Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act Contaminated Lands Partnership Group
The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) Contaminated Lands Partnership Group formed in response to a recommendation from the 2016 BLM Report to Congress, which called to establish a formal contaminated lands working group. The purpose of this group is to address sites identified in the ANCSA Contaminated Lands inventory (which is hosted by the Bureau of Land Management [BLM] and the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation [DEC]), including the verification, assessment, and cleanup of conveyed lands.
Representatives
The Partnership Group consists of representatives from Statement of Cooperation (SOC) agencies (DEC, EPA, DOD, DOI, USFS, USCG, FAA, and ANTHC), ANCSA village and regional corporations, and Tribes.
Goals
The ANCSA Contaminated Lands Partnership Group’s goals are to:
- Work towards consensus among Partnership Group members on the prioritization of existing contaminated sites.
- Verify the accuracy of information found on the BLM inventory.
- Integrate representative input on known/potential ANCSA sites to the BLM inventory.
- Identify additional sites not listed on the BLM inventory.
- Education and outreach to all ANCSA village/regional corporations and Tribes for Partnership Group representation.
- Identify partnerships and funding resources to assist in assessment and cleanup of sites that are not in a cleanup program.
Collaboration
The 2018 Brownfields, Utilization, Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act removed ANCSA corporation liability for sites that were contaminated pre-conveyance. Thus, the Partnership Group seeks to collaborate on sites that are in the cleanup process, determining the path forward for sites that are stalled, prioritizing sites for future work, and verifying whether suspected sites actually are contaminated sites.
To learn more or participate in the ANCSA Contaminated Lands Partnership Group, please contact Joy Britt, ANTHC Contamination Support Program, at jdbritt@anthc.org or (907) 729-5630.
Resources
DEC Contaminated Sites Database
Types of Brownfields Grant Funding
Brownfields Inventory Tool (BIT)
ANCSA Partnership Group Charter
10/16/18 ANCSA Workgroup Meeting Notes
Meetings
February 16, 2018
ANCSA Partnership Group Meeting #1
Discussion of group goals, membership, and charter.
Charter [PDF]
October 16, 2018
ANCSA Partnership Group Meeting #2
Overview of BUILD Act and CERCLA Liability Protection for corporations, and DEC Contaminated Sites Inventory update.
Minutes [PDF]
February 14, 2019
ANCSA Partnership Group Meeting #3
Overview of partnership group’s formation and history, update on DEC Contaminated Sites Inventory update, overview of BUILD Act liability protection for corporations.
Minutes [PDF] | Presentation [PDF]| View Recording: http://anthc.adobeconnect.com/pb8znapiqhlg/
