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Washington and Alaska Interconnected in Myriad Ways |
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Written On: March/April 2004 |
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Written By: By Paul Schlienz |
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Alaska and Washington have been linked since the Klondike gold rush began in 1896. As the jumping off point and supply center for Klondike adventurers, Seattle grew rich off the Alaska trade.
After Klondike fever ended, Washington continued to reap Alaska’s vast fish and timber resources. Virtually all of Alaska’s assets – canneries, steamship lines, gold mines and trading companies – were owned in Seattle.
Alaska finally gained a land link via Canada to the Lower 48 states when the Alcan Highway was built during World War II. Although the highway bypassed Seattle, the connections between Alaska and Washington have remained strong.
In 1977, with the opening of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, petroleum became Alaska’s most important economic export. Much of Alaska’s crude oil was shipped to Washington refineries.
“The oil fields around Prudhoe Bay, at one point, had 2 million barrels a day coming down the Trans-Alaska Pipeline,” Bill Kidd of BP said. “Most of Washington’s refineries ran Alaska North Slope crude as the preferred choice for a long time. Although people don’t see Washington as a refining state, it certainly is a refining center.”
Unfortunately, Alaska’s oil industry is declining as its working fields dry up. While the dip in oil revenue has caused a budget crisis for Alaska state government, Washington’s refineries are also feeling the pinch.
“From a peak of 2 million barrels, we’re down to less than a million barrels a day, as the existing fields at Prudhoe are starting to lose pressure and volume,” Kidd said.
Today Seattle is no longer Washington’s main maritime gateway to Alaska, although Alaska-bound barge traffic and cruise ships still sail from its port, and Sea-Tac Airport remains the hub of Alaska Airlines. Barges and Alaska State Ferries also sail from Bellingham.
However, since the 1970s, 70 to 75 percent of Alaska’s waterborne cargo has gone through Tacoma. Indeed, two major maritime cargo carriers, Horizon Lines and Totem Ocean Trailer Express (TOTE) operate between the ports of Tacoma and Anchorage.
“Almost everything – groceries, building materials, professional services – come into Alaska from somewhere else,” said Shari Gross, a consultant to the Port of Tacoma. “Generally that somewhere else is Tacoma.”
“Ninety-nine percent of the consumer goods you need to live in Alaska come by container ship,” stated Port of Tacoma spokesman Mike Wasem. “The Alaska connection brings about $3.4 billion per year for the Port of Tacoma.”
Alaska represents one third of the Port of Tacoma’s business. 28,400 Pierce County jobs are directly related to the port. Beyond Pierce County, 101,000 more jobs are directly associated with port activities.
The Washington-Alaska connection is expected to steadily grow with Alaska’s population and economy. Energy development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), however, could initiate rapid economic growth for both Alaska and Washington.
“If ANWR were opened, and companies went in, explored, discovered and developed oil fields, it would have a big impact on Washington,” Gross said. “There’d be a lot more jobs, construction, and equipment going to Alaska through Tacoma.
“Another big plus would be a natural gas pipeline from Alaska’s North Slope to the U.S. Midwest. It would be a very major project, much bigger than ANWR. That, too, would have a big impact on Washington.
“Washington puts a lot of emphasis on overseas exports. I think the state would be surprised if it looked at its Alaska connection. It’s very valuable.”
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