Coast Guard Soon Will Require More Resources in Arctic, Commandant Says

Reposted from Homeland Security Today: Written By: By: Mickey McCarter

While the Arctic Ocean becomes increasingly navigable as polar ice recedes, the US Coast Guard will require more specialized assets to patrol the area and respond to incidents, the commandant of the Coast Guard testified Friday.

Speaking at a field hearing of the Senate Commerce Committee in Anchorage, Ala., US Coast Guard Adm. Robert Papp said the Coast Guard has conducted exercises off the coast of Alaska but it has not yet run drills inside the Arctic Circle due to a lack of vessels that can sail those waters.

"For the past four years, the Coast Guard has been conducting limited Arctic operations during open water periods. However, as operational tempo increases in the Arctic, the Coast Guard will require specialized vessels, aircraft, and crews trained to operate in extreme climates," Papp told the committee in his written testimony.

As the Arctic becomes increasingly open, oil companies have begun exploring drilling in the Arctic, which holds the promise of large oil deposits. To test its response capabilities for an oil spill in the Arctic, the Coast Guard has been conducting exercises with skimming systems and oil recovery systems around Alaska. No exercises have occurred north of the Arctic Circle to date, Papp said, as they systems cannot operate in areas with icy waters.

The White House fiscal 2012 budget request would provide funding for research and development on oil detection and recovery in icy water, Papp said, as part of an effort to extend the capability of skimming and recovery systems.

"[W]e must determine our nation's vessel requirements for transiting ice-laden waters, consider establishing seasonal bases for air and boat operations, and develop a force structure that can operate in extreme cold and ice," Papp stated.

The Coast Guard only has one active boat that can sail through icy seas -- the Healy, a medium icebreaker, which is used for scientific research, Papp reported. The agency plans to bring a heavy icebreaker, the Polar Star, back into service by 2013 after a major refurbishing. Another heavy icebreaker, the Polar Sea, is being decommissioned. Both heavy icebreakers are more than 30 years old.

Although the likelihood of an incident in US waters covered in ice remains low, the United States would have only the Healy to depend upon as well as assistance from allies operating icebreakers should something occur.

But the Coast Guard needs more than ships to extend its operations in the Arctic, Papp said.

"The Coast Guard's most immediate operational requirement, however, is infrastructure. Energy exploration is emerging on the North Slope of Alaska, but the existing infrastructure is extremely limited. The Coast Guard needs facilities to base crews, hangar aircraft, and protect vessels in order to perform prevention and response missions," he commented.

Investments in those resources soon will become very important as oil companies are increasingly moving into the Arctic, Papp said. Shell submitted a plan for exploring wells in the Arctic to the US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Regulation and Enforcement this past May and other companies like ConocoPhillips and Statoil may soon follow. Shell has updated its exploration plans and has been preparing equipment to engage in drilling operations in the Arctic perhaps as early as spring 2012.

The Coast Guard has been preparing as well as possible to prepare for response missions under the circumstances. It has established several temporary operating bases far north in Alaska to train its crews to operate its air and sea assets under near-Arctic conditions and to expand its situational awareness in the region. The Coast Guard also has been flying two air sorties per month to examine any corporate or governmental activities occurring in the Arctic. Those sorties have provided valuable insight on Coast Guard infrastructure requirements, Papp said.

Meanwhile, the service has been talking to companies about their responsibilities in the Arctic to ensure the private sector has appropriate response capabilities in the event of an incident such as a large-scale oil spill.

"Those engaging in offshore commercial activity in the Arctic must also plan and prepare for emergency response in the face of a harsh environment, long transit distances for air and surface assets and limited response resources. We continue to work on raising awareness of these challenges, and foster continued development of contingency plans, and communications," Papp said.