The price of gas today and in the future will be part of the business case modeling done to justify the build.  And current and forecast prices don't allow AK gas to be sold at market rates with the pipeline costs built in.  If in 30 years time world nat gas prices support both the cost of production on the slope and the transportation costs via pipeline, then build it then.  We don't build schools before they can be filled and we shouldn't build a pipeline before it's economically feasible. None of the other transportation facilities you mention support a single commodity, which the gas line does...therefore, industry should build it, not the state.  Additionally, by the time prices support it, the arctic may have thawed enough to allow a deep water port up north that would obviate the need for the pipeline altogether.