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Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge
To
Drill or Not to Drill, That is The Question
The
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is located in northeastern Alaska
The Arctic refuge would provide
less than a six-month supply of oil - which would not be available for ten
years. According to the 1998 U.S. Geological Survey study, the mean estimate of
economically recoverable oil from the Arctic refuge is 3.2 - 5.2 billion
barrels. This is equivalent to the amount of oil the U.S. consumes in about six
months. According to the Congressional Research Service, production from the
Arctic refuge would not come on line for ten years or more (RS21030, October, 1,
2001).
The much higher figure of 10.4
billion barrels of available oil often quoted by the Bush Administration and
others refers to the estimated amount of technically (not economically)
recoverable oil in the coastal plain of Arctic refuge. Even using this inflated
estimate, the Arctic refuge would provide less than one year of oil for the U.S.
The Arctic refuge would not
reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil. According to a March 12, 2001 report
issued by the Energy Information Administration (EIA), "the increased
production from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is projected to reduce the
net share of foreign oil used by the U.S. in 2020 from 62 percent to 60
percent."
We cannot drill our way out of
dependence on foreign oil. According to the EIA, the U.S. currently relies on
foreign imports for about 56 percent of its oil and domestic production accounts
for 44 percent. The U.S. consumes about 19 million barrels of oil daily. Of this
consumption, domestic production accounts for 8.1 million barrels of oil a day;
10.9 million barrels of oil per day is imported. The U.S. has approximately
three percent of the world's oil reserve but consumes 25 percent of the world's
oil. This is compared to 65 percent of the world's total reserve held by the
OPEC nations.
Management
designations within the Arctic Refuge
USFWS
map
The
area of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge that the proposed drilling is
to take place is an area designated as 1002. 1002
Area is only 10% of the total Refuge acreage, it includes most of the
Refuge's coastal plain and arctic foothills ecological zones. The 1002
Area contains just 4% of Alaska's coastal plain and foothills zones, but
is a crucial environmentally pivotal area.
USFWS
map
The
1002 Area is critically important to the ecological integrity of the whole
Arctic Refuge, providing essential habitats for numerous internationally
important species such as the Porcupine Caribou herd and polar bears. The
compactness and proximity of a number of arctic and sub-arctic ecological
zones in the Arctic Refuge provides for greater plant and animal diversity
than in any other similar sized land area on Alaska's North Slope.
Cartoon
courtesy of Clay Bennett
http://www.claybennett.com
editorial cartoonist for
The
Christian Science Monitor
In
1987 a Legislative Environmental Impact Statement (LEIS) that described
the potential impacts of oil and gas development was submitted to Congress.
The
report concluded that oil development and production in the 1002 Area
would have major effects on the Porcupine Caribou herd and muskoxen. Major
effects were defined as "widespread, long-term change in habitat
availability or quality which would likely modify natural abundance or
distribution of species." Moderate effects were expected for wolves,
wolverine, polar bears, snow geese, seabirds and shorebirds, arctic
grayling and coastal fish. Major restrictions on subsistence activities by
Kaktovik residents would also be expected.
The
United States Geological Survey estimated in 2000 that, assuming a
price of $24 per barrel, there is a 95% chance of finding 1.9 billion
barrels (BBO) of economically recoverable oil in the Arctic Refuge's 1002
Area; a 5% chance of finding 9.4 BBO; and a 50% chance of finding 5.3 BBO.
Map
of northern Alaska and nearby parts of Canada showing locations of the
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), the 1002 area, and the National
Petroleum Reserve—Alaska (NPRA). Locations of known petroleum
accumulations and the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) are shown, as
well as summaries of known petroleum volumes in northern Alaska and the
Mackenzie River delta of Canada. BBO, billion barrels of oil (includes
cumulative production plus recoverable resources); TCFG, trillion cubic
feet of gas recoverable resources.
Americans
use 19 million barrels of oil each day, or 7 billion barrels of oil per
year. There is, therefore, a 50% chance of finding a 9 month's supply of
oil in the 1002 Area, at $24 per barrel.
Map
of current oil and gas sites USFWS
Description
of the Refuge: Refuge Brochure Text
USFWS
Images
"This is the place
for man turned scientist and explorer; poet and artist. Here he can
experience a new reverence for life that is outside his own and yet a
vital and joyous part of it."
-William O. Douglas, US Supreme
Court Justice, 1939-1975
Untamed Country
The Arctic National
Wildlife Refuge is a vast and beautiful wilderness, one unique in North
America. Unique because it has a full range of arctic and sub-arctic
ecosystems. Unique also because the systems are whole and undisturbed,
functioning as they have for centuries, largely free of human control and
manipulation.
Inupiat Eskimos and
Athabascan Indians live in this place, following their ancestors who
survived here for generations.
Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge 19.8 million acres
South Carolina 19.9 million acres
A Northern Frontier
One of the world’s most
remote natural areas, the Arctic Refuge is a frontier--perhaps America’s
last--like those that helped shape America’s distinct cultural heritage.
Here conditions exist like those that once surrounded and shaped us--as
individuals and as a Nation.
"This wilderness
is big enough and wild enough to make you feel like one of the old-time
explorers . . ." -Lowell Sumner, Refuge Founder
A Conservation Legacy
Grassroots Movement
The move to protect this corner of Alaska began in the early 1950s.
Visionary conservationists George Collins, Lowell Sumner, and Olaus and
Mardy Murie, considered founders of the Refuge, launched a spirited
campaign to permanently safeguard the area. Their effort mobilized
thousands, including conservation leaders, sportsmen’s groups, garden
clubs and individuals. The effort succeeded.
Our Inheritance
The Arctic National Wildlife Range was established in 1960. This
designation was a promise to the American people to preserve the area’s
“unique wildlife, wilderness and recreational values.” Twenty years
later, Congress passed the “Alaska Lands Act.” The Act renamed the
area and more than doubled its size. Today the Arctic National Wildlife
Refuge includes nearly 20 million acres (the size of South Carolina),
three Wild rivers, and the largest designated Wilderness (eight million
acres) in the National Wildlife Refuge System.
The Act also authorized a
study of the oil and gas potential of the northern part of the Refuge
-1002 Area-. This touched off an epic
conservation battle that continues to this day.
"It is a whole
place, as true a wilderness as there is anywhere on this continent and
unlike any other that I know of." -Morris Udall, Former U.S.
Congressman
Mountains to Meadows
The majestic Brooks Range,
with peaks and glaciers to 9,000 feet, dominates the Refuge. These rugged
mountains extend east to west in a band 75 miles wide, rising abruptly
from a flat, tundra-covered plain. This treeless expanse is cut by
numerous braided rivers and streams. South of the continental divide,
rivers wind serpentine courses through broad, spruce-covered valleys
dotted with lakes and sloughs.
Rich and Fragile
Habitats
The Refuge includes an
array of landscapes and wildlife habitats--from the boreal forest of the
Porcupine River uplands . . . to the foothills and slopes of the Brooks
Range . . . to the arctic tundra of the coastal plain . . . to the lagoons
and barrier islands of the Beaufort Sea coast. Together these areas
contain hundreds of species of mosses, grasses, wildflowers, shrubs and
other plants.
The ground lies
permanently frozen below much of the Refuge. This impenetrable
“permafrost” layer causes many areas to remain wet during the summer.
Plants grow rapidly with 24-hour daylight, but the growing season is
short. These factors make the Refuge a fragile area easily impacted by
human activities. In this most northern of refuges, plant communities take
a long time to recover from disturbances.
Wildlife--A Special Mix
The Refuge contains the
greatest wildlife diversity of any protected area in the circumpolar
north. The animals are well adapted to the arctic, able to withstand a
range of extreme environmental conditions. Some species are at the
northern limit of their range. Many depend on the Refuge’s undisturbed
wilderness.
Birds
Nearly 180 species of birds have been seen on the Arctic Refuge. They come
from four continents to breed, rest or feed. A majority nest on the
Refuge.
First set aside in 1960 to
preserve its unique values, the Refuge more than doubled in size with
passage of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act in 1980.
Today the Refuge encompasses nearly 20 million acres, an area about the
size of South Carolina.
Nesting and related
activities occur April to July, depending on the species. Owls and jaegers
cruise low over the tundra hunting for lemmings. Golden eagles,
rough-legged hawks and peregrine falcons build aeries high on cliffs.
Loons and oldsquaw sound their yodeling calls from coastal lagoons. Pairs
of tundra swans dine on submerged plants in the quiet lakes of river
deltas. Sandpipers, plovers and sparrows tend well-camouflaged nests on
the open tundra.
In July, ducks and
shorebirds start gathering in lagoons and lakes to prepare for migration.
In late August, thousands of snow geese arrive on the coastal plain to
feed on cottongrass, building fat reserves for their journey south. By
mid-September, most birds depart for wintering areas in Asia, Africa,
South America, the South Pacific and every state except Hawaii. Ptarmigan,
ravens, gyrfalcons, dippers and a few other species remain to winter in
the long arctic night.
Mammals
Forty-five species of mammals live on the Refuge--thirty-six occur on
land, nine are marine species that can be seen along the coast. Some are
herd animals, many are not. Some migrate, most do not. All rely on the
unconfined open spaces of the Refuge.
Each year the Porcupine
caribou herd journeys more than 800 miles to and from its ancestral
calving grounds. In May and June, the herd migrates to the coastal plain
to give birth. By early July, the caribou leave for wintering areas south
of the Brooks Range.
Groups of agile Dall sheep
roam the mountainsides, grazing tundra plants and watching for predators.
Moose browse willow thickets near rivers and lakes.
Herds of shaggy
muskoxen forage year-round on the coastal plain, mostly along rivers.
Polar bears dig maternity dens in snow drifts during winter, returning to
the sea ice in spring to hunt seals.
Age-old struggles for
survival continue on the Refuge just as they always have. Grizzly bears
chase ground squirrels, digging like backhoes into their burrows. Wolf
packs pursue caribou and moose, seeking those unable to keep up or defend
themselves. Lynx zig-zag through the forest after snowshoe hares. Weasels
and fox pounce on voles and lemmings. Lone wolverines scavenge the
leftovers.
Fish
The Refuge provides habitat for 36 species of fish, mostly in the rich
coastal lagoons. Several coastal plain rivers contain arctic char and
grayling. Many rivers south of the mountains support grayling, northern
pike and whitefish.
A Wilderness for the
Ages
The Arctic Refuge is
recognized as one of the finest examples of wilderness left on the planet.
It is among the last to be visited by modern man and among the least
affected by his doings. It’s a place where the wild has not been taken
out of the wilderness.
Untold mountains, diverse
wildlife and a wealth of habitats give this unspoiled national treasure
first-rate cultural, scenic, scientific and experiential values. Values
that are ageless. Values that make the Refuge a national symbol of
wilderness.
The Refuge is a place that
changes those who visit. It’s a place that is precious to millions who
never will. It’s a place whose existence strengthens our awareness of
and sense of responsibility for the natural world.
"The Arctic has a
strange stillness to it that no other wilderness knows. It has loneliness
too--a feeling of isolation and remoteness born of vast spaces . . ."
[William O. Douglas, US Supreme Court Justice, 1939-1975]
Protecting the Values
The entire Refuge is
managed to maintain its natural condition, diversity of wildlife and
habitats, scenery and other special values. Management efforts focus
primarily on surveys, research studies, monitoring and education.
"It takes a lot of
territory to keep this alive, a living wilderness for scientific
observation and for aesthetic inspiration" Olaus Murie, Refuge
Founder
Refuge employees survey
wildlife and plants to determine their abundance and productivity. The
information helps ensure the long-term health of wildlife populations and
habitats while allowing for human use.
Employees cooperate with
others on research, gathering information about the Refuge and the effects
of human disturbance in the arctic. They seek to minimize the impacts of
human activities on refuge resources, values and visitors through
education, monitoring and law enforcement.
Credit:
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Clay Bennett |
