USCG engages in tribal consultations
For the December 9 edition of the Strait Science Series, participants at the UAF-Northwest Campus were joined by Rob Edwardson, Tribal Government Affairs Officer for the U.S. Coast Guard’s District 17.
Over the course of the 90-minutelong interactive virtual discussion, he described his liaison role as “establishing and, hopefully, maintaining and strengthening relationships with tribes, Native organizations, and Alaska Native folks.” A Yahkw Laanaas Haida, he also served 20 years on active duty in the Coast Guard.
One of his jobs is to give trainings to incoming Coast Guard leaders, who might only stay in that assignment for a couple years, on how to consult and coordinate with tribes when USCG decisions could impact tribal interests.
For example, he said, the Coast Guard is currently making reports for the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission on a port access route study, working to establish “voluntary routes for deep draft ships in order to reduce the potential of conflicts between subsistence whalers and deep draft shipping.”
Asked by the Nugget about relationships overall between the Coast Guard and tribes, Edwardson said it runs “the gamut of consultation, coordination and engagement.” The Coast Guard, he continued, “sometimes holds exercises or participates as a participant in other forum or semi formal groups and within those groups there’ll be a Native representation, and it could be on infrastructure, it could be on climate, it could be on a number of different things, and you know that they would be an equal voice in the chorus of the discussion.” One such example is consultation on area committees and tribal participation in area committees, which plan for pollution response and environmental protection.
Junk and marine debris was also a topic brought up by two of the participants during the Q&A session.
The Nugget also asked about the relationship between the US and Russia, and Edwardson said that the USCG does communicate with the Russian Border Guard. A joint exercise was held in Anchorage in August 2021 as part of a Joint Contingency Plan to Combat Pollution on the Bering Sea and Chukchi Seas. As part of the USCG’s tribal engagement, eight tribes and the regional were invited to participate.
His job is not without challenges. One was brought up on a slide titled “Tyranny of Distance.” District 17 has about 2,500 personnel, but their area of responsibility covers over 3.8 million square miles, an area larger than the United States.
“Our air crews are traveling for 850 or 1,000 miles before they even get to the area to be searched.”
On January 19, there will be a special Strait Science series panel specifically on the Bering Strait and border issues.