19–010 

Calendar No. 290 

112TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 2d Session 112–129 

KANTISHNA HILLS RENEWABLE ENERGY ACT 

JANUARY 13, 2012.—Ordered to be printed 

Filed, under authority of the order of the Senate of December 17, 2011 

Mr. BINGAMAN, from the Committee on Energy and Natural 

Resources, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany H.R. 441] 

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was 

referred the Act (H.R. 441) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to issue permits for a microhydro project in nonwilderness 

areas within the boundaries of Denali National Park and Preserve, 

to acquire land for Denali National Park and Preserve from Doyon 

Tourism, Inc., and for other purposes, having considered the same, 

reports favorably thereon without amendment and recommends 

that the Act do pass. 

PURPOSE

The purpose of H.R. 441 is to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to issue permits for a microhydro project in non-wilderness 

areas within the boundaries of Denali National Park and Preserve, 

and to exchange land managed by Denali National Park and Preserve with land from Doyon Tourism, Inc., which is located within 

the park. 

BACKGROUND AND NEED

The Kantishna Roadhouse is owned by Doyon Tourism, Inc., 

which is a subsidiary of Alaska Native Corporation Doyon, Ltd. It 

is a full-service lodge located 92 miles inside Denali National Park 

and Preserve at the end of the Denali Park Road. The original 

roadhouse at Kantishna was built in the early 1900s, serving as a 

private residence, a community center, post office, and an informal 


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hotel accommodations for those who came visiting Kantishna in 

Denali Park. 

The Roadhouse, like many structures within Denali National 

Park, is entirely off the grid and generates all of its electricity 

needs with a diesel generator. As a result, diesel must be trucked 

along Denali Park Road. The construction of this micro hydroelectric project would allow the Roadhouse to reduce their diesel 

use and transport by approximately 50 percent. This would result 

in less air and sound pollution in this remote area as well as reducing the risk of accident or spill, allowing for greater protection of 

visitors to the park, wildlife, and other resources in the park. 

The proposed microhydro generator would be supplied by Eureka 

Creek, a 4-mile long stream. Some water from the creek would be 

diverted through an at-grade water intake with a conduit to carry 

water downhill to the generator housed in one of Doyon Tourism’s 

buildings. The generator is capable of producing approximately 100 

kilowatts of power. An electrical distribution line would carry the 

electricity to the lodge, about 600 feet from the microhydro generator. A battery bank would store surplus electricity to accommodate peak power demands and maintenance shut-downs of the generator. Water diverted from Eureka Creek through the microhydro 

generator would be piped to Moose Creek, less than 100 feet downstream from the mouth of Eureka Creek. 

Other lodge operators in the park and the Eielson Visitor Center 

have successfully used a microhydro generator system to power 

their respective structures. H.R. 441 will allow the National Park 

Service to issue permits to the Kantishna Roadhouse for a similar 

power generation arrangement. In addition, H.R. 441 would authorize the Secretary to issue permits for other microhydro projects 

for in the Kantishna Hills area subject to applicable National Park 

Service terms and conditions. 

H.R. 441 also authorizes a land exchange between Denali National Park and Doyon Tourism, Inc., for the purpose of consolidating land holdings for both the park and Doyon. 

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

H.R. 441 was introduced by Representative Don Young and 

passed the House of Representatives by a voice vote on October 24, 

2011. 

A companion measure, S. 313, was introduced in the Senate by 

Senators Murkowski and Begich on February 10, 2011 (S. Hrg. 

112–124). The Subcommittee on National Parks held a hearing on 

S. 313 on May 11, 2011. At its business meeting on November 10, 

2011, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources ordered 

H.R. 441 favorably reported. 

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in open business session on November 10, 2011, by a voice vote of a quorum 

present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 441. 

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 provides for the short title, the Kantishna Hills Renewable Energy Act of 2011.’’ 


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Section 2 defines key terms used in the bill. 

Section 3(a) authorizes the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) 

to issue permits for microhydro projects in the Kantishna Hills 

area of Denali National Park and Preserve. 

Subsection (b) directs that each permit be in accordance with 

terms and conditions generally applicable to units of the National 

Park System and subject to such other terms and conditions as the 

Secretary determines to be necessary. 

Subsection (c) requires completion of any environmental analysis 

required by National Environment Policy Act within 180 days of 

submission of the application for issuance of the permit. 

Section 4(a) authorizes an exchange of land managed by Denali 

National Park and Preserve that is near the microhydro projects to 

Doyon Tourism, Inc., in exchange for approximately 18 acres owned 

by Doyon Tourism, Inc., within the Galena patented mining claim. 

The purpose of the land exchange is to consolidate lands managed 

by the park and those owned by Doyon Tourism, Inc. 

Subsection (b) directs that the Kantishna Hills Micro-Hydro Area 

map numbered 184/80,276 and dated August 27, 2010, be available 

for public inspection in the appropriate offices of the National Park 

Service. 

Subsection (c) provides that the Secretary seek to complete the 

land exchange no later than February 15, 2015. 

Subsection (d) requires the land exchange be subject to the laws 

and policies applicable to land managed by the National Park Service and to such terms and conditions as the Secretary deems necessary. 

Subsection (e) authorizes an equalization of values of the lands 

to be exchanged by adjusting the acreage should the parcels being 

exchanged be determined to not be of equal value. 

Subsection (f) requires the Secretary to manage the land acquired from Doyon Tourism, Inc., to be administered as part of 

Denali National Park and Preserve. 

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimate of costs of this measure has been provided 

by the Congressional Budget Office: 

H.R. 441—Kantishna Hills Renewable Energy Act of 2011 

H.R. 441 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to issue 

permits for microhydroelectric projects in the Kantishna Hills area 

of the Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska. The legislation also would authorize an exchange of land between the Department of the Interior and Doyon Tourism, Inc. 

Based on information from the National Park Service, CBO estimates that implementing the act would have no significant impact 

on the federal budget. Enacting H.R. 441 would not affect direct 

spending or revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not 

apply. 

H.R. 441 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments. 

On June 27, 2011, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 441 

as ordered reported by the House Committee on Natural Resources 


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on June 15, 2011. The two versions of the legislation are identical, 

and the CBO cost estimates are the same. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Martin von Gnechten. 

The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis. 

REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation 

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out 

H.R. 441. 

The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing 

Government-established standards or significant economic responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. 

No personal information would be collected in administering the 

program. Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. 

Little, if any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of H.R. 441, as ordered reported. 

CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING

H.R. 441, as ordered reported, does not contain any congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff 

benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules of the Senate. 

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

The testimony provided by the National Park Service at the May 

11, 2011, Subcommittee on National Parks hearing on S. 313 follows. 

STATEMENT OF STEPHEN E. WHITESELL, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, PARK PLANNING, FACILITIES AND LANDS, NATIONAL

PARK SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Mr. Chairman, thank you for the opportunity to present 

the views of the Department of the Interior on S. 313, a 

bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to issue permits for a micro-hydro project in non-wilderness areas 

within the boundaries of Denali National Park and Preserve, and for other purposes. 

The Department supports this legislation with amendments and recognizes improvements made from the similar 

bill introduced in the previous Congress. S. 313 would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to issue permits for 

micro-hydro projects in a limited area of the Kantishna 

Hills in Denali National Park. The legislation would also 

authorize a land exchange between the National Park 

Service (NPS) and Doyon Tourism, Inc. (Doyon) involving 

lands near the historic mining community of Kantishna 

that would be mutually beneficial to the NPS and Doyon. 

This legislation will reduce the use of fossil fuels in the 

park, and thus lessen the chance of fuel spills along the 

park road and at the Kantishna lodges. It will lower the 

number of non-visitor vehicle trips over the park road, 

lessen the noise and emissions from diesel generators in 


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the Moose Creek valley, and support clean energy projects 

and sustainable practices while ensuring that appropriate 

review and environmental compliance protects all park resources. 

Doyon Tourism, Inc., a subsidiary of Alaska Native Corporation Doyon, Ltd., has requested permits from the NPS 

to install a micro-hydroelectric project on Eureka Creek, 

near their Kantishna Roadhouse. The NPS supports the 

intent of this project, however, neither the Secretary nor 

the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has 

the statutory authority to issue permits for portions of hydroelectric projects within national parks or monuments. 

We believe that the authorization contained in this legislation is necessary to enable the NPS to allow this micro-hydroelectric project within the park. 

The Kantishna Roadhouse, at the end of the 92-milelong Denali park road, has been in business for 28 years, 

hosts approximately 10,000 guests per summer, and currently uses an on-site 100 kilowatt (KW) diesel generator 

to provide power for the facility. The proposed hydroelectric installation would reduce use of the diesel generator at the lodge. Currently, delivery of diesel fuel to the 

lodge requires a tanker truck and trailer to be driven the 

entire length of the Denali park road. Noted for its undeveloped character, the road is unpaved for 77 miles of its 

92-mile length, crosses high mountain passes without 

guardrails, and is just one to 11⁄2 lanes wide with pullouts. 

The road is justly famous for wildlife viewing opportunities 

and in order to protect wildlife as well as the road’s scenic 

wilderness character, vehicle traffic is limited. Reducing 

the amount of diesel fuel hauled over this road in tanker 

trucks protects park resources by reducing the risk of accident or spill, and simultaneously reduces overall vehicle 

use of the road. 

Eureka Creek is a 4-mile-long stream that drains a 5 

square-mile watershed and discharges about 15 cubic feet 

per second (cfs) during the summer. Most of the floodplain 

has been disturbed by past placer mining, but no mining 

claims exist on the creek now and no other landowners besides Doyon and the NPS own any property near this 

floodplain. The project would include an at-grade water intake, with no impoundment, about one mile upstream of 

where Eureka Creek crosses the park road. 

Camp Denali, another lodge in the Kantishna Hills, is 

within the area addressed by this legislation. Camp Denali 

opened in 1952 and the owners installed a micro-hydro 

generator system prior to the 1978 Presidential proclamation that included Kantishna as a part of what is now 

Denali National Park. After 1978, Camp Denali became a 

private in-holding surrounded by the park, and found that 

parts of its micro-hydro power system were within the 

park, a situation that the NPS lacks the authority to permit or retain. This legislation, if amended, would allow the 

NPS and the owners of Camp Denali to work out permit 

conditions for those parts of the existing hydro project that 


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are now on park land. Besides the Kantishna Roadhouse 

and Camp Denali, two other lodges in Kantishna may pursue similar projects in the future and thus would benefit 

from the authority granted in this legislation. 

Doyon owns 18 acres on the patented Galena mining 

claim in the Kantishna Hills and would like to exchange 

that acreage for park land in Kantishna of equal value 

near its other properties. The NPS would also like to pursue this exchange to consolidate land holdings in the area. 

Existing land exchange authority under the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) and 

other legislation is sufficient to affect this exchange. Thus, 

while we believe that this provision is unnecessary, we 

support its intent. 

Our concerns with the bill are as follows: 

(1) The bill as introduced requires the Secretary to complete National Environmental Policy Act compliance within 180 days of enactment. While the Department supports 

a speedy response to the applicant, we suggest the 180-day 

clock start upon submission of a complete application to 

the NPS. 

(2) The permitting authority provided by this bill would 

apply to several micro-hydroelectric projects in the 

Kantishna area, yet various elements of the bill as introduced appear to apply solely to a project by Doyon. Technical corrections to address this are identified in an attachment to this testimony. 

We believe that the permitting authority granted in S. 

313 would provide a tool that the Secretary could use to 

lower fossil fuel use in Denali National Park, while protecting park resources, and that a land exchange would be 

hastened through passage of this legislation. We would 

welcome the opportunity to work with the sponsor and this 

committee to address our concerns and recommendations. 

Mr. Chairman, this concludes my statement. I would be 

happy to answer any questions that you may have. 

ATTACHMENT

The NPS suggests the following technical corrections to 

H.R. 313: 

(1) On p. 1, line 2 of the long title, strike ‘‘for a 

microhydro project in nonwilderness’’ and insert ‘‘for 

microhydro projects in nonwilderness’’. 

(2) On p. 3, line 1, strike ‘‘(i) the intake pipeline located 

on Eureka Creek, approximately 1⁄2 mile upstream from 

the Park Road, as depicted on the map;’’ and insert ‘‘(i) intake pipelines;’’ 

(3) On p. 3, line 8, strike ‘‘line’’ and insert ‘‘lines’’. 

(4) On p. 3, line 14, strike ‘‘PROJECT’’ and insert 

‘‘PROJECTS’’. 


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CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by the bill H.R. 441, as ordered reported. 

Æ 


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