Unalaska-Unexpected Gateway to the Arctic
By
Mayor Shirley Marquardt
City of Unalaska
“Gateway to the Arctic.” - It sounds like the unique designation of a single specific geographical
starting point from where all access to the Arctic begins, but in this case, appearances are
deceiving. From what I can tell there are at least two “Gateways” already established under this
vernacular, and western Alaska’s Aleutian island Port of Dutch Harbor is now being considered
a third.
One such gateway is the Norwegian City of Tromso located 350 kilometers (247 miles) north of
the Arctic Circle. The Port boasts a strong maritime presence of fishing vessels, offshore oil
supply vessels, cruise ships and cargo carriers with proven experience operating in the Arctic
Ocean. The Russian City of Murmansk’s seaport is an established Arctic Gateway to Europe and
is planning for new economic opportunities if the ice in the Northern Sea Route continues its
retreat for the next several decades.
As any real estate agent worth their salt will tell you, the key to success is “location, location,
location”. In Alaska, the City of Unalaska’s International Port of Dutch Harbor is approximately
800 miles due south of the Bering Straits and sited just 32 miles west of Unimak Pass and the
Pacific Ocean on the Great Circle Route. The Port of Dutch Harbor is the only deep draft, yearround ice free Port on the West Coast of Alaska. It is a well-established major fishing, domestic
cargo and export transshipment hub for the west coast of the United States, Europe and Asia
operating at near capacity 12 months a year.
So what does Unalaska have to offer in the discussion of a “Pacific” Gateway to the Arctic? You
guessed it, location.
Roughly 9,000 years ago the first known inhabitants of Unalaska Island conceivably followed
the grey and humpback whales annual migration to and from the Bering Sea to warmer waters
through Unimak Pass and found Unalaska Island. Here the sheltered bays, moderate winters and
richness of berries, salmon and marine mammals in the eastern end of the Aleutian Archipelago
provided these sea going mariners a strategic place to settle. To date, twenty five pre-historic
village sites have been identified within a two mile radius of the Unalaska/Dutch Harbor Airport.
These first settlers were followed thousands of years later by Russian fur traders who left a
profound and lasting mark on the Unangan culture still prevalent today.
During World War II it was Dutch Harbor’s geographic location in close proximity to Unimak
Pass and the Pacific that prompted the United States military to build the Dutch Harbor Naval
Base and the Fort Mears Army Base that became the front line of defense between the threat of
the Japanese Imperial Navy to the west coast of the United States.
Fast forward 35 years to the passage of the Magnusson/ Stevens Act of 1976 which allowed for
the development of the domestic fishing industry by phasing out foreign fishing interests within
200 miles of U.S. soil and creating eight Regional Fishing Management Councils. This major
shift in U.S. Fisheries policy opened the door to billions of dollars of investment in Bering Sea
Pollock and Cod, particularly in the eastern Aleutians and Unalaska. The backyard location of
these fisheries was yet another boom for the Port of Dutch Harbor, turning a modest, primarily
Aleut rural community of just over 400 into a robust, furiously active municipality of over 4,500
in the next fifteen years.
Unalaska is the Number One Fishing Port in the Nation, for poundage, and has maintained this
title for 22 consecutive years. The community provides public and private Port facilities supply
cargo cranes, domestic and export surface transportation, marine and aviation fuel, welders,
divers, fabricators, net repair, grocery stores, warehousing, logistics, fishing gear, electronics,
office supplies, restaurants and many other support service businesses. The City of Unalaska has
responded to the unprecedented growth with improvements in utilities, services, programs,
schools, and quality of life projects that provide an exemplary lifestyle in a remote and unique
region.
Today, once again, it is all about location as we look forward to the potential growth of Arctic
shipping, and energy and resource development. There is still much to be decided by outside
interests as we plan for future growth of our port and City infrastructure. How should a
community plan for business opportunities that may or may not come to fruition?
What are the market drivers for Arctic shipping through the Straits? Will sea ice allow for
shipping to occur on any kind of reliable schedule? Will it be cost effective to ship commodities
from Europe through the Northern Sea Route to Asia or the west coast of the United States? Will
there be interest in utilizing the Port of Dutch Harbor by shipping companies operating out of
Europe, Asia or the West Coast of the US?
Will the Oil and Gas Industry be successful in their exploratory drilling in the Arctic? How will
oil development impact our port’s support service sector, our Comprehensive Plan and our
existing fisheries partners? How will stakeholders effectively govern emergency response in the
Bering Straits? The process of balancing economics, logistics, safety and politics while crafting
responsible Arctic Policy is going to prove extremely complex and time consuming, however
Unalaska and its Port have been here over for 9,000 years and we aren’t going anywhere.
“Pacific Gateway to the Arctic”-it’s starting to make sense isn’t it?