148 



activity that I've just described that we're prepared to go, to under- 

 take, they would clearly circumscribe our devoting other additional 

 assets to it. 



Senator MURKOWSKI. I want to take this opportunity to thank 

 you for inviting Dr. Wilford Weeks of the Geophysical Institute 

 here at the University of Alaska to be a member of your panel of 

 scientists, and I think this confirms our belief that Alaskan sci- 

 entists have achieved a level of experience in Arctic science that is 

 recognized throughout the world. I want to thank you very much, 

 Mr. Gates, for being with us today. I also want to recognize your 

 Congressional affairs liaison who is with us, Stan Moskowitz, an- 

 other Irishman. I don't know where Stan is but he's out there 

 somewhere. And I know you got up very, very early this morning 

 to fly up to Fairbanks and be with us, and we're going to have one 

 more panel and break for lunch. We'll have additional questions 

 and you can expect questions as well from other members of the 

 committee when I get back and brief them, and I want to again 

 thank you. I think that your testimony has provided a level of 

 credibility with regard to information that has been gathered by 

 our Intelligence Community on what has happened in the former 

 Soviet Union. And it's now a question of our government and our 

 scientists to address, in cooperation with the Russian scientific 

 community, a procedure for evaluation monitoring and then an ac- 

 tion oriented program to initiate what should be done. And I think 

 it's important to keep in mind that what we're attempting to do is 

 to make decisions based on sound science rather than emotion, be- 

 cause as highlighted by Mr. Bohlen and Mr. Gates, one could move 

 to some rather dramatic conclusions with this information on its 

 surface as opposed to the facts that we need to generate. And that's 

 something that occasionally in Washington we lack. Oftentimes, an 

 individual who makes the most compelling speech, who advances 

 the most emotional argument, or who has the best lobby often pre- 

 vails. On the other hand, I think it's fair to say that sometimes 

 there's a reluctance in the scientific community to step forward and 

 lay their reputation on the line with recommendations. But I think 

 we are appealing for that, we need that, and the presentation by 

 the panel this morning, I think, sets the tenor for the balance of 

 the witnesses relative to the obligation we have before us. And 

 without the facts and the information, we will not be able to gen- 

 erate action. So I want to thank you, gentlemen. You may be ex- 

 cused. 



I would call the Honorable Donald O'Dowd, Chairman of the Arc- 

 tic Research Commission. With Dr. O'Dowd no stranger to these 

 premises, please proceed. Dr. O'Dowd. 



[The prepared statement of Dr. O'Dowd follows:] 



