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6 Human Environment
Pages 129-152

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From page 129...
... Changes in the Physical Environment Alteration of the human environment that results from disturbances and changes in He physical environment can in turn affect environmental services He ways in which people use Heir environment. If an oil spill 129
From page 130...
... DeveloPment-enduced Changes The second causal route involves economic, demographic, and other changes brought about by leasing and development processes themselves. Among its other implications, for example, OCS oil and gas development can lead to increases in population and economic activity, which can have significant implications for the human environment.
From page 131...
... If proposals appear to pose Treats, the results can include fear, uncertainty, and doubt about the potential future of the community, which can In turn motivate predictable responses, as when people take time off from work to attend meetings, ~ organize, or to protest. Many of these Important changes in the human environment can take place before a lease sale (NRC, 1989a, 1991a; for a more specific documentation of opportunity-~reat impacts, see especially NRC, 1992b, Appendix C)
From page 132...
... Because of its remoteness, for example, the North Slope Borough (NSB) already has been identified in the peer-rev~ewed literature as being particularly susceptible to He phenomenon of "overadaptabon" ~ et al., 1982; Freudenburg and Gramling, 1992~.
From page 133...
... DISTI~CTIV[~I AS OF THE HIGH ARCTIC MID ITS P[OPLIS One distinctive characteristic of Be Norm Slope, as well as of over areas of rural Alaska, including the Kotzebue-NANA region, has to do with the continued vitality of local tradition. The North Slope is home to several thousand Alaska Natives, whose traditions in many respects are quite strong.
From page 134...
... This is We foundation of We OCSLA definition of Be human environment as including "quality of living condidons" (43 U.S.C. § 1331 bilk.
From page 135...
... SubsIstence Distribution of subsistence hunters is fairly well known and is extensive due to modern small-scale motorized transport. Subsistence activities include hunting, capturing, processing, distribution, and consumption of wild animals, especially Me bowhead whale.
From page 136...
... Tinsels anti Family Sharing and interacting among extended family continue to be important components of IAupiat culture (Luton, 1985; Jorgenson, 1990) , whose practices include adoption, name sharing, and resource sharing.
From page 137...
... extreme esolatlon Because of the remoteness of the North Slope and western Alaska from potential markets and supply sources, the region faces understandable but considerable challenge in attempting to compete, in most industries, with locations that support larger populations and have a climate that is less severe. As already noted, the North Slope Borough presents the most extreme example in the United States of the challenges of geographic isolation.
From page 138...
... In light of experience, a continued commitment to a subsistence economy can be a highly rational form of insurance against the inherently unpredictable fortunes of extraction. Forth Slope Borough Rapid and radical changes in the past 20 years have dramatically transformed the living and working conditions of the North Slope Inupiat.
From page 139...
... If in the future the direction of He Norm Slope Borough were to pass out of Inupiat hands, current policies and practices could change.
From page 140...
... This section describes Me Socioeconomic Studies Program (SESP) and discusses Me extent to which MMS's analyses provide coverage of baseline conditions and Me various potential effects on Me human environment Mat could result in changes to Pose conditions.
From page 141...
... and gas exploration and development realistically in light of recent population increases in Norm Slope communities. Subsistence Subsistence was the focus of extensive research on the North Slope Borough from 1987 to 1990 to document He areas, seasons, and harvests of Free major communities.
From page 142...
... Economic Growth Considerable attention has been paid to the economic impacts of OCS oil development through MMS's development of economic growth models and related work. Economic growth models simulate economic, fiscal, and demographic changes caused by various forms of development.
From page 143...
... rather than to substitute market commodities for subsistence harvests. Indeed, many of Hose with jobs in the cash sector view employment as a temporary effort to collect enough money to finance subsistence activities.
From page 144...
... In addition, He North Slope Borough, in particular, experienced considerable success in using oil-derived tax revenues to support He hiring of Alaska Natives who work directly for He borough and, hence, indirectly for one another. SESP contributed significantly to He decisions to pursue an "enclave" approach to development, lessening significantly the amount of interaction and potential conflict between oil workers and Inupiat residents.
From page 145...
... MMS began its social indicators studies in 1987, and the effort has since received a significant fraction of the overall funding for socioeconomic studies in the Alaska region. Given the special requirements of the Alaska region, SESP had to modify the methods and goals that are standard in other social indicators studies.
From page 146...
... Given that little attention has been focused on opportunity-~reat impacts in northern Alaska, little is known about the specific form ark severity of Be impacts Cat can be expected for leases in this region. Also, lithe is currently known about Be appropriate pragmatic steps Mat could be taken to mitigate Pose impacts within this particular context.
From page 147...
... The Norm Slope can provide a textbook illustration of Be potential for overadaptabon, but it does not appear that systematic studies have yet focused on this potential or on the steps Mat could be taken to deal with the likely result. In addition, far too little information is available about specific implications of extractive dependence for the North Slope Borough.
From page 148...
... Conclusion 2: To date, studies generally have failed to reflect the fact Cat Be human environment can be expected to change as soon as He potential for OCS-related activities is raised, often well before biological or physical disruptions begin. There is little evidence Cat systematic attention has been devoted to He fact Hat MMS can substantially ameliorate or exacerbate opportunity-~reat impacts.
From page 149...
... Because the studies need to be credible to the aff3ectect populations and because the Inupiat have a wealth of knowledge about the flora and fauna of the region, it is vital that greater effort be devoted to the cooperative development of studies or negotiated agreements with the Norm Slope Borough. In addiiton, work should begin immediately, in close cooperation path the North Slope Borough, the state of Alaska, and affected citizens and their representatives, to address the scientific and pragmatic issues involved in dealing with the implications of the gradual, but cumulatively sigruficant, adaptations that are likely to take place even in the absence of acute or dramatic disruptions.
From page 150...
... The technical personnel within MMS expressed to Me committee during our meeting in Anchorage Me belief dial policy-making personnel discourage Me drawing of conclusions about OCS-related impacts in socioeconomic studies, arguing Mat such decisions need to be left as a prerogative of policy makers. Just as it would not normally be considered acceptable scientifically to have a policy maker draw conclusions about the biological impacts of OCS development, it is scientifically inappropriate for technical social science extrapolations to be drawn by policy makers.
From page 151...
... appropriate, studies should quantify potential impacts to the subsistence sector of the economy using methods akin to those that quantify impacts to the cash sector. The available MMS development scenarios should be used to identify areas lost to subsistence activities.
From page 152...
... adequately explains human migration patterns, particularly Pose of Alaska Natives. Recommendation 6: Economic growth models should be better adapted to the specific situation of the North Slope to measure cash flow to the local comrralniaes ureter various scenarios for development andfor expenditure of resulting property revenues.


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