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Edward Lee Gorsuch Page 3 



UAA researchers have over 30 years of experience In social, economic and 

 environmental assessment work In the Clrcumpolar North, conducting large random 

 surveys, geographically mapping resident fishing, hunting, and food gathering 

 activities of culturally diverse groups; projecting population, employment, and 

 Income changes associated with natural disasters or potential large scale 

 resource development projects; assessing the relative benefits and costs of 

 alternative mitigation strategies; and organizing effective public participation 

 in the conduct of sensitive research. 



The University hosts the headquarters of the International Union of 

 Clrcumpolar Health which networks bio-medical and epidemiological researchers 

 throughout the clrcumpolar region. The Institute of Social and Economic Research 

 has active cooperative research agreements with its counterpart Institutes 

 throughout the Russian North. Academician Alexander Granberg, the Chairman of 

 the RAS's Arctic Research Commission has, for the past two years, held a 

 distinguished visiting professorship with the University. Similar cooperative 

 agreements with bio-medical and health professional organizations of Russia's Far 

 North and the University of Alaska have been active for many years. 



I would like to make two concluding remarks regarding the proposed study. 

 First, Spe&king from a public policy perspective, the study should be designied 

 within the context of what can and should be done. Simply assessing the problem 

 is not adequate. Remediation, decontamination, and other mitigation alternatives 

 should be Integral components of the study, and each alternative associated with 

 the varying degrees of risk should be assessed for its relative costs and 



