American Notes: ALASKA

One ecodisaster in a lifetime is enough for Dennis Kelso, Alaska's commissioner of the department of environmental conservation. Unless tankers that use the 800-mile trans-Alaska pipeline submit individual spill contingency plans by Nov. 13, Kelso says he will deny them access to the port of Valdez, effectively shutting down the pipeline. George Bush has warned that a shutoff of oil would not be in the "national interest." This is not Alaska's first such threat. After the Exxon Valdez ran aground in March, Governor Steve Cowper told oil companies to increase safety measures or he would shut the pipeline. Now Cowper wants something in writing.