Elsewhere the leaves are beginning to turn Autumn colors before they fall to the earth but, here in Southeast Alaska, we still get to enjoy the lush greens of the cedar, hemlock, spruce, and pine trees. We can still see the occasional otter or seal pop its head up out of the ocean, which doesn’t sparkle as it does during the summer months but, instead, appears to slumber and rest as it gets ready for the next season. This is the time of year when things quiet and we take a deep breath to marvel at the beauty of the land and sea.
In these quieter times, I’m reflecting on what it is we’re trying to protect — the abundance and beauty that make our home special and support our ways of life and livelihoods.
Many in the region count on tourism for their livelihoods — cruise tourism, to be more exact. Visitors from around the world are drawn to the beauty of this place and they’re coming by cruise ship in record numbers each year. But it’s all at risk if we allow our waters to be polluted and that’s why we’re working on a cleaner fuel solution to pollution from large cruise ships burning heavy fuel oil. Read more.
Late this summer, we released a database of clean water violations tied to the scrubbers used to burn heavy fuel oil. Even when everything is working perfectly, heavy fuel oil pollutes our waters but we found things are not always working perfectly and cruise ships reported hundreds of violations in Alaska waters over the last couple of years. Read the article from Alaska Public Media here and our press release here.
In early October, several partners, community leaders, and experts came together to host the ‘Cleaner Fuel Brighter Future’ town hall in Juneau. In-person and online attendance represented individuals and organizations from across southeast Alaska, with an overwhelmingly positive response to the solutions presented. If you were unable to attend or would like to watch it again, you can view the town hall here.
Accustomed to planning generations into the future, our Tribal communities continue to lead the effort to keep our waters free from pollutants, with the Metlakatla Indian Community and the Skagway Traditional Council both passing resolutions calling for the banning of heavy fuel oil in Alaska waters. This brings the total number of Tribal governments passing resolutions to six, with more communities having important conversations about the issue. Tribes and municipalities interested in adopting a resolution should contact us at cleanwater@seacc.org.
You, as an individual can take a stand, too. Please add your name to our petition calling for the use of cleaner fuel in Alaska waters. If you signed our petition in 2024 or early 2025, we’d love to have you sign again because we updated our language once the solution became clear and launched a new version.
While we’re taking a local approach, we’re joining folks around the world who are advocating to keep our oceans clean and our food supply safe, now and for future generations. You can read more below.
Ship & Bunker article, Viewpoint: Time to Pull the Plug on Scrubbers in Shipping
Nordic Council Polar Fuels resolution with Clean Arctic Alliance
Yet another scientific study highlights the dangers of high sulfur heavy fuel oil use
In a landmark move, OSPAR bans scrubber discharges in North-East Atlantic waters
