part of the State, as far north as you can
go--a pretty inhospitable area given the climate--far away from
population centers in the lower 48. So a lot of challenges needed to be
overcome before production could begin.
Initially, it was like, OK, how do we move significant quantities of
oil? How do we transport this oil to market? It was Dan Yergin, in his
book ``The Prize,'' who did a great job of describing the various
choices that were out there.
He wrote: ``Icebreaker tankers that would travel through the frozen
Arctic seas to the Atlantic were seriously considered. Other
suggestions included a monorail or fleet of trucks in permanent
circulation on an eight-lane highway across Alaska.''
They then ``calculated that it would require most of the trucks in
America'' to do this. There was also ``a prominent nuclear physicist
recommended a fleet of nuclear-powered submarine tankers that would
travel under the polar ice cap to a deepwater port in Greenland--the
port to be created, in turn, by a nuclear explosion. Boeing and
Lockheed explored the idea of jumbo jet oil tankers.''
Obviously, none of those ideas came about, and some probably for very
good reason, but after significant study and debate, a pipeline emerged
as the best way to transport Alaska's oil. While two routes were
considered--one over land, which would run across Canada--an all-Alaska
route was ultimately chosen as the best way to go.
Yet, even then, pipeline construction could not begin right away.
There were serious debates in the State over issues like taxes and
tariffs and pipeline ownership, and it really consumed our State's
legislature for years. The land claims of the Alaska Natives needed to
be settled. This occurred in the landmark legislation that passed in
1971.
Then it was in 1973 that Congress took up the Trans-Alaska Pipeline
Authorization Act. As part of that debate here on the Senate floor,
Alaska's Senators offered an amendment to deem the environmental impact
statement for the pipeline to be sufficient and to shield it from what
could have been decades of litigation by its opponents. This was a
critically important aspect to the debate and really to the future of
the pipeline in order to ensure that this construction would not be
delayed by litigation.
The vote was as close as votes get here in the Senate. It was
deadlocked 49 to 49, and sitting in that chair, the Vice President at
the time, Spiro Agnew, cast the deciding vote in Alaska's favor. So
every time I see the bust out here of Vice President Agnew, I look at
him. Other people reflect on Vice President Agnew in different ways. I
reflect on that deciding vote that allowed us to proceed with our
Trans-Alaska Pipeline.
The pipeline bill went on to pass the Senate on a strong bipartisan
basis. Not long after that, then-President Richard Nixon signed it into
law. This was tremendous news for Alaska because we would be allowed to
move forward with the construction.
The construction of this pipeline was a monumental undertaking, but
that monumental undertaking was also done with considerable speed. In
April of 1974, construction on a 360-mile haul road began. We now call
it the Dalton Highway. It was finished in 154 days.
For those of you who have heard my plea on the floor and to
colleagues who have been in committees when I have talked about the
history of my efforts to try to get a 10-mile, one-lane, gravel,
noncommercial-use road for the people of King Cove, I think about what
we were able to accomplish in 154 days with that haul road that allowed
us to then help to facilitate the buildout of the pipeline.
The pipeline itself was the largest privately funded infrastructure
project ever undertaken in America at the time. It was significant. It
was significant for Alaska, of course, but it was significant for the
Nation as well. Its total cost came to be about $8 billion. In October
of 1975, there were about 28,000 people who were working to make this
pipeline a reality, and that pipeline was completed in 1977. Again,
initial construction of the haul road began in 1974. It was completed
in October 1977, which was just 3 years and 2 months after construction
began. I am told it was actually 10 days ahead of schedule, according
to one estimate, which is pretty remarkable.
The Trans-Alaska Pipeline--and I cannot find a picture that really
shows the line well--an extraordinary line, which again, is 800 miles
long, running from the North Slope to an ice-free Port of Valdez at
tidewater. It crosses three mountain ranges, including Atigun Pass,
which has an elevation of more than 4,800 feet. It reaches a grade of
55 degrees at one point in the Chugach Range. So it goes up incredible
mountains and down the other side. It crosses more than 600 streams and
rivers, and more than 400 miles of it are elevated above the ground.
We have it elevated aboveground here, but in certain areas, you can
follow the pipeline either by air, or occasionally, you can see it from
the road. It is probably one of the most photographed pipelines in the
country, but you will see it go underground in many areas. About half
of it is buried underground.
This was part of the engineering that allowed for the recognition
that you are building in a permafrost area, so it is how you ensure
that you are not having an impact in the ground and the area around it.
It crosses a major fault line, the Denali Fault. Back in November of
2002, we had a 7.9 magnitude earthquake just about 90 miles from
Fairbanks on that Denali Fault. The pipe moved 7\1/2\ feet
horizontally--moving back and forth this way--and 2\1/2\ feet
vertically. This pipeline was designed for an 8.5 earthquake. It allows
for 20 feet of horizontal movement and 5 feet of vertical movement.
The engineers not only worked to cross some extraordinary terrain but
also recognized that this was in an area in which earthquakes did
happen. It is extraordinary to listen to the stories of the engineers
who inspected every inch of that line after that earthquake in 2002 and
to hear their comments about, truly, this engineering marvel.
There are so many stories about the construction of the pipeline just
as Alaskans, as we have lived through those pipeline years. It is hard
to really capture what it was like to be in Alaska during the time of
the construction of that line. We saw our population boom as we saw new
workers come into the State. I was living in Fairbanks at the time. I
was a high school student and was going into college there. Obviously,
that was my town. In my town, all of a sudden there were people from
Louisiana, Texas, and Oklahoma. I can remember seeing guys in cowboy
boots in Fairbanks in the winter on the ice and thinking that these
guys are going to figure out how to change their footwear. But we
worked to welcome these people who were there to really help make a
difference.
There were pressures on our community. You could not find a hotel
room. You couldn't find a rental car. It was hard for the grocery
stores to keep the shelves stocked in many of the towns. We saw a
significant investment in our communities in many different ways. There
were a lot of wild stories and tales, some which are appropriate to
tell years afterward, some which still keep us smiling, but we do not
talk too much about them. There are many good stories out there.
I am proud of this extraordinary infrastructure that we have in
Alaska--an extraordinary energy asset--and to be celebrating the fact
that, for 40 years now, this pipeline has been not only contributing to
Alaska, but contributing to the Nation as something that, as Alaskans,
we do look to with pride.
This pipeline is not just a piece of pipe; it is an economic lifeline
for the State of Alaska. Over the course of 40 years, TAPS has become
the veritable backbone of our State's economy. It has helped us create
jobs to the point at which our oil and gas industry either employs or
supports fully one-third of the Alaskan workforce. So it is pretty
significant in terms of its impact.
It has generated tremendous revenue for our State, some $168 billion
at last count, which has been used for everything from roads, to
schools, to essential services. It really has helped build the State
and continues to allow our State to operate.
TAPS has allowed us to create our permanent fund, which we have used
to
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convert the revenues from a nonrenewable resource--oil--into something
that will make an enduring contribution to the growth and the
prosperity of future generations.
Our pipeline has also allowed us to keep our tax burdens low, which
is critical in a State like Alaska, where the cost of living is
extraordinarily high. Alaska has one of the lowest tax burdens of any
State, and that is thanks to the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System. It also
allows us to keep other industries, whether it is fishing or tourism--
keep their taxes much lower than they would otherwise be. The scale of
this is often hard to imagine.
Dr. Terrence Cole, who is a history professor at the University of
Alaska, put it this way back in 2004: ``Prudhoe Bay oil was worth more
than everything that has been dug out, cut down, caught, or killed in
Alaska since the beginning of time. The discovery of the Prudhoe Bay
oil field in the late 1960s fulfilled even the most optimistic dreams
for statehood.''
From day one, Alaska's pipeline has also strengthened the energy
security of our Nation. Remember, TAPS began operating in the wake of
the first Arab oil embargo. It helped tide us over during the 1979 oil
crisis. It has insulated us from OPEC and has lessened our dependence
on nations who do not share our interests. It has provided reliable and
affordable energy that is needed by millions of Americans all up and
down the west coast. It really is hard to imagine Alaska without the
Trans-Alaska Pipeline. It is hard to imagine the consequences that
America would have faced without the 17.5 billion barrels of oil that
it has now safely carried to market. Think about that--17.5 billion
barrels of oil over the past 40 years. It is no exaggeration to say
that, while we built a pipeline, that pipeline helped us build our
State.
Today, as we mark the 40th anniversary of TAPS, we can also take
stock of the challenges that it faces. Many are a direct result of the
decisions made--or perhaps not made--in this very Chamber. While our
pipeline once carried 2.1 million barrels of oil per day, accounting
for a full quarter of America's supply, today, that amount has been
crimped down to just over 500,000 barrels a day. It is not due to lack
of resources--not at all--but instead it is due to our lack of access
to those resources. Alaska has never lacked for energy, just the
permission to produce it, despite the promises that had been made to us
at statehood and beyond.
According to the Federal Energy Information Administration, we have
at least 36.9 billion barrels of oil. That is enough to produce 1
million barrels a day for the next 100 years. We have prolific
potential in our National Petroleum Reserve, which was specifically set
aside for oil production. We have world-class resources in our offshore
areas, in the Beaufort, and in the Chukchi Seas in our Arctic Outer
Continental Shelf. We have what is believed to be North America's
largest untapped conventional oil field, which would occupy about one
ten-thousandth of the nonwilderness 1002 Area within the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge. Again, this is an area that was specifically
set aside for development, and the Federal Government recommended that
it be opened for that purpose back in 1987--a 30-year anniversary
there.
So while we have the resources, what we need are partners at the
Federal level who will work with us to restore throughput to the Trans-
Alaska Pipeline. I welcome the new administration and its commitment to
helping us produce energy--energy for Alaska, energy for the Nation.
I want to end with a quote from the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner. This
is an opinion piece by VADM Tom Barrett, who is the president of
Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. This is the TAPS operator. He has
written this opinion piece, and he states as follows: ``Though there
has been a lot of change on TAPS in 40 years, one unwavering constant
remains: the commitment of the people who work on TAPS today to provide
safe, reliable, operational excellence, 24 hours a day, seven days a
week, resilient amid all of Alaska's extreme geography and weather.''
I think about the men and women--the engineers, the workers, the
contractors, and all those who do such an incredible job to deal with
the day-to-day to keep that oil flowing safely. Again, as we recognize
40 years of safely transporting this oil, I want to repeat to my
colleagues: TAPS, or the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, is not just a
pipeline; it is an economic lifeline for us. It is source of security
and prosperity for us as a nation.
So I join my delegation and my colleagues--Senator Sullivan and
Congressman Young--and all of the Alaskans who are marking this
anniversary today, as TAPS reaches 40 good years. We look back, and we
appreciate the past, but we also look forward and set our sights on
another good 40 years to come.
Mr. President, I thank you, and I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Hoeven). The Senator from New Mexico.