Word: alaskas
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...there is another Alaska -- a land of mining towns and tourist boats, of developers and exploiters. Gradually, but inexorably, oil rigs encroached upon the wilderness, and a huge pipeline now snakes its way across the icy expanses where caribou roam. Loggers have cut ever deeper into the lush forests, and fishermen have cast ever wider nets off the winding shores. From Prudhoe Bay in the north to Anchorage in the south, swarms of settlers have tapped the state's wealth as fast as they could...
Even as cleanup crews struggled to contain the damage, the incident was igniting a debate on the future of Alaska, intensifying a longtime battle between developers and preservationists. In Washington EPA Administrator William Reilly called for a re-evaluation of oil exploration proposals pending for the state. And in Alaska itself, a tradition of favoring development is suddenly in doubt...
Legislators and regulators are asking tough questions: Should oil exploration in Alaska be drastically curtailed, or even stopped? Should larger areas of the state be put under federal protection from development? If the U.S. holds back the pumping of Alaskan oil, how will the country satisfy its hunger for energy...
Until the Exxon Valdez hit a reef, these questions did not seem quite so urgent. But like the accident at a once obscure nuclear-power plant known as Three Mile Island, this single disaster could be the turning point for an entire industry. Says Alaska Governor Steve Cowper: "There's going to be a permanent change in the political chemistry of Alaska as a result of this tragedy. Most Alaskans are going to reassess their attitude toward oil and development in this state...
Hazelwood, who fled Alaska soon after the accident to avoid arrest on drunken-piloting charges, finally turned himself in last week near his home on Long Island. He was initially held on $1 million bail, a figure 40 times higher than prosecutors had recommended. But it was reduced to $25,000 on appeal, and Hazelwood was released. The FBI is looking into whether he can be charged with criminal violations of the federal Clean Water Act. According to a report in the Anchorage Times last week, Hazelwood may have done more than just hand the ship over to an uncertified...